Hosepipe ban FAQs
We go through some of the most frequently asked questions from our customers. If you need any further help, contact us using our online form.
Exemptions
Some customers, activities and businesses may be exempt from the hosepipe ban.
We go through some of the most frequently asked questions from our customers. If you need any further help, contact us using our online form.
Some customers, activities and businesses may be exempt from the hosepipe ban.
If any of the following situations apply to you, you can continue to use hosepipes for these purposes.
Please remember to use water carefully and avoid wasting it wherever possible to protect supplies and the environment around us.
The Thames Water hosepipe ban does not apply to customers who only receive wastewater services from Thames Water. However, your water supplier may have its own restrictions in place. Check who your water supplier is.
You can use a hosepipe if it's needed to protect the health or safety of people or animals and prevent the spread of disease or invasive species.
This includes:
People with severe mobility problems can continue to use a hosepipe to:
You do not need to hold a Blue Badge to qualify.
Not all our Priority Service customers are exempt.
Customers on our Priority Services Register can continue to use a hosepipe if they:
These people can continue to use a hosepipe to:
Register for Priority Services to qualify for the exemptions above.
You can use a hosepipe to water:
You can continue to water gardens and plants using an approved drip or trickle irrigation system if it:
You can fill or maintain:
You can also:
You can use a hosepipe to:
Businesses can continue to use hosepipes when providing services to customers, including:
You can use a hosepipe to fill a caravan or motorhome water tank when the water is needed for:
A hosepipe or sprinkler can be used if needed to remove or reduce a health and safety risk to people or animals and to prevent or control the spread of disease. You can only water the grass areas actively used for play (not the entire grounds).
For full terms and conditions, view our legal notice.
The hosepipe ban applies to all water customers of Thames Water. This is other than the exemptions listed in the previous question.
Our wastewater-only customers are not affected.
We have exceptions for this. Learn more in the legal notice.
You can still fill or maintain your pool or hot tub in this case.
No, the ban doesn’t apply to pools used for:
In these FAQs we use the term business to include any non-household. This includes public sector organisations and charities.
No, hospitals and prisons are exempt from the restrictions. We encourage using watering cans or more efficient products where possible.
No - there are exemptions for agricultural land. This includes land used to grow crops, fruit, vegetables or plants as part of a business.
No - there are exemptions for plants grown or kept for sale or commercial use. We encourage using watering cans or more efficient products where possible.
If you have a flowerbed on your premises that isn’t for sale, then you cannot use a hosepipe for this.
Please note, filling ornamental fountains with a hosepipe is also prohibited. This is unless it's necessary to supply sufficient oxygen to the water in a pond to keep fish healthy.
In general, hoses and sprinklers can’t be used in parks and public gardens and other green spaces. There are exemptions for health and safety, and for National Plant Collections.
You are allowed to use a hosepipe to water:
This only applies for trees planted within the last 3 years. We encourage using watering cans or more efficient products where possible.
Hosepipes and sprinklers cannot be used for watering hanging baskets and floral displays. We welcome every organisation’s support to use water as efficiently as they can.
No. You can’t use a hosepipe for this. You’d have to use an alternative such as a watering can or drip or trickle irrigation systems.
No, commercial services for customers can still be done using a hose or jet washer. This includes cleaning:
No, these services can still be done using a hose or jet washer.
You can clean your vehicle if it falls under the following:
All other vehicles used by businesses are covered by the ban and a hosepipe can’t be used to wash them.
We encourage businesses to reduce or delay cleaning their vehicles during the drought. This is unless it’s needed for health and safety reasons.
You wouldn’t be able to use your hosepipe for this. You’d need to find an alternative way to keep the vehicle clean such as using a bucket and sponge.
You wouldn’t be able to use your hosepipe for this. You’d need to find an alternative way to keep the cars clean, such as using a bucket and sponge.
You can use customers' hosepipes and sprinklers if it's related to your business. This excludes the watering of domestic gardens. We encourage the use of low water usage technology, such as a low water use pressure washer.
Hosepipes can’t be used on domestic or non-commercial gardens or plants. The only exemption is for newly laid/sown lawns and new planting, which they can water with a hose for the first 28 days. You can continue to water plants in other ways such as by using a watering can.
You cannot fill or maintain an ornamental fountain/water feature with a hosepipe. This is unless this is necessary to supply sufficient oxygen to the water in a pond to keep fish healthy.
No, they’re not impacted by the ban.
