Important changes came in force on 1st October 2011 that will affect most people embarking on an extension to their homes.
From October 1st 2011
1. Any private sewer that communicates with a public sewer, and and private lateral drain will transfer to their local Water supplier (generally Welsh Water Authority for Monmouthshire and Wessex Water for Tutshill, Coleford) and become a PUBLIC sewer or public lateral drain
What are private sewers and lateral drains?
Private sewers and lateral drains are the sections of sewer pipe or drain that are shared with another persons property, or run through another persons land. It is estimated that up to half of properties in England and Wales are connected to, and the owner is responsible for, a private sewer.
How will you benefit from this change?
It means the ownership and maintenance for private sewers and lateral drains will be transferred to the Water supplier.
You will still be responsible for the section of drain between your property/building and the transferred private sewer or lateral drain
What if I want to build an extension or garage?
Before October 1st 2011 if you built over a public sewer or 3 metres within a public sewer then you would have had to enter into a Building Over a Sewer Agreement with your water supplier. That is still in force but now added to that, a public sewer is taken as the old shared private drains that run through your property
So beware of building an extension and find out if the drain below is a public sewer. Building Control will notify the sewer authority if they believe that you are building over a shared /lateral drain.
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