Help when you need it most

We can all benefit from a bit of extra support at some stage in our lives. This could be due to age, ill health, disability, mental health problems, financial worries or language barriers.

Priority Services is free and could help you, your family or your friends benefit from additional support from us so we can respond quickly to those particular needs.

If you would like to register for Priority Services, please:

• fill in our secure online form; or
• call us on 0345 072 6093. We're available to speak to you 8am-8pm Mon to Fri, 8am-4pm Sat. Outside of these times you can leave a message and we'll call you back.

Even if you don't need these services yourself, if you have a family member, friend or neighbour who might benefit from a little extra support, please let them know about Priority Services. It is completely free to our customers in the North West - and you don't have to be the named bill payer to benefit from Priority Services.

Watch the short video below to hear the different ways we can take your needs into account when we call or visit you, along with other ways we can give you that extra support.

Sharing is caring

We could even share your Prioirty Services details with Electricity North West, the distribution network operator for the majority of our region.  If your eligible, all we need is your consent to share and we’ll do the rest, and you’ll be offered help from your water and electricity providers if there’s ever a problem.  Want to know more about Electricity North West’s Priority Services Register? Click here to find out 

Mental illness

We know that 1 in 4 people in the North West will struggle with mental health issues in their lifetime.

Opening up about our struggles can be difficult, but not talking about them can make us feel isolated. You’re not alone, if you or someone you know is dealing with mental health issues, our caring team, trained by Mind, can offer the support you need.

Hearing or speech difficulties?

If you are deaf, hard of hearing or have any speech difficulties and use a textphone, you can access our Text Relay service by dialing 18001 followed by the number you need. If you ever need a face-to-face meeting with us, we can arrange for a Sign Language interpreter to be at the meeting, if this would be helpful.

Dialysis patients

We provide extra help if you need dialysis at home. We'll contact you as soon as possible if we need to turn off your water supply in an emergency, such as burst water main, and try to time any planned shut-offs, so they don't happen on the day of your dialysis.

If we absolutely must shut the water off on your dialysis day, we'll contact you as far in advance as we can, in your prefered way, to let you know and will try to set up extra help and support.

Your hospital should have already registered your details with us if you have dialysis at home, but you can also tell us this when you register for Priority Services.

We understand that you need to be able to dialyse at home on specific days and times. Once we know those dates and times, we’ll try to avoid shutting off your water supply on your dialysis day if we need to carry out work on the water network. If we absolutely must shut the water off on your dialysis day, we’ll contact you well in advance to let you know.

Sometimes, unexpected emergencies such as water main bursts happen out of the blue that may affect your water supply. We’ll let you know as soon as possible and provide any extra help and support we can.  If there is a burst water main which means we need to turn your water supply off, our dedicated team will contact you, in your preferred way, as soon as we can.

Knock and wait service

If you tell us you have mobility needs, we understand that it may take you a little bit longer to answer the door.

When we call at your home we will wait outside for a much longer period of time after knocking to allow you enough time to answer, so you never miss a visit from us.

Braille, large print and talking bills

If you have sight difficulties, we can produce your bill in Braille or large print. We can also phone you to talk you through your bill to make sure you understand what you are paying for.

Many of our leaflets are available in Braille and large print. If you’d like to request any information in either or both of those formats, let us know and we'll be glad to help.