Update: ‘Transfer of Private Sewers’

[21/12/11]

Private sewers and lateral pipes were in such a poor state of repair that blockages and collapsing pipes became a national problem for England and Wales. The repair to private sewers and lateral pipes fell to homeowners and their neighbours who then had to pick up the bill, causing many disputes. It was decided by the government that private sewers would be better looked after if a public sewer network were implemented. This meant that the sewers would be managed by regulated water and sewerage companies in order to keep the system running correctly as one large network.

Homes effected by the private sewers transfer

The ownership of drainage and sewerage systems is a very complicated matter. The responsibility from the house to the public sewers was that of the homeowner, and this could stretch beyond the property boundaries into roads and other properties. Many homeowners were unaware of the boundaries that they were responsible for, so when root intrusion caused blockages or burst pipes for example, they could end up paying for the damage and repair. This included pipes that were used solely by the household, even if the problem occurred under a public road. 

Root intrusion

In October 2011, the responsibility and ownership changed so that sewage companies regulated the majority of the drainage networks. Thousands of kilometres of pipes have changed hands, allowing homeowners to relax and not worry about additional responsibility beneath the ground that they never knew they had! For example, one regional water company is now responsible for an extra 37,000kms of sewers on top of the original 54,000kms.

It is estimated that the transfer will affect approximately 10 million homes, with most of these households now being responsible for just the single lateral connection that joins them to the public sewerage network. If your home is going to be effected by the change, by law the local water ad sewerage company will have contacted you. Private sewers are not mapped, so no one is entirely sure where they all are. Customers will have been written to who are connected to the public sewerage network, and receive general information on the changes.

Water rates are expected to increase now that the transfer has been put in place, but this additional cost will be spread across all customers under the same water company. The government and economic regulator Ofwat have both agreed to this change and approach. Customers may not agree with the increased water rates, however all water customers were paying for the upkeep of public sewers and potentially for private sewer maintenance. Now, the sewer maintenance cost is spread more fairly and homeowners no longer have to worry about additional responsibility as it has been taken care of.

There are some exceptions to the transfer including:

• Private drains within the property boundaries
• Surface water sewers draining directly into watercourses
• Land drainage and highway drainage
• Privately owned sewage treatment works (including pipes connected to them)
• Privately owned septic tanks and cesspits
• Large ‘multi-occupier' commercial sites
• Private sewer and/or lateral drain owners who appeal against the transfer

There are plans to transfer the above at a later stage, but for the time being the transfer will cause a dramatic enough increase to the amount of work under taken by water and sewerage companies, doubling their wastewater networks. New procurement and funding is required to ensure technical standards stay in place, despite the extra workload. Private sewage pumping stations are also currently not included in the transfer, but it is proposed that this will gradually transfer, and the government has set a provisional date of October 2016 for this.

Now the transfer of private sewers has taken place in England and Wales this October, if you experience any problems with the drainage system you should contact your water and sewerage company.

Flexseal are suppliers of flexible couplings, saddle connections, linear drainage channels and plumbing couplings. Please contact us about your requirements using the contact form, and a member of Flexseal will contact you.