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Drainage - help and advice

Information about how to get blockages in drains and sewers cleared.

Some definitions

Drain - a drain is an underground pipe which carries effluent from only one property. It does not include pipes which run down the outside of the property. 

Lateral drain - a drain which runs beyond the boundary of the property it serves.

Sewer - a sewer is a pipe which carries effluent from more than one property - when two drains join, the pipe becomes a sewer.

Who is responsible for clearing blockages and maintaining drains and sewers?

From 1 October 2011 Wessex Water (opens in a new window) , who provide your sewerage services, became responsible for maintaining all public and private sewers and lateral drains. Maintaining and clearing drains remain the responsibility of the property that they serve.

Further information is available from the Wessex Water leaflet - sewer transfers (PDF, 282kb) (opens in a new window)  .

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