Thames Water may have to abandon plans to stick customers with an extra £29 surcharge following rumblings from industry regulator Ofwat.

The watchdog said yesterday it would dispute Thames bosses' claim that they need the extra dosh to pay for sewer maintenance and subsidise defaulting customers - despite nabbing £1.8bn in revenue in the last year alone.

The company wants the regulator's permission to boost its household bills by up to 8 per cent in 2014, citing a "tough time financially."