A WATER company has been accused of failing its customers by industry watchdog OFWAT.

North West Water's record on failing to provide bills for customers with meters has been slammed by OFWAT's customer service committee.

And the firm came under fire for the number of times sewers have caused flooding in the region.

The water company has also been warned to cut leaks by 20 per cent or face a series of tough sanctions imposed by OFWAT.

OFWAT's director general Ian Byatt has set targets for all the water companies and a freephone service has been set up for the public to report leaks. Maurice Terry, chairman of the customer services committee, said: "Several aspects of North West Water's performance have been poor compared with other companies.

"The director has now demanded action, we will be discussing the whole issue at our next meeting and monitoring North West Water's performance closely over the next 12 months."

But the utility company's service director Bob Armstrong has hit back at the criticism.

He said: "Overall our standards of customer service have been steadily improving since 1992 and it is disappointing that this situation is not reflected in OFWAT's performance criteria.

"We are constantly reviewing our performance and introducing new initiatives to improve our service to customers."

The firm says £75 million has been spent on improving sewers in the North West and a programme for improving meter reading has also been put into place.

The freephone number for reporting leaks is 0800 330033.

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