A mother and daughter in Croydon say their lives have been completely disrupted due to repeated delays, poor communication, and inaction from Thames Water, after a leak left them with barely any water for months.
“Everything is a mission at the moment,” said Maxine Brigham. “We might as well have a well because we’d be better off with that.”
Maxine and her daughter Tammy Ann-Harrison, who live in a Moat Housing Association property in New Addington, first raised the issue in February. Despite contacting Thames Water multiple times, they say little was done to help them until the problem became unmanageable.
“We phoned them up and reported it,” said Tammy. “They said there was no visual evidence of a leak, but we could hear it 24/7, even next door could.”
The pair says the leak caused a constant high-pitched hissing noise and vibrating pipes. It also affected other residents on the street who share the same water supply.
“I’ve had to keep a fan on, even in the middle of winter, just to try and drown it out,” said Tammy. “It was this high-pitched noise that was driving me mad.”
Thames Water eventually visited the property in May to repair a leak, but the wider issue remained unresolved. To access the pipe, engineers dug a deep hole directly outside Maxine and Tammy’s front door, leaving it covered but surrounded by rubble.
Months later, the hole remains, with debris still pushed to the side.
“They literally just left all their stuff here and a hole in the floor,” said Tammy. “Luckily, I moved it before it got any worse and ruined our garden.”
Their situation worsened in June when the flow from their taps almost completely dried up, leaving only a weak stream from the kitchen sink. As a result, their landlord moved them into temporary accommodation in central Croydon while the issue is being addressed.
But the daily disruption has continued. They still have to return to their New Addington home each day to care for their cat and collect essentials.
“Each day, my mum comes here to drop the dog off because it’s the only place he can stay. I go straight to Shoreditch, then come back here after work to feed the cat, pick up the dog, and go back to Croydon to shower,” said Tammy, who works as a picture framer in East London.
Maxine added: “We have no time for ourselves anymore. We’re constantly travelling, filling water, managing pets, there’s nothing left at the end of the day.”
“We have to fill up three-litre bottles of water every day,” said Maxine. “That’s all we’ve got to clean, to flush the toilet, to brush our teeth, and to wash ourselves.”
Maxine and Tammy are growing increasingly frustrated with Thames Water’s handling of the situation. Although the leak is located on private land owned by the housing association, they say Thames Water has cancelled or delayed multiple appointments.
“They were meant to come out on 17 July, then moved it to the 21st, then cancelled again. Now they’re saying it’ll be 27 August,” said Maxine.
Thames Water suspects the leak is between house numbers 94 and 95, but Maxine says responsibility keeps being passed back and forth between the company and the housing association.
“They said they need to dig up the path to put in valves to find the leak, then notify the owner,” said Tammy. “Meanwhile, we still haven’t got any water.”
Despite paying £59 a month for their water supply, an £18 increase this year, Maxine says she has refused to continue making payments until the problem is resolved.
“They only got back to us when I cancelled the direct debit,” she said. “Then they sent a bill for the whole year. I told them, I’m not paying for anything until this is fixed.”
Chris Simmons, Head of Neighbourhoods for Moat in London and Sussex, told the LDRS: “This is a really frustrating experience for our customer, and we’re truly sorry they’re facing this disruption. We’re staying in close contact to offer our full support and to keep them fully informed.
“Thames Water has now confirmed the location of the leak and will be attending next week on Wednesday, 6 August 2025. We’ll continue to be in communication with Thames Water to ensure this is resolved as soon as possible for our customer.”
A Thames Water spokesperson said: “We attended the property and repaired a leak which did not resolve the overall problem. There is a leak on the service pipe, situated on private land owned by the housing association, which is causing low water pressure.
“Customer side leaks are the responsibility of the landlord or housing association to fix. However, we are returning to the property as soon as possible to fix the hole left by our original repair work.”
