Water, drainage and leaks

The short answer

The landlord is responsible for the water and drainage installation; the tenant is responsible for reasonable use, which is where most blockage disputes sit. The practical essentials are a working, findable stopcock, insulated pipework in cold spaces, and a clear process for reporting leaks fast. In tenements, drainage and the water supply may be shared, which changes who arranges repairs.

What the work involves

Locating and labelling isolation valves, insulating pipework in lofts and unheated cupboards, clearing gullies and downpipes, and dealing with blockages promptly.

Rules and responsibilities in Scotland

Water and drainage installations fall inside the Repairing Standard. Scottish Water is responsible for the public sewer beyond the property boundary; shared private drainage is a matter for the owners.

What commonly goes wrong

A seized stopcock nobody can turn, uninsulated pipes in an unheated loft, and wet wipes causing repeated blockages with no written guidance to the tenant.

What it usually costs

Indicative ranges only, to help you judge a quote. They are not an estimate for your property — only the business doing the work can give you that.

• Insulating exposed pipework is one of the cheapest preventative jobs in a rented property.
• Escape of water is one of the largest categories of property insurance claim, and excesses are high.
• A shared tenement drain repair is split between owners under the title deeds.

What to do, in order

1. 1Locate, free off and label the stopcock, and show the tenant at check-in.
2. 2Insulate pipework in lofts, garages and unheated cupboards before winter.
3. 3Give tenants written guidance on what must not go down the drain.
4. 4Clear gullies and downpipes at least annually.
5. 5Treat any leak as urgent, particularly in a flat above other properties.

Local detail for the Lothians

• Edinburgh tenement flats often share a soil stack and rear drainage, so a blockage affects several homes at once.
• Older properties in the Lothians frequently have lead or steel supply pipes that need care during works.
• Cold snaps commonly freeze external condensate pipes on flats with the boiler on an outside wall.

When you need a professional

Use a plumber for supply and internal drainage; drainage contractors for external blockages, and involve Scottish Water where the public sewer is implicated.

Common questions

Who pays for a blocked drain in a let?

It depends on the cause. Misuse is usually the tenant's responsibility; a defect, root ingress or shared drainage problem is the landlord's or the owners' collectively.

Are frozen pipes preventable?

Mostly. Insulating exposed pipework and keeping background heat during cold spells prevents the majority of failures.

Related pages

• Out-of-hours emergency repairs

  Setting up cover for leaks, heating failures and lockouts outside working hours.

• Winterising an empty property

  Heating, draining down and frost protection through a Scottish winter.

• Legionella risk in a let

  The simple water system risk assessment expected of landlords, and what actually reduces risk.