| Guvnor

Enforced by: DWI
Status: In Force
Penalty ceiling: Prosecution 1 of 30 obligations carry an unlimited fine. 29 have no criminal penalty — flagged in the list below.

Does it bind you?

Business-side roles with duties under this instrument.

Licence Holder14 Distributor6 Statutory Undertaker5 Any Person1

Plus 4 duties on the regulator, Crown ministers and public bodies — folded into the section list below.

Other Acts binding the same actors

If a role above is yours, these are the other instruments that most often bind it.

Licence Holder — also bound by 245 other Acts

Petroleum (Current Model Clauses) Order 1999 318 duties

The Petroleum Licensing (Exploration and Production) (Seaward and Landward Areas) Regulations 2004 123 duties

Human Medicines Regulations 2012 83 duties

Space Industry Regulations 2021 68 duties

The Petroleum (Production) (Landward Areas) Regulations 1991 65 duties

Distributor — also bound by 201 other Acts

UK REACH Regulation (retained EU law) 44 duties

The Marketing of Fruit Plant and Propagating Material (England) Regulations 2017 28 duties

The Marketing of Fruit Plant and Propagating Material (Wales) Regulations 2017 26 duties

The Marketing of Fruit Plant and Propagating Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017 25 duties

Electricity Safety, Quality and Continuity Regulations 2002 21 duties

Statutory Undertaker — also bound by 195 other Acts

The Cory Decarbonisation Project Order 2025 120 duties

The Keadby 3 (Carbon Capture Equipped Gas Fired Generating Station) Order 2022 119 duties

The National Grid (Bramford to Twinstead Reinforcement) Order 2024 54 duties

Water Industry Act 1991 53 duties

Water and Sewerage Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006 44 duties

Any Person — also bound by 2684 other Acts

Human Medicines Regulations 2012 184 duties

Merchant Shipping Act 1995 144 duties

Insolvency (England and Wales) Rules 2016 104 duties

Communications Act 2003 92 duties

Road Traffic Act 1988 92 duties

What it requires

Regulations creating concrete business duties or carrying penalties, grouped as the instrument is structured. Titles link to the source text — blue means you’re leaving for legislation.gov.uk.

Part 1

General

0 of 2 sections shown

2 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional

s.001 Title, commencement and application

s.002 Interpretation

Part 2

Water Supply Zones

1 of 1 section shown

s.003 Water supply zones Regulated

Designate water supply zones before each yearStatutory Undertaker

Part 3

Wholesomeness

0 of 1 section shown

1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional

s.004 Wholesomeness

Part 4

Monitoring of Water Supplies

4 of 6 sections shown

s.006 Monitoring: general provisions Regulated

Monitor drinking water quality in each supply zoneStatutory Undertaker

s.008 Authorisation of supply points Regulated

Notify Welsh Ministers if approved sampling point data becomes unrepresentativeStatutory Undertaker

s.009 Number of samples Regulated

Take required number of water quality samples at regular intervalsStatutory Undertaker

s.010 Sampling: further provisions Regulated

Take sufficient water samples when contamination may make supply unwholesomeDistributor

2 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional

s.005 Interpretation and application of Part 4

s.007 Sampling points

Part 5

Monitoring – Additional Provisions

5 of 6 sections shown

s.011 Sampling for particular substances and parameters Regulated

Take and analyse the required number of water quality samplesLicence Holder

s.012 Sampling at treatment works Regulated

Take standard number of water samples at each treatment worksLicence Holder

s.013 Sampling at service reservoirs Regulated

Sample service reservoirs weekly for water quality complianceLicence Holder

s.014 Sampling: new sources Regulated

Sample new or restarted water sources before supplying waterLicence Holder

s.015 Collection and analysis of samples Regulated

Comply with water sample quality and analysis standardsLicence Holder

1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional

s.016 Collection and analysis of samples: transitional provision

Part 6

Drinking Water Protected Areas

1 of 1 section shown

s.017 Drinking water abstraction points: monitoring sites Regulated

Identify abstraction points and monitor drinking-water qualityLicence Holder

Part 7

Investigations, Authorisation of Departures and Remedial Action

7 of 8 sections shown

s.018 Investigations: Schedule 1 parameters Regulated

Investigate and report Schedule 1 water quality failuresLicence Holder

s.019 Investigations: indicator parameters Regulated

Investigate indicator-parameter failures and notify regulators and consumersLicence Holder

s.020 Action by the Welsh Ministers Regulated

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator

Welsh Ministers must act on water quality failure notificationsCrown / Minister / Government department

s.021 Failure attributable to domestic distribution system where water is supplied to the public Regulated

