Data solutions expert, Sagacity, in partnership with Southern Water and a consortium of cross-industry experts[1], have revealed the findings of the Proof of Concept for Water4All – a data-driven solution enabling water suppliers to identify and predict financial vulnerability at a household level.
The initial findings of the Proof of Concept show that shockingly, over a fifth of pensioners in ‘severe financial difficulty’ are not receiving the benefits they’re eligible for.
Water4All, funded through Ofwat’s innovation fund, Water Breakthrough Challenge 2, provides an end-to-end financial affordability and benefit eligibility solution, enabling water companies to give proactive, targeted and tailored support – whether that’s helping customers access financial assistance, or reduce bills and water consumption. The solution applies advanced analytics and machine learning to correlate a range of data sources, such as age, household composition and income, to determine whether a customer is eligible for support.
During the proof of concept Sagacity demonstrated how the full solution will work which involved the analysis of 300,000 anonymized records from Southern Water, to ascertain whether people are claiming available support. Financial vulnerability was broken down into four categories, with “Severe Difficulties” meaning customers have significant indicators of ongoing financial distress.
The Proof of Concept highlighted many individuals are not in receipt of the support they are eligible for. Of the 15,000 customers potentially eligible for Pension Credit:
- One in four do not claim them and 63% are not on a social tariff – with almost one in five (16%) living in poverty without either Pension Credit or social tariff support in place
- 22% of those classified as being in ‘severe difficulty’ aren’t on a social tariff, when they need help the most
- On the other side of the coin, 35% are claiming for a social tariff, despite being able to manage their finances and showing no signs of financial difficulty
Rachel Ryan-Crisp, Head of Customer Services and Vulnerability Lead for Southern Water, said: “We are proud to be part of the consortium supporting Water4All and in taking a leading role to tackle this problem. With the cost-of-living spiralling, many people are struggling for the first time in their lives – and as we can see, not everybody knows help exists, or is comfortable claiming. While we do our very best to support all of our vulnerable and low income households, it is a challenge reaching everyone who is eligible for support. This is why this project has been so valuable in ensuring nobody is left behind.”
Capitalising on the potential to make a real difference
The Proof of Concept focused on the delivery of a tangible Water4All model and conceptual design for the tool, testing the concept with partners and stakeholders, and demonstrating both the vision and potential positive impact of Water4All on customers. The Consortium has now applied for follow on funding for a second phase, widening the scope of the solution to build a solid framework for proactive, targeted support, helping water suppliers to:
- Clean and enrich data. The collaborative solution will break new ground by bringing together customer and consumption data from different suppliers for the first time. This information will be cleaned, processed, and combined with affordability, financial, fraud and benefits data to verify details and identify signs of financial vulnerability, such as late payments.
- Reach out proactively. Suppliers will act on this insight by proactively reaching out to customers and offering targeted advice and support on an individual level, as early as possible. This will take the onus off people needing to find out about help that’s available by themselves, with bespoke practical support from specialist agencies ensuring nobody is left to suffer in silence.
- Tailor support to individual needs. Suppliers will be able to draw on insight from vulnerability experts, tailoring communications to scenarios customers commonly find themselves in. This will build trust and rapport, so customers engage with suppliers and accept assistance – whether that’s somebody in long term financial hardship or a household that’s ‘just about managing’ financially, heeding advice on how to cut consumption and lower bills.
“In this daunting period, Water4All shines a beacon of hope. Working together, the industry can go way beyond meeting its regulatory obligations, making a real difference. We want to end fuel poverty, ensuring bills are affordable for all,” said Anita Dougall, Co-Founder and CEO of Sagacity. “Colouring outside the lines between suppliers will be particularly helpful when customers move house, or supplier. Any existing support they had in place will be flagged to their new suppliers, who can automatically apply it. We want to support Ofwat’s call for cross-sector collaboration, extending the project across the wider utilities industry. We’re excited about the prospect of water and energy suppliers joining forces, weaving all the threads together to ensure households receive as much assistance as possible.”
[1] Water4All is supported by a Consortium of experts skilled in vulnerability, technology and customer engagement. This includes Southern Water, Sagacity, Equifax, Synectics Solutions, Advizzo, Auriga, Agility Eco and Waterwise, with a number of Advisory Groups also in place to support independent customer research
