What Scottish Water looks after
Scottish Water runs and maintains the public sewer network. It also has a legal duty to provide public sewers for its area. So if the fault sits in a public sewer, the job is its job.
It helps protect homes from flooding when sewers overflow or block. It also runs a helpline for sewer flooding, but the helpline is not a general drain unblocking service.
What stays with you
It is easy to assume that anything outside the front door belongs to the water authority. In Scotland it is not that simple, since the line falls at your property boundary.
Your private drain runs from your home to your property boundary. The homeowner is responsible for it. A blockage in that pipe is yours to fix, even if the water ends up in the street.
Our guide on who is responsible for a blocked drain in Scotland explains the boundary rule in full. Here, the short answer is that Scottish Water still does not clear blockages in private pipework for you.
For those problems, Scottish Water suggests a licensed plumber. If you rent, it suggests your landlord or the council. A drainage engineer can also clear the pipe. Our blocked drain services page shows what that covers.
When to ring the Scottish Water helpline
Ring it when sewage or sewer water floods your home or garden. Report any flooding that looks like it comes from a public sewer. That includes sewage-contaminated flooding.
You can call or use the online portal. The helpline shows as open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Scottish Water helpline: 0800 0778 778 (24 hours, 7 days a week)
Scottish Water says it usually attends sewer flooding within 4 hours if the water is inside, and 24 hours if it is outside. However, severe weather can change this. Treat those times as a guide, not a promise.
After sewer flooding, call your insurer too, since Scottish Water says your insurer is best placed to help. If you need to ask for help with the clean-up or the pipework, our flooding emergency help page explains the next steps. Our emergency drain services hub covers urgent problems more widely.
Roads and gullies are different
Water pooling on a road is a different case. Scottish Water says to contact your local council about flooding from roads and about problems with highway gullies. Councils are responsible for drainage of local roads and public highways.
The right council depends on where you live. Hamilton and Lanark sit in South Lanarkshire. If you want help with drains at home there, see emergency drain help in Hamilton or emergency drain help in Lanark.
The council clears road gullies, while Scottish Water deals with public sewers. So a gully report and a sewer report go to different places.
What causes most blockages
Scottish Water's teams attend over 36,000 blockages in its drains and sewers each year. It says 80 per cent of these blockages come from wrong items flushed, or fat, oil and grease poured down the sink. That means most blockages are avoidable, since the cause is usually what goes down the pipe.
Only flush pee, poo and toilet paper. Bin all wipes, even the ones sold as flushable, since many wipes contain plastic and do not break down in the sewer.
Fat, oil and grease thicken as they cool, and fat mixed with other waste in a sewer still forms blockages and fatbergs. Let leftover fat set, then scrape it into the food waste or the bin.
If a blockage in your own pipes keeps coming back, get it checked. Our pages on blocked drain help in Hamilton and blocked drain help in Lanark list what a drainage engineer can do. You can see drain help in Lanark for the wider picture. To compare other options, browse all drain services or the towns covered.
FAQ
Do Scottish Water unblock drains?
Scottish Water deals with the public sewer network. It does not clear blockages in your private drain. Those are the owner's job, up to the property boundary.
Will the council unblock my drain?
The council deals with road drainage, including road gullies. Public sewers are Scottish Water's job. If the problem is on the road, contact your local council.
Are blocked drains dangerous?
Blocked pipes stop used water draining away. This can be messy and smelly. If sewage is coming up inside your home, report it to Scottish Water and ask a drainage engineer for advice.