Drainage and Sewer Contractors Insurance
Drainage and sewer contractors cover a wide range of work: new below ground drainage on developments, connections into public sewers, excavated repairs, no dig relining, jetting and CCTV surveys, and surface water systems such as soakaways, attenuation tanks and interceptors. Each carries a different mix of risk, and insurers rate them differently.
The claims tend to involve water going somewhere it should not. An overpumping set fails and sewage backs up into homes. Jetting causes blowback through a toilet. A misconnection sends foul water into a surface water system and out into a watercourse. A repair that leaks undermines the ground beneath a drive or a building.
Excavated work brings the usual underground services risk, often in the highway, and sewer work brings confined spaces, sewer gases and the risk of infection from contaminated water. Where you produce survey reports or design drainage layouts, a mistake can lead to a financial claim long after you have left site.
We can help you describe the work you do, from domestic repairs to adoptable sewers on new developments, and arrange public and employers' liability, contract works, plant and professional indemnity cover that matches it.
Common claims and risk exposures
The exposures that produce claims in this trade, rather than a generic list.
Flooding from overpumping and blockages
Diverting live flows around a section of sewer while it is repaired or relined depends on pumps running continuously. If a pump fails or a storm overwhelms the set, sewage can back up into properties upstream. These claims involve clean up, decontamination and repair of homes or businesses, and they can be expensive.
Pollution of watercourses
Foul water reaching a surface water drain, a ditch or a river can lead to enforcement by the Environment Agency or its equivalent, clean up costs and third party claims. Misconnections on new developments and spills during tankering or overpumping are typical causes.
Relining and jetting damage
Cured in place lining uses resins that can give off strong fumes inside nearby properties, and a liner that blocks a lateral connection can cause backing up. High pressure jetting on weak or displaced pipes can cause further collapse or blow water back through fittings inside a building.
Confined spaces and sewer gases
Manholes, chambers and sewers are confined spaces, and hydrogen sulphide and oxygen depletion are serious hazards. Work in them needs a safe system of work, gas monitoring, trained operatives and rescue arrangements. Leptospirosis and other infections from sewage contact are also recognised occupational risks.
Excavation in the highway
Sewer connections and repairs often mean digging in the road or footway, which brings service strikes, traffic management, trench support and reinstatement standards into play. Poor reinstatement can result in claims from the highway authority and from members of the public who trip or damage vehicles.
The cover we arrange
We arrange insurance around the work you carry out, the contracts you take and the sites you work on. The cover available will depend on the individual risk and the terms offered by insurers.
Public liability
Third party injury and property damage, including flooding of properties, damage to services and sudden pollution incidents. Water companies and developers commonly ask for £5m or £10m.
- Flooding and backing up into third party property
- Sudden and accidental pollution
- Damage to underground services
- Limits typically £5m or £10m
Employers' liability
A legal requirement once you employ people, and it can be arranged where required, subject to the policy terms. Confined space work and sewage exposure are the questions underwriters focus on for this trade.
- Confined space entry
- Infection and disease from sewage contact
- Excavation and trench work
- Labour only subcontractors under your direction
Contract works
Covers new drainage runs, chambers, tanks and materials until handover. On developments with Section 104 agreements the sewer may remain your responsibility through a maintenance period before adoption, so the policy period and terms need to match.
- Drainage runs, chambers and tanks in progress
- Pipes and materials on site
- Storm and flood damage to open trenches
- Damage during testing
Plant and equipment
Jetting units, CCTV crawlers, lining equipment, pumps and excavators are high value and often specialist. CCTV crawlers in particular can be damaged or lost inside a pipe.
- Jetting and vacuum units
- CCTV crawler and survey equipment
- Overpumping and lining equipment
- Hired in plant and continuing hire
Professional indemnity
Relevant where you produce CCTV survey reports relied upon by home buyers, insurers or developers, or where you design drainage layouts and surface water systems. A missed defect in a survey can become a financial claim.
- CCTV and condition survey reports
- Drainage and soakaway design
- Surface water and attenuation calculations
- Claims made basis
What an underwriter will ask
Having these to hand shortens the process considerably, and usually improves the terms.