Water undertaker must comply with Welsh Ministers' remedial noticeLicence Holder

s.023 Authorisations: terms and conditions Regulated

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator

Welsh Ministers must set conditions on temporary water quality departure authorisationsCrown / Minister / Government department

s.024 Publicity for authorisations Regulated

Publish public notices of authorised water quality departuresDistributor

s.025 Revocation and modification of authorisations Regulated

Notify Welsh Ministers as soon as the grounds for your authorisation ceaseDistributor

1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional

s.022 Authorisation of temporary supply of water that is not wholesome

Part 8

Water Treatment

7 of 8 sections shown

s.026 Disinfection and other treatment arrangements Regulated

Disinfect water and verify treatment before supplyLicence Holder

s.027 Risk assessment Regulated

Assess and continuously review risks to drinking water qualityLicence Holder

s.028 Procedure following risk assessment and prohibition of supply Regulated

Submit risk assessment report to the Welsh MinistersLicence Holder

s.029 Water treatment to minimise contamination from pipes Regulated

Treat water to eliminate or minimise copper and lead from pipeworkDistributor

s.030 Replacement of lead pipes Regulated

Replace or modify your part of a lead supply pipe when the owner asksDistributor

s.031 Application and introduction of substances and products Regulated

Do not add unapproved substances or products to drinking waterLicence Holder

s.033 Offences Prosecution

Fail to comply with water quality obligations or provide false informationAny Person

Unlimited fine

1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional

s.032 Use of processes

Part 9

Records and Information

2 of 2 sections shown

s.034 Maintenance of records Regulated

Keep records for each water supply zone you supplyLicence Holder

s.035 Provision of information Regulated

Provide water quality records on request and notify health risk eventsDistributor

Part 10

Functions of Local Authorities in Relation to Water Quality

1 of 2 sections shown

s.037 Duties of local authorities: supplementary provision Regulated

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator

Local authorities must set up water quality risk notification arrangementsLocal authority

1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional

s.036 Application and interpretation of this Part

Part 11

Enforcement

0 of 1 section shown

1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional

s.038 Contraventions by relevant suppliers

Part 12

Miscellaneous

1 of 3 sections shown

s.039 Reporting Regulated

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator

Welsh Ministers must publish drinking water quality reportsCrown / Minister / Government department

2 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional

s.039 Transitional provisions

s.040 Amendments and revocations

Schedules

1 of 13 shown

s.sch004 Screening for certain radionuclides, or screening for an individual radionuclide Regulated

Test additional radionuclides and consider likely radioactive sourcesStatutory Undertaker

12 other schedules

s.sch004 Monitoring for compliance with the indicative dose

s.sch004 Screening strategies for gross alpha activity and gross beta activity

s.sch004 Calculation of the indicative dose

s.schedule/3/part/2/paragraph/wrapper1n2 Table 8

s.schedule/3/part/2/paragraph/wrapper2n2 Annual sampling frequencies for Group A4 parameters: water supply zones...

s.schedule/3/part/2/paragraph/wrapper3n2 Note:

s.schedule/3/part/2/paragraph/wrapper4n2 This table and each table which follows it in this...

s.schedule/3/part/2/paragraph/wrapper5n2 Note:

s.schedule/3/part/2/paragraph/wrapper6n2 For the purposes of this Table, where the population is...

s.schedule/3/part/3/paragraph/wrapper7n2 Table 11

s.schedule/3/part/3/paragraph/wrapper8n2 Annual sampling frequencies for Group A2 parameters: treatment works or...

s.schedule/3/part/3/paragraph/wrapper9n2 Note: This table and each table which follows it in...

Help complying

Guvnor’s practical routes through this instrument.

Set up a water supply business

Learning path for water collection, treatment and supply businesses. Work out which regulations apply, put your workplace foundations in place, meet your …

1 more guide that reference this instrument

Meet your water industry regulatory duties

Duty extraction and severity labels are Guvnor’s analysis of the instrument, not the instrument itself. Always verify against the linked source text.

Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2018

Does it bind you?

Other Acts binding the same actors

What it requires

General

Water Supply Zones

Wholesomeness

Monitoring of Water Supplies

Monitoring – Additional Provisions

Drinking Water Protected Areas

Investigations, Authorisation of Departures and Remedial Action

Water Treatment

Records and Information

Functions of Local Authorities in Relation to Water Quality

Enforcement

Miscellaneous

Schedules

Help complying

Set up a water supply business