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UK water companies do not have one nationwide “drought ban”. The legal power depends on the nation and the severity of the shortage. In England, a company can introduce a temporary use ban (TUB), commonly called a hosepipe ban, after public notice. More serious shortages can lead to a drought permit or drought order, which may change abstraction from rivers and aquifers and, in some cases, restrict customer use. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland operate different statutory systems. Your supplier’s current notice is the definitive source for the affected area, dates, prohibited activities and exemptions.
What a UK water company can do during a drought
A water company’s first formal demand-reduction measure in England is usually a temporary use ban. A TUB limits named, non-essential uses of mains water rather than stopping every household from using water. The restriction might cover watering a garden with a hose, washing a vehicle, or filling a paddling pool, but the exact list is set by the company’s notice.
If customer restrictions and other conservation measures are not enough, the company can seek a drought permit or drought order. Those instruments primarily address the amount of water that can be abstracted, discharged or released from a source. An order can also authorise wider limits on water use. In an extreme emergency, an order can permit standpipes or water tanks, although Environment Agency guidance says emergency drought orders have not been used since 1976.
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England: temporary use bans (hosepipe bans)
Legal basis and notice process
Section 76 of the Water Industry Act 1991 allows an English water company to impose a temporary use ban. The company does not need prior approval from the Environment Agency to make the ban, but it must follow a public-notice process and allow representations before the restriction begins. The Water Use (Temporary Bans) Order 2010 describes the categories of use that can be restricted.
The notice is legally and practically important. It identifies the geographical area, the customer activities covered, the start date and any exemptions. A company may apply a restriction to all of its supply area or only to named districts, towns or customer groups. Two companies can therefore issue different rules during the same weather event.
Uses that may be restricted
The Environment Agency gives garden watering, filling paddling pools and washing cars as examples of non-essential hosepipe uses. A notice can specify other activities within the statutory framework. A TUB is not automatically a ban on every way of watering a garden, nor is it automatically a ban on every use of water. Read the wording of the notice rather than relying on the informal phrase “hosepipe ban”.
Exemptions are also local. The notice may set out exceptions for particular circumstances or equipment, but an exemption in one company’s notice cannot be assumed to apply elsewhere. If the notice is unclear, ask the supplier which activity and method it covers before using water.
When a TUB can be used
Government guidance describes TUBs as an early formal way to reduce customer demand. It says a company should generally implement a TUB before a drought permit is issued, unless its drought plan explains why a ban is not appropriate. A TUB can be introduced outside a formally declared drought and at any time of year; summer demand is simply when restrictions are often most useful.
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What a TUB does not mean
- It does not create one set of rules for the whole United Kingdom.
- It does not necessarily prohibit all outdoor water use or every watering method.
- It does not automatically apply to every customer served by the same company if the notice names a smaller area or customer category.
- It does not replace the need to check the start date, review arrangements, exemptions and cancellation wording in the notice.
What happens if a temporary ban is not enough?
Drought permits
A drought permit is an application-based power for a water undertaker. In England, the Environment Agency decides whether to grant it. A permit can authorise the company to take water from a specified source or suspend or modify an existing restriction or obligation on abstraction, subject to the permit’s conditions.
Government guidance expects a company to show that it has taken additional conservation steps before applying. Examples include publicity campaigns, temporary use restrictions, leakage control and reducing mains pressure. The permit therefore addresses the supply side as well as demand: it can alter how the company obtains water while the company demonstrates measures to conserve it.
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Ordinary drought orders
An ordinary drought order can authorise specified actions such as taking or discharging water, limiting abstractions, or allowing a water company to prohibit or limit particular uses of water. In England, the Secretary of State grants drought orders. The order’s conditions define what the company may do; it is not a blanket power to impose any restriction without limits.
A drought order may therefore affect two different things:
- Environmental abstraction: how much water can be removed from a river, reservoir, aquifer or other source, or what discharge arrangements apply.
- Customer use: whether specified uses can be prohibited or limited beyond the ordinary TUB arrangements.
Emergency drought orders
An emergency drought order is reserved for a serious supply deficiency likely to impair economic or social well-being. It gives broader discretion over prohibited or limited water uses and can authorise emergency distribution arrangements such as standpipes or water tanks. The Environment Agency reports that no emergency drought order has been used since 1976, so this is an exceptional legal power rather than the normal next step after a hosepipe ban.
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How the four UK nations differ
| Nation | Main customer-restriction or drought mechanism | Authority and practical effect |
|---|---|---|
| England | Temporary use bans under the Water Industry Act 1991; drought permits; ordinary and emergency drought orders | Water companies issue TUBs after notice and representations. The Environment Agency grants drought permits. The Secretary of State grants drought orders. |
| Wales | Drought permits and drought orders administered under the Welsh system | Natural Resources Wales grants drought permits and advises on drought-order applications. Welsh Ministers grant drought orders. A permit or order can allow additional abstraction, reduce other abstractions or restrict specified water uses. |
| Scotland | Water shortage supply orders under Part 7 of the Water Resources (Scotland) Act 2013 | Scottish Water may propose an order to Scottish Ministers when it believes a serious or threatened serious supply deficiency exists. |
| Northern Ireland | Drought orders under the Water and Sewerage Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006 | The Department can make an order after an exceptional shortage of rain. A water undertaker may apply where there is a deficiency in the water supply. |
These systems are not interchangeable. An English TUB notice should not be treated as a description of Welsh, Scottish or Northern Irish law, and a restriction announced by a company operating across a border may still have different legal details in each nation.
