Thames Water left 4,000 e-mails unread for seven years

The water firm Thames Water has paid 60,000 in compensation to some of its customers after the firm found almost 4,000 emails which were unread and dated back seven years. These emails were left unread after messages were sent to the wrong email address, they were sent to customerfeeback rather than the correct customer.feedback address. This error was only recognised by the firm in March and has paid compensation to the customers which it could identify. The error has entered the media due to a report which was carried out by the water regulator Ofwat. A spokesperson for Thames Water stated as soon as we found the error we told Ofwat and put our hands up straightaway. The messages should have bounced back when customers missed out the dot but they somehow ended up in an inbox we ere not aware of. We are sorry for the error but putting it into context we 3,000 contacts from customers every day and this is over seven years. It was also stated that 1,200 customers had received 40 in compensation and 600 have been given 20 each. These compensation pay outs have occurred due to statutory requirements which water companies must follow. The requirements are for a minimum of 20 compensation to be paid if they fail to respond to complaints or account inquires within 10 working days. Also, if complaint compensation is not paid within 10 working days, an additional payment must also be paid.