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CONTENTS:
Drains and Sewers.Highway Drainage – Gullies.
Land Drainage.
Ground Water.
Cesspools and Septic Tanks.

Please feel free to download these notes; you never know when a drainage problem may affect you.

It is hoped you will never need this but if you do it will be invaluable for reference and guidance.

DRAINS and SEWERS

For private households (including owners of ex. Council properties) and businesses; all
drains and drainage sewers have a legal status which will determine who is responsible for their upkeep.

The status of a drain or drainage sewer will vary depending on when it was built, if it has
been adopted and how many properties it serves.

This booklet, whilst not being a statement of law, is intended to provide advice to assist
in determining the status of drains and sewers and should apply to the vast majority of
cases.There will be limitations to the advice (for instance where there was or is a cesspool
or where blocks of flats are involved) and there will be individual exceptions that will need
more specialist examination before advice can be given.

Drainage Contractor London Kent Essex.

It is a common presumption to think that the Council is responsible for maintaining
drains and sewers.There have been occasions when others, including Water Companies,
indicate that too.The fact is that all drains or drainage sewers are either privately owned by the owners of the properties they serve or they are the responsibility of the Water Companies to whom sewerage charges (water rates) are paid.The London Councils does not own any of these drains or sewers, unless it is the owner of a property served by the drain or sewer (just like any other property owner).The Council’s responsibility is to ensure that privately owned
drains and drainage sewers do not cause a nuisance or risk to public health where owners may have allowed them to remain blocked or to become defective.

The only records that have to be kept legally are he maps of public sewers maintained by the Water Companies.These are normally accurate but may have some omissions, particularly public sewers that are ot in the public highway. If a public drainage sewer is not shown on these maps that does not alter its legal status. A copy of the maps is kept by the London Borough Councils for public inspection.Unfortunately copies can only be provided by the Water Company for which a charge is likely to be made.Private sewers and drains do not have to be shown on these maps.

These are some basic general facts that will help to establish the legal status of a drain or sewer
.
• A drain is a pipe that serves only one roperty and is nearly always owned by that one user.
It does not matter when the drain wasbuilt its age does not alter its status.The responsibility for cleaning, maintaining and repairing a drain will rest with the owner/user.
• A sewer is a pipe that serves more than one property.The status of a sewer can be either public or private depending on when it was built or if it has been adopted.
• A public sewer is a sewer that is • between two manholes both located n a public highway, or
• was built before 1 October 1937 located in private land, or  has been adopted by the Water
Company, as illustrated below. Public sewers are cleansed, maintained and repaired free of charge by the Water Company.

• A private sewer is any sewer that is not public and is owned by the users to the point of connection with a public sewer.
A private sewer is a sewer that • was built after 1 October 1937 located in private land and would include the lateral connection under the highway, or • was not adopted by the Water Company, as illustrated below.
Private sewers are the shared responsibility of the users even though the pipe needing to
be cleansed, maintained or repaired may not be in land in the user's ownership.
If there is a blockage in a drain or sewer then the following questions may help to best
decide who to contact to get the pipe cleared.
1. Does the pipe that is blocked serve only one property?
‘YES’ it is a private drain, call a reputable drainage clearing company DRAINAGE EXPERTS serving Londonand surrounding areas..
 ( Below is a picture of a typical drain being exposed ready to be repaired )


‘YES’ it is a public sewer, call the Water Company to whom you pay your sewerage
charges and there should not be a charge. As a general guide if you receive a
separate sewerage and water accounts from Southern and Thames Water then you
should contact Southern Water; if you receive combined sewerage and water
accounts then you should contact Thames Water.
• Thames Water; Tel. 08459 200800 for residents in all other areas of the London Boroughs.

‘NO’ it is a private sewer, as with ‘drains above, call a reputable drain clearing
company https://www.drainage-experts.com
If you are in private rented property or a housing association property the responsibility for
private sewers and drains will depend on the terms of the tenancy.

Sewer built after 1 October 1937.
For leasehold properties where there is a freeholder or where there is a management
company the responsibility will depend on the terms of the lease or covenants in the deeds.

Drainage Contractor London Kent Essex

Blockages can occur for a number of reasons, most of which can be prevented with
proper care, for instance,
• Nappies, sanitary towels, tampons, condoms, wipes and cotton buds should be
disposed of in the refuse bin not flushed down the toilet,
• Raw vegetable waste which can be composted or put in the refuse bin,
• Oils and fats from cooking (domestic and commercial) should be allowed to
cool/solidify and placed in a suitable container for disposal in the waste bin. Further
guidance can be found on Thames Water’s web-site www.thameswater.co.uk ,
• Leave all manhole covers free of obstruction to gain quick and easy access to the sewer,
• More seriously; tree roots can penetrate the joints of sewers and sewers can be displaced.
In these cases blockages will become more frequent and repairs may be required.
When defective drains and private sewers have to be repaired the cost is borne by the owners/
users of the properties served by those drains and sewers in proportion to the benefit derived from them not necessarily in proportion to the number of properties served.Depending on the terms of any buildings insurance you may have, you may be covered for most of any repair costs, it would be worth enquiring.The cost of any repair per property is proportional to the length of repaired sewer and is calculated using a standard formula.

