Drainage

What are Public/Private drains and sewers?

• Drain: a single pipe which removes sewage and rainwater from one premises and any associated buildings. A drain is still a drain even if it goes through the boundary of your property until it joins a sewer.
• Sewer: a pipe taking drainage water from two or more premises. Sewers may either be PUBLIC or PRIVATE:
• Public Sewer: a sewer which has been adopted as a public sewer or was built before the 1st October 1937 and is therefore the responsibility of the STATUTORY UNDERTAKER.
• Private Sewer: in other cases where the sewer was constructed after 1st October 1937 it is a private sewer. A private sewer is normally the responsibility of the owner/s of the property which it serves.
• Statutory Undertaker: is the water company (South West Water)

Who is responsible for repairs?

The diagram below illustrates who is repsonsible for repairs to damaged sewers and drains.

• Point A - At point A it is the responsibility of the person who owns the drain, usually the owner of the property, to carry out necessary repairs. If you are a tenant who is not responsible for repairs to the property then it is the responsibility of your landlord.
• Point B - At point B if it is a Private Sewer it is the joint responsibility of the owners of houses 1 and 2. If the problem was further along the line (after the connection of House 3) then the responsibility would belong to all three houses.
• Point C - At point C in the public sewer it is the responsibility of the statutory undertaker.

So what do I do if my sewer/drain is blocked?

Your own property insurers may cover drainage problems – you should check with them first.

• Drain– As discussed above, a drain serves only one property and so is the owners sole responsibility. You should employ a contractor to solve the problem. A list is available in the Yellow pages.
• Public Sewer - A sewer serves two or more properties. A blockage or defect to a Private Sewer is the responsibility of each property owner who is served by the sewer upstream of the blockage or defect. You should contact these people and arrange between yourselves for the works to be done. The cost should be shared equally. For recurring problems, remedial works may be required. If you are jointly responsible, you must ensure all responsible persons agree on any works. Otherwise, you may be left with paying the full amount of the cost of works.
• If you can not get the co-operation of other property owners jointly responsible for a private sewer problem or if you are unaware of who is responsible then you can contact on 01803 208091.
• Private Sewer – A public sewer is the responsibility of South West Water. You should contact them to alert them to the problem. The Helpline number is 0800 169 1144.