Who is liable for cost of putting things right?

alamoalfie

Hi, I hope someone might be able to help me with this one! I have also posted it in Consumer Rights

Southern Water are possibly going to have to dig up my floor in my kitchen to get to a waste pipe. The whole floor is laminate and would need to be taken up. My question is who would be liable for the cost of putting it right?

From what I understand if a property is of a certain age then the water company is liable. My property was built in 1932 which I believe is older than the required age, but the pipe is under a newer extension and I don't know the age of this. Both the extension and the floor were put in place before I began living here 14 years ago.

Thanks in advance

Cardew

By waste pipe do you mean a sewer or drain serving other properties?

If it is just your property, then you are liable.

If the extension was built over a shared sewer then the planning permission should have been approved by the water company. If they did not raise any objection(which would be unusual), then there would normally be a caveat that the house owner is liable.