When blockages are left unattended or drains and private sewers are not repaired when they
become defective your local London Council can use legal powers to ensure that a nuisance does not continue or thatpublic health is not put at risk.

There are several pieces of legislation that can, and would be used, all involving the service of Notice on the owners of the efective/blocked drain or private drainage sewer. Each of these Notices will prescribe the action that has to be taken by the owners, the length of time being allowed for it to happen and give the power to the Council to do the work and charge (including all its administration costs) the owners. Any unpaid accounts that remain after work has been done by the Council could result in the matter being taken to Court or a charge being assigned to the property to be paid later, with interest, when the property is sold.

By way of example the time allowed to clear a blockage would be 24 or 48 hrs
depending on the severity of the blockage, and up to 42 days to repair a defective drain  private sewer. If a blockage is dealt with in this way it will inevitably be much slower
and more expensive than to employ a drain clearing company at the outset.

HIGHWAY DRAINAGE – GULLIES.
A road gully is a chamber found alongside the kerb at the side of the road and is generally
covered by a metal grating. It is used to collect surface water from the road.The responsibility for cleaning road gullies on the public highway belongs to the Highways Services:The same applies to the pipes leading from the gullies up to a connection with a public drainage sewer.Where they do not connect to a sewer but discharge to a ditch or soakaway these too will generally be the responsibility of the Highways Services.

                               .

If you drop something valuable, such as keys or mobile phone, into a gully the local Highways Services can be asked to retrieve it, but a charge is likely.
Check what the charge will be before instructing them to attend.

DRAINAGE EXPERTS can assist in these matters as well.

There are some gullies that are not in the public highway, such as parking and garage areas.Very similar rules of ownership would apply to private gullies as to private sewers. In general the owners of the land in which the gully is situated will be responsible for its cleaning and maintenance – on some developments there may be an appointed management company that is responsible for maintaining communal areas, it would be worth checking that first before employing a drainage clearing company. Drainage contractor London Kent Essex.

LAND DRAINAGE.


Land drainage such as rivers and watercourses fall into two categories; main river and critical/ordinary watercourses.
Main rivers are designated as such by the Environment Agency, who would control flooding,
fisheries, discharges, conservation, etc of those ivers.The Environment Agency can be contacted on 08708 506506.
The London Councils has similar powers to the Environment Agency in respect of critical/ordinary watercourses. Often the owners of adjoining land (riparian owners)
are responsible for ensuring that the flows in the watercourse are not impeded by overgrowth or other obstructions such as ornamental structures or filling n.The Council should be contacted if any such works are proposed.The Council has powers to serve Notice To ensure that any obstruction or impediment to the flow is removed.

GROUND WATER.
Ground water generally occurs naturally and does not normally cause problems to the
land or property above it.Occasionally ground water can rise and appear at the surface
or it can appear naturally.Unless something identifiable has happened to cause ground
water to appear at the surface, the responsibility for dealing with the water would rest
with the owner of the land on which the water has appeared.

CESSPOOLS AND SEPTIC TANKS.

Cesspools and drainage septic tanks are generally found in more remote locations where public or mains drainageis not readily available. Cesspools are simply collection sumps for sewage rom one or more properties. Cesspools need to be emptied on a regular basis to prevent overflowing and causing a nuisance or a risk to public health. Septic tanks provide primary reatment of sewage and normally discharge the treated effluent to the ground by way a series of land drains.

Consent for installing septic tanks and cesspools must be obtained from the Environment Agency before the Council would consider accepting them.
The responsibility for the cleansing, servicing, repair and maintenance of septic tanks, cesspools and all pipework leading to or from them rests with the owners of the
properties they serve, even if they are not situated in land owned by those owners.
If a cesspool needs emptying or a septic tank servicing call a reputable drainage clearing
company .

When repairs are necessary the cost is borne by the owners/users of the properties
served by those sewers in proportion to the benefit derived from them not necessarily in
proportion to the number of properties served.Depending on the terms of any buildings
insurance you may have, you may be covered for most of any repair costs, it would be
worth enquiring.
If a cesspool or septic tank is not emptied, serviced or maintained the local London Council can serve Notice on the owners of the defective/overflowing cesspool or septic tank. Each of
these Notices will prescribe the action that has to be taken by the owners, the length of
time being allowed for it to happen and give the power to the  local London Council to do the work and charge (including all its administration costs) the owners. Any unpaid accounts that
remain after work has been done by the Council could result in the matter being taken
to Court or a charge being assigned to the property to be paid later, with interest, when
the property is sold.

THESE NOTES ARE FOR GUIDANCE AND YOU SHOULD CHECK VARIANTS WITH YOUR LOCAL HIGHWAYS AGENCIES AND LOCAL COUNCILS.

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