Should I be paying surface water drainage?

Should I be paying surface water drainage?

Your water company may also have not taken account of site area where natural drainage occurs. You should only be charged for surface water drainage for areas which, directly or indirectly, drain into public sewers.

Why do I pay for surface water drainage?

If rainwater drains from your property into a public sewer, you will be charged for surface water drainage through your sewerage bill. Surface water drainage occurs when rainwater from your property drains into the sewer. Your company collects and treats this surface water. There is a charge for this service.

How does property law affect how surface water drains?

Property Law For Dummies. In property law, one way that a landowner may interfere with another’s use of her land is by altering how surface water, such as rain or snow melt, drains. A landowner may build a building, pave her land, or alter the contour of the land in a way that increases the amount of surface water that drains onto neighboring…

Where does surface water drainage take place in the UK?

Surface water drainage. Surface water drainage occurs when rainwater falls on a property and drains away. Most rainwater falling on properties drains into public sewers owned by the ten water and sewerage companies in England and Wales.

Do you have to pay for surface water drainage?

You will pay for surface water drainage in your bill in one of three ways: a charge based on the rateable value of your property If you can prove that the surface rainwater from your property does not drain into the public sewer, you may be entitled to an exemption from future surface water charges.

What can I do about water drainage on my property caused?

Some states have laws that prohibit individuals and businesses from diverting or impounding the natural flow of surface waters that damages another’s property due to overflow caused by the diverted water.

How does the surface drainage rule benefit landowners?

This rule may promote development of land by protecting landowners from liability for altering the land in ways that change surface drainage. But it also may encourage landowners to divert surface water in ways that most benefit themselves without considering how those actions affect other properties.

Who is liable for altering the natural drainage of surface water?

In its simplest form, the civil law rule says that landowners are strictly liable for altering the natural drainage of surface water. The rule thus is the exact opposite of the common enemy rule.

Some states have laws that prohibit individuals and businesses from diverting or impounding the natural flow of surface waters that damages another’s property due to overflow caused by the diverted water.

How is surface water affected by property law?

In property law, one way that a landowner may interfere with another’s use of her land is by altering how surface water, such as rain or snow melt, drains.