Consequences of not getting a build over agreement?

moflojo

Hi we are having an extension built to the rear of our property and we have a building regulations company that will sign off the work. But the other day we received a letter from anglian water stating we need to put an application in for a build over agreement as we are building over sewage pipes and near a manhole. It also states that no building work should start until they ok for us to have the extension, although a little too late as our garden has already been dug up for the foundations. When I queried this with the builder he said to ignore the letter and it was just the water companies trying to make more money (as the application costs £558 regardless of if they give us the go-ahead). But what are the consequences if we don't apply for the agreement- will the building regs not give us a certificate, will we not be able to sell the house without the agreement?? If we do apply for the agreement and they decline it then what would happen then- as I said the builder has already dug for the foundations?
Please help, I'm so confused as to what to do.

Annisele

There have been a few threads on this before - see, for example, this one and this one. Google will find you a few more.

If you ignore it, then Anglian Water might have the right to come and tear down your extension so they can get at their sewage pipes. I'm not sure if they would or not - I don't know much about this - but I think you should definitely check (with someone other than your builder) before you go much further.

I think going ahead without permission is very likely to put buyers off.

pleasedelete

Get some legal advice- the law changed on this. We have an old build over a sewer but when we wanted a new one we then found out it couldn't be insured on our existing policy if it was built as well as being warned by planning/building that they might refuse to approve on the grounds of the sewer.

moflojo

Thanks for the reply, I was originally thinking that if there was a problem when we come to sell I could get an indemnity policy. Think I may have to bite the bullet and apply for the build over and keep my fingers crossed. Think I may call the building regs on Monday to see if they can shed any light. Don't quite know who else to ask- hence the post on here for advice.:)

davidmcn

moflojo wrote: »

I was originally thinking that if there was a problem when we come to sell I could get an indemnity policy.

Indemnity policies generally exclude cover if the party who could enforce the rights has already been made aware of the problem - so unlikely here.

Davesnave

moflojo wrote: »

If we do apply for the agreement and they decline it then what would happen then- as I said the builder has already dug for the foundations?
.

You would still be in the position you're in now. i.e. not having paid out for an extension which might seriously devalue your house when you come to sell!

You may think the foundations have been dug, but there is often more to it than that, depending on ground conditions. You may be asked to build underground bridges and to ensure the floors are supported only by the walls, not the ground through which the sewer travels.

And contrary to the implication of a previous poster, an agreement doesn't give any protection from the water co entering your property and breaking up floors etc, if needs be, though I'm sure they'd try to avoid it.

I'm not being down on this, just realistic. I had a build-over and it was fine.:)

moflojo

Ok I'm a little more confused now. All weekend I've been trying to read different things to try to get a bit more clarification. Now on the anglian water website it states standard criteria that the proposal needs to meet and if it doesn't an application needs to be made. Does this mean we do not need a build over agreement if our building control inspector is happy that it meets all their standard criteria?

pleasedelete

it isnt just anglian- it is also building insurance that you need to sort out. Our company currently insure ours with a conservatory and garage over a sewer built in the 1970s (needed special permission then and very detailed plans) . We wanted to demolish both and rebuild the garage- they said the new garage couldn't be insured with them as the water company could request its demolition for access due to changes (but they cant on the existing buildings). This may not be the same with all companies. Basically we would be willfully building over a sewer knowing it could be demolished in the future.

lincroft1710

moflojo wrote: »

Now on the anglian water website it states standard criteria that the proposal needs to meet and if it doesn't an application needs to be made. Does this mean we do not need a build over agreement if our building control inspector is happy that it meets all their standard criteria?

It would appear so from the AW website. However, why not ring them tomorrow morning and just confirm this.

moflojo

Great, thanks for your help. Yes I will be calling them tomorrow to double check with them. Will also have to look into our house insurance.:o

Librana

We are planning a side extension that will require the existing drain running along the existing side wall to be rerouted outside the new extension. We have had a letter from Thames Water saying that our extension "could be near a public sewer". My understanding is that the drain is only a public sewer if it supplies more than one house.

My question is - how do we establish if our drain is private (no build-over agreement needed, or permission to reroute) or public? Do we need to get it inspected? If so, by whom?