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How to read your local restriction notice
If you receive a letter, email or website notice, use this checklist before changing how you use water:
- Identify the legal mechanism. Confirm whether it is a TUB, drought permit, drought order or another national measure. The mechanism indicates whether the main effect is on customer use, abstraction, or both.
- Check the area. Look for named postcodes, districts, supply zones or customer categories. Do not assume the notice covers every area served by the company.
- Read the prohibited activities. Look for specific wording about garden watering, vehicle washing, pools, cleaning, or other outdoor uses. “Hosepipe ban” is a shorthand, not the complete list.
- Look for equipment and method limits. The notice may distinguish a hosepipe from another watering method. A garden watering can may be an option where the restriction specifically concerns hosepipe watering, but confirm that the local notice treats the alternative as permitted.
- Record the start date and duration. A restriction may begin after the notice period, have a stated review date, or end only when the company formally cancels it.
- Check exemptions. Find out whether the notice contains exceptions relevant to your circumstances. Never import an exemption from another company’s notice.
- Use the supplier’s updates. Conditions can change as rainfall, storage and demand change. The company’s current notice is more reliable than an old social-media post or a general national headline.
Everyday questions about hosepipe restrictions
Can I use a hosepipe during a drought?
Only if the current notice for your area allows the particular use. A TUB may prohibit hosepipe watering, car washing or pool filling while allowing other uses or named exemptions. The fact that there is no nationwide ban does not mean your local supplier permits the activity.
Can my company ban garden watering?
It can restrict specified garden-watering uses through a TUB or, in more serious circumstances, through a drought order. The notice may cover watering with a hosepipe but not every possible method. Check the exact activity, equipment and exemption wording.
Does a restriction apply across the whole UK?
No. The powers and responsible authorities differ among England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Even within England, a company can define a smaller affected area. A notice from one supplier is not evidence of the rules in another nation or supply region.
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Can a drought measure change water abstraction rather than household use?
Yes. Drought permits and drought orders can authorise additional abstraction, modify or suspend abstraction restrictions, limit abstractions or regulate discharges. Some drought orders can also prohibit or limit customer uses, so check which part of the water system the instrument addresses.
How to compare two drought responses
When a company changes its restrictions, compare the notices on the same six points rather than comparing headlines:
| Comparison point | What to establish |
|---|---|
| Legal mechanism | Is it a TUB, drought permit, drought order or a national equivalent? |
| Geography and customers | Which supply zones, postcodes or customer groups are included? |
| Restricted use | Which activity, appliance or watering method is prohibited or limited? |
| Timing | What are the start date, duration, review date and cancellation conditions? |
| Exemptions and notice | What exceptions apply, and how was the public given an opportunity to make representations? |
| System effect | Does the measure reduce customer demand, change abstraction from the environment, or do both? |
The first five points normally come from the customer notice. The final point often requires reading the permit or order itself, because a drought response can operate in the distribution system and at the water source at the same time.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the 2026 figures show
The Environment Agency’s report covering 25 September to 1 October 2026 listed active temporary use bans in parts or all of the areas served by Affinity Water, Anglian Water, Bristol Water, Cambridge Water, Essex and Suffolk Water, Southern Water, South East Water, South West Water, Thames Water and Wessex Water. This is a dated England snapshot. It is not a statement that every customer of those companies, or every reader elsewhere in the UK, was subject to a ban at that moment.
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| Drought event | People impacted by TUBs | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 to early 2007 | 15,637,900 | Environment Agency figure recorded in 2026 |
| 2010 | 6,500,000 | Environment Agency figure recorded in 2026 |
| 2012 | 20,000,000 | Environment Agency figure recorded in 2026 |
| 2022 to 2023 | 20,277,881 | Environment Agency figure recorded in 2026 |
| 2025 to February 2026 | 9,046,577 | Environment Agency figure recorded in 2026 |
These totals describe people affected during particular English events; they are not a forecast, a current UK-wide total or a measure of how severe an individual household’s restriction is.
What companies are expected to do alongside restrictions
Government drought guidance refers to conservation measures that can accompany or precede an application for a drought permit. Publicity and water-efficiency communications are intended to reduce discretionary demand. Leakage control addresses water lost before it reaches customers, while mains-pressure reduction can lower demand within the network. These measures do not alter the wording of a customer notice, but they explain why a company may announce several actions at once instead of relying solely on a hosepipe ban.
For a household, the practical response is to follow the named restrictions, avoid assuming that an unmentioned activity is automatically exempt, and check for updated instructions from the supplier. A watering can may be worth considering where the local rule targets hosepipe watering, but only the current notice determines whether that alternative is allowed.
Bottom line for households
A UK water company can restrict specified customer uses, seek legal authority to change abstraction, or—in an exceptional emergency—support alternative distribution such as standpipes. In England, a temporary use ban is the usual first formal customer restriction and must be set out in a public notice. Drought permits and drought orders are separate escalation tools, and the responsible authority changes across the UK. Check your own supplier’s latest notice for the exact activity, area, date and exemption before using water in a way that may be restricted.
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