Yes, hosepipes can be used within places of worship or community pools. This is if it's part of a religious ceremony.
Yes. The temporary usage ban does affect sporting grounds, golf courses and recreational facilities. These business types should minimise their water use and only use mains water on the following permitted areas.
Examples where watering would be permitted:
Golf courses
Football stadium or sports ground
Cricket ground
You need to contact your retailer to discuss any implications the ban may have on your bill. All business customers in England are served by licensed retail providers. This is since April 2017. You will be able to find details of who your retailer is on your water or sewerage bill.
Yes, this is allowed, as long as you’re using an approved drip or trickle irrigation watering system. It must be fitted with a pressure reducing valve and a timer, that are not handheld. They must place water drip by drip directly onto or beneath the soil surface. It must not cause surface run off or dispersion of water through the air using a jet or mist.
A hosepipe can be used to water food crops at domestic premises or private allotments. This is only if it cannot be reasonably done by a watering can.
You can only use a hose or sprinkler if the laying, sowing or planting was completed by a business as a service. In this case, hose use is allowed for the first 28 days from the day of planting, sowing or turf laying. The hosepipe must only be used on the new planting, and not elsewhere.
After 28 days, you must stop using a hose. You can still use a watering can instead (or an irrigation system as described in the previous question).
A hosepipe can be used to water standard trees, whips, saplings and hedging planted within a three-year window of the imposition of the TUB (i.e. within the last three years of the start of a TUB), where this cannot be hand-watered or watered with non-potable water.
Standard trees in urban settings (such as streets) are not covered by the Temporary Use Ban as they do not fall within the definition of being in an area classed as a “garden”, or “domestic or other non-commercial premises” and therefore you can continue to water them with a hosepipe.
No, hosepipes can’t be used on domestic or non-commercial gardens or plants. The only exemption is for newly laid/sown lawns and new planting. They can be watered with a hose for the first 28 days, as mentioned in the previous question.
Yes, if you have a short piece of hose (maximum 30cm), you can use that to fill up your watering can.
If you have fish or other aquatic animals in a pool or pond, you can use a hose to fill or maintain this.
You can only fill or maintain an ornamental fountain if:
If it’s essential to complete the construction, this is allowed. But if you can delay building the pool until we’re out of the drought, this would really help.
Once the swimming pool is finished, water use for filling and maintenance is not allowed.
You can’t use a hosepipe to clean private leisure boats, except:
Yes, you can use water for activities like drinking, cooking and washing.
A hosepipe or sprinkler can be used if needed to remove or reduce a health and safety risk to people or animals and to prevent or control the spread of disease. You can only water the grass areas actively used for play (not the entire grounds).
This is officially known as a Temporary Usage Ban (TUB). It's a restriction on customers using a hosepipe.
This is put in place to help preserve water and ensure there’s enough water to go around.
We’ve had a very dry spring and record-breaking hot weather in May, June and July. This has meant people have been using more water than normal. The lack of rainfall also means our natural water sources are not being replenished.
The Met Office is predicting this hotter, drier weather will continue. The Environment Agency have declared a drought. We need to protect our supplies now, so we can keep taps flowing as we move through the summer and beyond.
The hot weather also means more water is lost through evaporation from water bodies such as rivers and lakes. Managing the amount of water we take from rivers can help protect local wildlife.
When it’s hot, lots of us use extra water outdoors for things like watering gardens, filling paddling pools and washing cars. This puts extra pressure on water supplies. We’re currently using an average of 100 million litres more water across London and the Thames Valley every day. This is equivalent to adding all the homes in Manchester to our network.
Introducing a hosepipe ban is not a step we take lightly. We’ll keep the situation under review and remove the ban as soon as it’s no longer needed.
No, but some of our reservoir levels are below average for this time of year. We need to protect our water supply now, so we can keep taps flowing throughout the summer and beyond
The record-breaking heat has significantly increased demand for water, with some households with outdoor space using 50% more water than normal. The lack of rainfall means our natural water sources are not being replenished. The Met Office is predicting this hotter, drier weather will continue and the Environment Agency have declared a drought. We need to take action now.
The hot weather also means more water is lost through evaporation from water bodies such as rivers and lakes. Managing the amount of water we take from rivers can help protect local wildlife.
This will depend on the weather – although our customers’ help in using water wisely will also be vital. We need prolonged and significant rainfall. We’ll be carefully keeping a close eye on our water levels and will let you know when the ban can be lifted.
