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Consultation outcome

Water fittings: preventing backflow of water from toilet cisterns

Updates to this page

From:
Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and Welsh Government
Published:
8 August 2022
Last updated:
6 May 2026
Show all updates

  1. Added summary of responses and government response. Also added a link to the updated specifications which apply from 6 May 2027.

  2. Updated the ‘Details of feedback received’. 1. Updated the date Defra expects to publish the summary of responses and government response, the regulator specifications and the test code sheets to the end of 2025. 2. Added details on work related to leaking toilets since the consultation: Defra has held 2 taskforces to identify solutions and is continuing to gather evidence to support any future policy in this area.

  3. Feedback details have been updated to include a brief summary of responses to the ‘call for evidence’ on leaking toilets, and to amend the expected timeframe for the government response to summer 2024.

  4. The response to this consultation has been delayed.

  5. The response to this consultation has been delayed.

  6. First published.

Applies to England and Wales

This consultation has concluded

Read the full outcome

Summary of responses and government response

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Crynodeb o ymatebion ac ymateb y llywodraeth

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Detail of outcome

This consultation closed on 3 October 2022. We received 42 responses. Overall, respondents welcomed the changes and accepted the proposals with some amendments.

We analysed responses on proposed changes to 11 specifications to:

  • protect human health from contaminated drinking water
  • reflect modern toilet designs

We made more amendments to our proposed specifications.

We notified the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the European Union of a potential technical barrier to trade. The notification to the EU is required under the Northern Ireland Protocol because these changes are relevant to compliance in Northern Ireland.

We received no comments from these notifications.

Read the updated specifications that apply from 6 May 2027.

Responses to the call for evidence on faulty toilet valves covered a variety of areas reflecting the range of respondents’ experiences.

Most agreed that government should take action to reduce the impact of leaking toilets. Preferences on the approach were tightly clustered with no clear favoured option.

Due to the diverse range of challenges posed in the consultation, Defra has since held 2 taskforces to identify solutions. We are continuing to gather evidence from water company and industry data to support any future policy in this area.

Original consultation

Summary

Seeking views on updating toilet specifications to stop cistern water from re-entering drinking water in properties and to understand the causes of leaking toilet valves.

This consultation was held on another website.

This consultation ran from
to

Consultation description

We want to know what you think about Defra’s proposed changes to 11 specifications made under the Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999.

These regulations are needed to protect human health from contaminated drinking water. We need to update the specifications to reflect modern toilet designs.

One change will introduce a new backflow prevention arrangement in the toilet cistern. Another will introduce a new test to ensure that water from the toilet pan cannot contaminate the water in the cistern.

The other changes will make the rules consistent and clearer and focus on how a product must perform.

We also want to gather evidence on faulty toilet valves that cause a loss of water and look at what could be done to improve these products.

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