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[moggy]

Hi all,just wanted to ask the knowledgeable folk on here.I am in privately rented accommodation,and when i got home from work yesterday.I found the drain in my back yard was blocked,and overflowing with sewerage.I called out a company to unblock it but it cost £160,is this my responsibility or my landlords.As i could not leave it as it was,and could not get in contact with the lettings agency.I just had to get it done,but this is money i cant really afford to pay out.Any advice welcome Dean   

[Mister Rog]

It varies from place to place. When I lived in London any blockage withing the boundaries of the property was the responsibility of the owner, out side the boundaty it was the water company. Here in Wales the water company deals with it unless it is actually within the building.

I would say with some confidence that this was the resposibility of the landlord/owner. The trouble is that it's now already paid for and the problem has gone, and the owner may not want to cough up. Some management companies are really excellent, but some are certainly not and as tight as a ducks . . . .  Good luck. I hope you get this sorted.

[moggy]

Hi mate,thanks for the reply.After looking at my tenancy agreement and some digging,it may be the responsibility of the landlord.But i cant get hold of the lettings agency,to get it confirmed.As you say its done and paid for,so i may have problems getting the money back.Dean

[pscocoa]

If you rang the letting a agency emergency number and followed whatever procedure you could then you have a good chance of recovery. Sewage cannot be left. Some local authorities have special responsibility for old houses with shared drains.

[Shackeng]

Hi mate,thanks for the reply.After looking at my tenancy agreement and some digging,it may be the responsibility of the landlord.But i cant get hold of the lettings agency,to get it confirmed.As you say its done and paid for,so i may have problems getting the money back.Dean

As you were unable to contact the agency, and as this may be a public health issue, I suggest you contact the Citizen's advice bureau for advice. It will also depend on the precise wording of the lettings contract, and who is responsible for buildings insurance, which should cover these events.

[moggy]

If you rang the letting a agency emergency number and followed whatever procedure you could then you have a good chance of recovery. Sewage cannot be left. Some local authorities have special responsibility for old houses with shared drains.

Hi mate,unfortunately there is no emergency number for them.As you say sewage cannot be left,so i go it sorted.BTW this is Private drain in our back yard,so its not shared.So it must be the landlords responsibility.Dean

[biggriffin]

Been here last week.
 Law changed couple years back, the water companies are responsible for anything from the manhole to the main, you are responsible from property to that manhole, if it's a shared drain 2 or more properties, then water companies will unblock for free,as they can't apportion blame.,

Cost 4 of us £50 each to get it jetted, then camera'd, we didn't know about the law change until, anglian water happened to turn up afterwards, and told us about the 'changed law'

So find your manhole and basically from there back is yours, it's still worth ringing your water company, and by the way 99% of blockages are caused by baby_wipes and ladies winged thingy's

[Sir Tigger KC]

As a Landlord I would stump up and thank you for acting, but I'd want to know what the cause of the blockage was to try and prevent any further problems, ie tree/hedge roots? wet wipes? build up of fat?

If the problem has been caused by flushing wet wipes, sanitary towels or the like, I'd make it clear that I wouldn't pay again if the same problem occurred. 

[moggy]

Well i have to be honest,baby wipes mainly.But the engineer said there is a problem with the drain,where the ceramic open pipe meets the full pipe.They are not in line so half is blocked off(if that makes any sense),so consequentially no full flow.He could not get his camera down the pipe,more than 2 foot because of the bend.What do you think Dean.  

[Mr Gav]

Sounds like the manhole needs putting right, all pipes should line up but without seeing it it would be difficult to say what the cause is.

All pipes should have some form of joint whether it`s the older clay pipes or the newer Hepsleve type, so theoretically no pipe should slip out of line with another. It sounds like there`s some settlement somewhere and maybe build a good case for you to get your money back.

The cause of the problem needs dealing with though as it will happen again.

[Sir Tigger KC]

Did you get a receipt from the company who cleared the drain for you?  I'd think that any reasonable Landlord or Letting Agency would refund your money given that there is a fault with the drain.  Presumably the drain company could confirm this for you if the Landlord/Letting Agency are reluctant to refund. 

You're not helping with the baby wipes though!      But keep that to yourself...   

[Shackeng]

Sounds like the manhole needs putting right, all pipes should line up but without seeing it it would be difficult to say what the cause is.

All pipes should have some form of joint whether it`s the older clay pipes or the newer Hepsleve type, so theoretically no pipe should slip out of line with another. It sounds like there`s some settlement somewhere and maybe build a good case for you to get your money back.

The cause of the problem needs dealing with though as it will happen again.

I concur.

[Andy H]

Did you get a receipt from the company who cleared the drain for you?  I'd think that any reasonable Landlord or Letting Agency would refund your money given that there is a fault with the drain.  Presumably the drain company could confirm this for you if the Landlord/Letting Agency are reluctant to refund. 

You're not helping with the baby wipes though!      But keep that to yourself...   

The manufacturers & vendors claim that they fall apart once they enter the drainage system. They don't.

Any manufacturer that makes that claim deserves to have a tanker load of poop sprayed over their head office.

[STEMO]

Did you get a receipt from the company who cleared the drain for you?  I'd think that any reasonable Landlord or Letting Agency would refund your money given that there is a fault with the drain.  Presumably the drain company could confirm this for you if the Landlord/Letting Agency are reluctant to refund. 

You're not helping with the baby wipes though!      But keep that to yourself...   

The manufacturers & vendors claim that they fall apart once they enter the drainage system. They don't.

Any manufacturer that makes that claim deserves to have a tanker load of poop sprayed over their head office.

They may well disintigrate once they've been in the system for 12 hours or so, but certainly not on the journey from bog to manhole.

[biggriffin]

Baby wipes don't disintegrate, till the go to landfill, even the so called toilet friendly ones,