There are certain exceptions where you can continue to use hosepipes. You can find the full list in the legal notice.
We hope our customers will continue to use water wisely, as they have done already this summer. We’re really grateful for everyone’s help.
You don't need to contact us about neighbours using hosepipes. We will get in touch with customers who repeatedly don’t follow the rules. This is to make sure they’re aware of the restrictions and how to use water responsibly. Please do not call 999 if you see someone using a hosepipe.
Compensation doesn’t apply during a hosepipe ban. It only applies during an Emergency Drought Order, which isn't the case here.
We understand how frustrating it can be to face water use restrictions. The recent increase in charges is part of a long-term investment and has been approved by Ofwat. We're improving our infrastructure, protecting water quality, and supporting environmental sustainability. This includes investing in 100km of water mains since April 2025. These upgrades are essential to deliver the progress we need to meet new regulatory standards and provide a reliable service to our customers for years to come.
The record-breaking heat has significantly increased demand for water, with some households with outdoor space using 50% more water than normal. The lack of rainfall means our natural water sources are not being replenished. The Met Office is predicting this hotter, drier weather will continue and the Environment Agency has declared a drought. We need to protect our supplies now.
The hot weather also means more water is lost through evaporation from water bodies such as rivers and lakes. Managing the amount of water we take from rivers can help protect local wildlife.
We’ve introduced this hosepipe ban to help protect water supplies so everyone has access to clean water.
Every drop of water we supply comes from the environment. We’re asking our customers to use water wisely during this challenging time. Your efforts make a real difference in helping us maintain service for all our customers.
Water use restrictions may vary between water companies. Each has to carefully assess its local water resource to determine whether any exemptions can be made.
No, we will not be reducing customer bills as a result of introducing a hosepipe ban.
Metered customers pay for the water that they use. As a hosepipe won’t have been used during restrictions, no charges will have been applied. No charge reductions would be applicable to metered customers.
Unmetered customers don’t have charges that relate to the use of hosepipes. So, there are no charges made in respect of prohibited uses that would reasonably need to be reduced.
This is in line with the Flood and Water Management Act 2010 and section 76(6) of the Water Industry Act 1991.
We understand how frustrating it can be to face water use restrictions.
The record-breaking heat has significantly increased demand for water, with some households with outdoor space using 50% more water than normal. The lack of rainfall means our natural water sources are not being replenished. The Met Office is predicting this hotter, drier weather will continue and the Environment Agency has declared a drought. We need to protect our supplies now.
The hot weather also means more water is lost through evaporation from water bodies such as rivers and lakes. Managing the amount of water we take from rivers can help protect local wildlife.
We’ve introduced this hosepipe ban to help protect water supplies so everyone has access to clean water.
The recent increase in charges is part of a long-term investment and has been approved by Ofwat. Despite our efforts to avoid price increases, extra funding is now essential to make improvements to our services, maintain high water quality and look after the environment.
The increase in bills means we can invest in our network and infrastructure as part of our biggest upgrade in 150 years.These upgrades are essential to deliver the progress we need to meet new regulatory standards and provide reliable services for years to come.
Exemptions apply if the water use relates to commercial purposes, or for health and safety reasons.
More details are given in our business FAQ.
Yes – you can still use water that is not sourced from the mains. This includes:
We know customers expect us to tackle leakage, particularly when we are asking people to reduce their water use. Hot, dry conditions also increase the risk of leaks and bursts. When the ground becomes very dry it can move and place additional pressure on water pipes, causing more leaks.
We’re reducing leakage across our network by fixing over 750 leaks every week. We’re also targeting hot spot areas and increasing the number of teams on the ground finding and fixing leaks. In the last week we repaired 945 leaks across our region and we’re spending over 50,000 hours a month locating invisible leaks around the clock.
We’ve installed over 1.3 million smart meters, which are critical in helping us to locate leaks at our customers' homes. We’ll continue to roll out smart water meters to households in our area.
We’ve also installed almost 75,000 acoustic sensors on our water network. They listen for leaks every night and we expect to have 100,000 in place by mid-2027. We’re also using AI to help analyse this data so we can find them faster. Our latest project uses satellite data and AI technology to find leaks underground and so far we’ve found more than 2,500 leaks this way.
Last year, we started our biggest upgrade programme, where we’re investing £20 billion over 5 years to improve the resilience of our pipes and sites. As part of this, we’ve already replaced 100km of water mains since April 2025, which helps to reduce leakage over the long-term.