Water compensation letters sent

The source of the outbreak was located at Pitsford Reservoir

Compensation letters are being sent out to people whose water was contaminated by a parasite in Northamptonshire.

More than 250,000 Anglian Water customers had to boil their water for two weeks after the cryptosporidium parasite was discovered in supplies.

The bug was traced to the water treatment works at Pitsford and supplies returned to normal on 4 July.

Customers have been told they will get a goodwill payment equivalent to six weeks of water - an average of £25.

Dan Baker, from Anglian Water, said they were doing all they could to make sure the situation would not be repeated.

'Few complaints'

Sir James Perowne, from the Consumer Council for Water Central and Eastern, said: "This was a large scale problem, and Anglian Water did well to resolve the situation faster than they had originally estimated.

"The Consumer Council for Water's job is to monitor the customer service water companies provide, and we had very few complaints about how Anglian Water handled the situation.

"Under the circumstances, we believe that an average of around £20 is a reasonable payment for the inconvenience consumers suffered during the boil order."

A spokesman for water regulator Ofwat said: "Ofwat welcomes goodwill gestures by water companies to recompense consumers when they have been inconvenienced."

The Drinking Water Inspectorate is to carry out an investigation into the cause of the problem.

Anyone with any queries about the water compensation should ring Anglian Water on 08457 919155.