Drain & Sewer Specialists UK

 

Dealing with problems with drains and sewers

If you have a problem with a blocked drain, is it your responsinility or can you get help from your local council's environmental health department?.

Public sewers and drains

Drains don't just take waste from toilets, bathrooms and kitchens, as well as rain water away from your property, they also take foul sewage alon and through sewers (pipes that take sewage and water away from more than one property).

These sewers are either privately or publicly maintained, if they are publicly maintained, the onus is upon the local water and sewerage company for repairs and maintenance.

Private sewers and drains

If the case is a private sewer, itis the joint responsibility of the properties that drain into it and this responsibility continues right up to the point where the private sewer and the connection joins a public sewer.

It might mean that you are responsible for the repair and maintenance of drainage pipes that are beneath land owned by a neighbour or neighbouring property.

Overall responsibility for private sewer faults such as breaks and blockages lies with the owners/occupiers of properties that drain into the sewer upstream of any defect or blockage.

Your local authority or council should be able to help you find out which sewers are privately owned.

It is possible that If you are you may be covered by your housing insurance for damage if you are partially or solely responsible for maintaining the drains and sewers .