A WATER company has announced average bills across Comet country will not increase, remaining at £174 per year from April 1, bucking the national trend.

Nationally water and sewerage bills in England and Wales are forecast to increase by 3.5 per cent, or about £13 a year taking the average bill to £388 for 2013/14.

Affinity Water’s chief executive officer, Richard Bienfait, said the company was determined to hold down costs while maintaining the highest levels of service.

He said: “We appreciate that household budgets are under pressure and we want to assure our customers that we are doing all we can to hold down costs.”