What a hosepipe ban actually means
A hosepipe ban is formally a Temporary Use Ban, declared by your water company under Section 76 of the Water Industry Act 1991. Councils cannot declare one and neither can central government. The rules that apply to you are set by whichever company supplies your water.
What a ban stops
- Watering a garden, lawn or plants with a hosepipe
- Using a sprinkler or any automatic irrigation fed from the mains
- Cleaning a private car, van or motorbike with a hosepipe
- Cleaning walls, windows, paths, patios or decking with a hosepipe
- Filling or topping up a swimming pool, paddling pool or hot tub
- Filling or maintaining an ornamental pond or fountain
- Cleaning a private leisure boat
What stays allowed
- Watering with a watering can or a bucket. This is never restricted
- Water you have collected yourself, from a water butt or greywater
- Drip and trickle irrigation fitted with a pressure reducing valve and timer, under most notices
- Hand watering with a shut-off nozzle, under some notices
- Watering newly laid turf, usually for a limited period after laying
- Any commercial use where the hosepipe is directly needed for the business
Exemptions differ between companies, and the list above is the common ground rather than a guarantee. Your supplier’s own notice is the authority.
The fine
The maximum penalty is £1,000 per offence on summary conviction. That is the number every headline quotes, and it is accurate as a ceiling.
What the headlines leave out is that prosecutions are rare. Companies overwhelmingly rely on a warning first, and escalate only on repeat breaches. No water company wants to take a customer to court over a hosepipe.
Exemptions by company
Only companies with a restriction publish an exemption list. Each links to the notice it came from.
South East Water
- Watering with a watering can or bucket
- Drip or trickle irrigation fitted with a pressure reducing valve and timer
- Water from a water butt or other non-mains source
- Blue Badge holders and Priority Services Register customers
- Newly laid turf, for a limited period after laying
- Commercial use where the hosepipe is directly needed for the business
Thames Water
- Watering with a watering can or bucket
- Drip or trickle irrigation fitted with a pressure reducing valve and timer
- Water from a water butt or other non-mains source
- Blue Badge holders and Priority Services Register customers
- Newly laid turf, for a limited period after laying
- Commercial use where the hosepipe is directly needed for the business
Anglian Water
- Watering with a watering can or bucket
- Drip or trickle irrigation fitted with a pressure reducing valve and timer
- Water from a water butt or other non-mains source
- Blue Badge holders and Priority Services Register customers
- Newly laid turf, for a limited period after laying
Southern Water
- Watering with a watering can or bucket
- Drip irrigation and soaker hoses
- Hand watering with a shut-off nozzle
- Collected rainwater
- Priority Services Register customers with medical needs
- Newly laid turf for 28 days after laying, on prior request
Affinity Water
- Watering with a watering can or bucket
- Water from a water butt or other non-mains source
- Blue Badge and Priority Services Register customers, automatic under Annex 2
- WaterSure tariff customers
- Drip and trickle irrigation with a pressure reducing valve and timer
- Turf laid within the previous four weeks
Cambridge Water
- Watering with a watering can or bucket
- Drip or trickle irrigation fitted with a pressure reducing valve and timer
- Water from a water butt or other non-mains source
- Blue Badge holders and Priority Services Register customers
South West Water
- Watering with a watering can or bucket
- Drip or trickle irrigation fitted with a pressure reducing valve and timer
- Water from a water butt or other non-mains source
- Blue Badge holders and Priority Services Register customers
Welsh Water
- Watering with a watering can or bucket
- Drip or trickle irrigation fitted with a pressure reducing valve and timer
- Water from a water butt or other non-mains source
- Blue Badge holders and Priority Services Register customers
The detail, topic by topic
- What you can still do , watering cans, collected water and the statutory list
- Priority Services Register and Blue Badge exemptions
- Rules for businesses , car washes, window cleaners and trades
- Fines and enforcement , what the £1,000 really means
- Newly laid turf
- Drip irrigation and soaker hoses
Common questions
What is a Temporary Use Ban?
It is the legal name for a hosepipe ban, made under Section 76 of the Water Industry Act 1991. A water company declares one for some or all of its supply area by publishing a formal notice. It restricts specific domestic uses of a hosepipe fed from the mains; it does not restrict how much water you use overall.
Is the £1,000 fine real?
The maximum penalty on summary conviction is £1,000 per offence, and it is real, but prosecutions are very rare. In practice companies rely on a warning first and reserve enforcement for repeated breaches after that warning. Treat it as the ceiling, not the going rate.
Am I exempt if I am on the Priority Services Register?
Often, but it depends on the notice. Several companies, including Affinity Water, automatically exempt Priority Services Register customers and Blue Badge holders in the notice itself. Others handle it case by case. Check the exemptions in your own supplier's notice, which we link from every status card.
Can I water a new lawn during a ban?
Usually yes, for a limited window after laying. Most notices allow hosepipe watering of newly laid turf for a set period, commonly 28 days. Southern Water is stricter and asks you to request permission first. An established lawn gets no exemption anywhere.
Does a ban apply to businesses?
Not where the hosepipe is directly needed for the business. A commercial car wash, a garden centre watering stock or a plumber testing a system are not caught by a domestic Temporary Use Ban. The restriction targets domestic use.
My neighbour is using a hosepipe. Should I report them?
They may well be exempt, or supplied by a different company. Boundaries follow historical infrastructure rather than streets, so two adjoining houses can genuinely have different rules. If you do want to report a breach, every company has its own reporting channel; we would suggest checking the supplier first.