Terms and conditions for a drainage contractor

A drainage contractor needs terms that deal with out-of-hours call-outs, blockages that recur, CCTV surveys that identify defects the customer does not want to pay to repair, and insurers funding work who are not your customer. I draft those terms for a fixed fee of £995, delivered in five working days.

Who this is for

Drainage and drain clearance businesses in England and Wales: unblocking, jetting, CCTV surveys, patch repairs and lining, excavation and pump servicing. Most work for homeowners and also for letting agents, facilities managers, pubs, restaurants and housing providers. Consumers and business customers are protected differently, so a single set of terms has to be written with both in mind.

What matters in drainage terms

Callout charges, no fix no fee and what the price covers

Most drainage arguments start with the price given over the phone. Your terms should set out the callout charge, what period of attendance it buys, when out of hours rates apply, and what happens when the blockage has not cleared by the end of it. If you advertise 'no fix, no fee' to homeowners, define what counts as a fix, because the customer will otherwise expect a permanent result. The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 treats drip pricing as a banned practice, so a headline price shown to consumers has to include the mandatory charges, VAT among them.

Emergency work and the consumer's cancellation right

A blocked drain agreed over the phone or at the customer's door is a distance or off-premises contract under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013, and the homeowner has fourteen days to cancel. There is an exception for urgent repairs the consumer has asked for, but it covers that work only, so the survey and the lining you quote afterwards sit outside it. Where the cancellation information is not given, the period can extend by up to twelve months. Your terms, your job sheet and what the engineer says at the door have to work together.

Whose drain is it, and permission to work on it

Drainage work crosses boundaries more than most trades. A blockage in a shared run, a lateral serving four houses, or a section that belongs to the water company is not always the customer's to authorise. Since the transfer of private sewers in 2011, shared sewers and lateral drains beyond the property boundary are generally the responsibility of the sewerage undertaker under the Water Industry Act 1991, and repairs and new connections may need approval under Part H of the Building Regulations 2010. The terms should make the customer responsible for confirming ownership, for obtaining the neighbour's or landlord's permission where access or excavation is needed on land that is not theirs, and for any consents the work requires. They should also say what happens, and who pays, if you attend and cannot get lawful access to the chamber.

Jetting, existing defects and damage

High pressure jetting through pipework that is already cracked, displaced or made of pitch fibre can cause it to fail, and the customer may attribute the failure to you. The terms should record that the condition of the drain is unknown before the work, that the customer accepts the risk to defective pipework, and that you will recommend a survey where you suspect a defect. That allocation has limits: the Consumer Rights Act 2015 does not let you contract out of performing the service with reasonable care and skill, and against business customers the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 tests exclusions in standard terms for reasonableness.

Surveys, reports and who is entitled to rely on them

A survey report often ends up with someone other than the person who paid for it: a buyer, a surveyor, an insurer or a managing agent. The terms should state what the survey covers, that it records the condition seen on the day at the points that were accessible, and that it is not a warranty about the whole system. They should also limit who may rely on it and exclude third party rights under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999, so a purchaser cannot sue you two years later over a defect that developed after your survey.

Insurance work, waste and commercial customers

Where an insurer funds a repair, your contract is still with the policyholder unless you have signed up to the insurer's own terms, and the policyholder should stay liable if the claim is declined or the excess goes unpaid. Silt, fat and jetting arisings taken off site make you a waste carrier, which requires registration with the Environment Agency under the Control of Pollution (Amendment) Act 1989 and the Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2011. For commercial accounts, claim interest and fixed compensation under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 and cap liability for flooding and lost trade.

What it costs

Customer or supplier terms and conditions, £995. One set of terms, customer-facing or supplier-facing, drafted for your business. Five working days.

Review of your existing terms, £495. You already have terms and want them checked and brought up to date. Returned marked up with my amendments and an explanation of the changes. Three working days.

Buying online forms the engagement on payment. The scope is what the terms and conditions drafting page describes, you accept the Terms of Service at checkout, and I email you within four working hours to get started. If you would rather ask something first, email me.

What you get

• A full set of bespoke terms drafted for your business, reflecting the legal requirements that apply to your business and sector
• A note in plain English explaining the terms I have drafted for you
• Liability, payment, termination and IP provisions that protect your position and are drafted to withstand scrutiny from the other side
• Guidance on how to incorporate the terms properly
• Your questions and comments answered by email or phone
• One round of amendments to finalise the terms ready for use

What is not included

• Negotiating your terms with individual customers (I am happy to quote for this as an additional service if required)
• Sector-specific regulatory compliance beyond the contract terms themselves
• Website privacy notice and cookie compliance, which I quote separately
• Terms governed by the law of another country
• Tax advice

Questions I am often asked

Can I charge a minimum attendance fee if the drain clears in ten minutes?

You can, provided the charge is stated clearly before the engineer attends and is genuinely what the customer agreed to. A charge that appears for the first time on the invoice is the one that gets challenged. I draft the attendance and out of hours rates into the terms and explain how to get them in front of the customer before the engineer attends.

What if the customer refuses to pay because the blockage came back?

That turns on what you promised. Terms that separate clearing a blockage from repairing the defect that caused it, and that state any return period and what it covers, give you an answer. Where you recommended a survey and the customer declined it, the terms should require that refusal to be recorded. It is usually the decisive fact.

Can one set of terms cover homeowners and commercial accounts?

One set can do both where the consumer provisions sit in their own section and the commercial ones, including the liability cap and the payment terms, apply only to business customers. What fails is the reverse: a commercial document handed to a homeowner on an emergency call-out, where the clauses you most want to rely on are the ones that will not bind them.

Related guidance and services

• Terms and conditions drafting, £995, the service this page describes
• Consultancy and contractor agreements, £595
• Ask Caesar, £495 a month
• Terms and conditions for a plumbing and heating business
• Terms and conditions for a landscaping business

This page is general guidance for businesses in England and Wales, not advice on your own circumstances. Last reviewed: September 2026. Email geoffrey@caesar.co.uk.