Who is responsible for fixing leaks in supply pipes?
Our diagram below helps explain who is responsible for leaks in supply pipes (your own pipework may vary).
What pipe? | Location of pipe | Responsibility for the pipe |
| Water mains | Highway Property owner’s land Third-party land | Water company |
| Communication pipe | Water company | Water company |
Supply pipe serving a single | Highway Property owner’s land Third-party land | Consumer of the water |
Shared supply pipe serving | Highway Land owned by any of the Third-party land | Shared responsibility for all consumers served by the supply pipe |
Leak responsibiliy on a shared supply
The diagram below shows who’s responsible for leaks at different points along shared pipework.
Frequently Asked Questions
We’ll let you know your repair timeframe in the letter we send. If things feel tricky, just give us a call – we’re here to help. If we don’t hear from you, we may need to fix the leak for you and recover the cost. This is called Enforcement.
Legally, water users are responsible for repairing leaks on pipes they own, even if they run under someone else’s land. Most people arrange this through insurance or hire a contractor.
If you don’t repair it, we’ll send a contractor. We can’t confirm the date or cost beforehand as we don’t know what’s needed.
As you live in the property and use water supplied to it, you are responsible for arranging any repairs to the private supply pipe, including the internal fixtures and fittings.
This is why you must contact your landlord or housing association and ask them to repair the leak on your behalf. If the leak is not repaired and we send a contractor, we will charge you for the work.
If your home shares a supply pipe with neighbours and your property has been checked for leaks, you don’t need to do anything else at this stage. You’ll still get letters until the leak on the shared pipe is fixed.
If you have had your property checked and not told us yet, please let us know so that we can make a record of this.
If you’re on a joint supply you share it with one or more neighbours. When the repair is complete, our contractors will confirm who was supplied by the section of pipe that was leaking. Any properties supplied by leaking pipe will receive an invoice for part or all the costs.
Please be aware that you could be responsible for all or part of the invoice even if the leak was outside of your property boundary, if you receive your supply through this pipe.
If you don’t allow our contractors access to carry out an enforced repair, we would have to apply for a Warrant of Entry from the courts. Any reasonable costs coming from this extra step will be added to the total charges after the repair.
If the work needs digging on someone else’s land, your contractor will gain permission from them. If it is on a public footpath, they will apply to the local council for a permit. If they still can’t get access, they may need to move part of the supply to bypass the leak.
You can turn off the shared water supply, as the pipework is owned by those who rely on it. However, if it’s a shared supply, we recommend informing your neighbours in advance—either in person or with a note—before doing so. Any contractor or insurer you hire should also follow this as standard practice.
Some leaks aren’t easy to spot and don’t affect water pressure. We monitor water use across our network so we can act quickly if something looks unusual. If usage increases, we’ll investigate, which may include checking our side of the pipework. If we don’t find a leak there, it indicates the leak is on your pipework.
We can’t give a guarantee on any repairs and reinstatement of the area will be with soil, stone, or black tarmac only. This is another reason why we recommend you organise your own repair.
As the water consumer, you’re responsible for repairs to your private pipework. If you’re a tenant, you should inform your landlord, council, or housing association about the invoice. To arrange payment, contact the Customer Leak Support team.
We understand and realise this is an unexpected cost. If you can’t afford to pay the invoice in full, we can set up a payment plan to spread the cost and make it more manageable. You can call on 0345 266 0036, or email CustomerLeakSupport@severntrent.co.uk.