- Turnover split between new drainage, sewer connections, excavated repairs, relining, jetting and surveys
- Whether you work on public sewers, adoptable sewers or private drains only
- Section 104 and sewer connection work, and any water company accreditations held
- Whether you carry out overpumping and how pumps are monitored
- Confined space training, gas monitoring and rescue arrangements
- Street works qualifications held, and how traffic management is provided
- Maximum excavation depth
- Whether you produce survey reports or design drainage systems
- Plant and equipment values
- Five years of claims, particularly flooding and pollution incidents
What affects the cost of your insurance?
The main factors insurers consider when assessing the premium.
Type of work
CCTV surveys and domestic jetting carry a different risk profile from deep sewer connections in the highway or overpumping on a trunk sewer. A clear split by activity helps.
Public sewer and highway exposure
Work on live public sewers and in the road increases both the flooding and the third party exposure, and is rated accordingly.
Overpumping and pollution controls
Pump monitoring, standby pumps and spill procedures show how a flooding or pollution incident would be prevented, and underwriters take them seriously.
Claims history
Repeated flooding or blowback claims suggest a pattern. A documented change in procedure after an incident can help at renewal.
Conditions and exclusions to consider
Terms vary between insurers, so treat these as the questions to ask rather than a description of any one policy.
Gradual pollution
Sudden and accidental pollution may be covered. A slow leak from a defective joint that contaminates ground over months is likely to be treated as gradual, and gradual pollution is commonly excluded.
Defective workmanship
The cost of relaying a drain that was laid to the wrong fall or failed its test is your cost. Damage that the defect causes to other property, such as flooding a building, may be covered under public liability.
Existing defects in the pipe
Older drains are often cracked, displaced or root damaged before you arrive. Where jetting or lining causes a collapse, insurers will want to know what condition the pipe was in. A CCTV survey before work starts is the evidence that separates existing damage from new.
Depth limits
Many construction wordings restrict excavation below a stated depth. Deep sewer connections and chambers need declaring so the policy is written for them.
Services not located
Some policies condition cover for service strikes on having used drawings and detection equipment before digging. Keeping scan records and permits to dig for each excavation protects the claim.
Common questions
What insurance do drainage contractors need?
Public liability is the core cover, and it needs to respond to flooding of third party property and sudden pollution. Employers' liability is a legal requirement once you employ people and can be arranged where required, subject to the policy terms. Contract works covers new drainage until handover, plant cover protects jetting units and CCTV equipment, and professional indemnity is worth considering if you produce survey reports or design drainage systems.
Am I covered if sewage backs up into a house while we are working?
If the backing up was caused by your work, for example a failed overpump or a blocked lateral after lining, public liability would normally respond to the damage to the property, subject to the policy terms. Insurers will usually ask how the flow was managed and whether pumps were monitored, so records of the set up and checks are useful.
Does my insurance cover Section 104 adoption work?
Section 104 agreements set out how new sewers built by a developer are adopted by the sewerage undertaker, usually after a maintenance period. If you are building the sewer, you may be responsible for defects through that period. Public liability and contract works can be arranged for the work, but the cost of putting right your own defective workmanship is generally not insured, so it is worth understanding the obligations in the agreement before signing.
Do I need professional indemnity for CCTV drain surveys?
Often, yes. A home buyer or developer may rely on your report to make a financial decision, and a missed defect can lead to a claim for the cost of repairs that would otherwise have been negotiated off the price. Public liability does not usually respond to financial loss from incorrect advice, so professional indemnity is the cover that applies.
Is pollution covered by public liability?
Sudden, identifiable and accidental pollution incidents are commonly covered. Gradual pollution, such as a slow leak over time, is usually excluded, and fines are generally not insurable. The difference between the two can depend on how quickly an incident is discovered and reported, so recording and notifying incidents promptly matters.
How do I get a quote from True Risk Solutions?
Call 01304 262880 and speak to a broker, or email info@truerisksolutions.co.uk with what you do, what you need cover for and a phone number with the best time to call, and a broker will call you back. We need a phone number to quote, because the cover and the price depend on questions that are quicker to answer on a call than by email.
Speak to a specialist who understands your industry
Tell us about your business and the work you undertake, and we will come back to you with cover options built around it. Call 01304 262880, or email us with a phone number and the best time to call and a broker will ring you back.