CCTV drain surveys
CCTV drain surveys
with a report your
solicitor can actually use
WRc-standard CCTV drainage surveys across Kent — pre-purchase, insurance, mortgage and pre-build. Written report, MP4 footage, system map and clear repair pricing.
What it covers
Pre-purchase, insurance and pre-build CCTV drain surveys — accurate, documented, defendable
A CCTV drain survey is one of the cheapest pieces of due diligence on a property purchase — and one of the most overlooked. £200 spent before exchange routinely uncovers £5,000–£15,000 problems: collapsed connections under driveways, root-damaged Victorian clay, illegal connections from kitchens into surface water, and structural defects that the seller's solicitor will quietly drop into your lap on completion day.
We provide CCTV surveys to recognised industry standards (WRc Manual of Sewer Condition Classification). Every survey produces an MP4 file of the recorded footage, a written PDF report with annotated defect timestamps, severity ratings and recommended actions, and a hand-drawn or scaled system map showing what runs where.
Surveys are commonly commissioned for pre-purchase due diligence, mortgage requirements, insurance claims, pre-build / pre-extension planning, post-blockage diagnostics, and as evidence in shared-drainage neighbour disputes.
What happens if you wait
The drain defects no one mentioned during the viewing
Drains aren't covered in a standard homebuyer's survey. The surveyor lifts a manhole, checks for obvious blockages and moves on. Anything underground, behind a wall, under a driveway or in a private sewer remains entirely undisclosed — until it isn't.
Roots, ground movement and decades-old Victorian clay regularly hide collapses that cost £3,000–£10,000 to excavate and replace.
Leaking drains wash away supporting soil under foundations — a leading cause of subsidence claims in Kent and the South East.
Several major insurers now require evidence of drain condition before settling water damage claims. A pre-purchase survey protects you.
Common mistakes we fix every week
- Skipping a pre-purchase drain survey to 'save £200' on a £450,000 house.
- Accepting verbal assurances from estate agents about 'no known drainage issues'.
- Letting builders connect a new extension into drains never sized for the extra load.
- Buying a property with shared drainage and not knowing where boundary responsibility ends.
- Lifting only the front manhole and assuming the back garden runs are fine.
- Disposing of an old survey when buying — your insurer may want it years later.
Our process
A predictable, step-by-step system — no surprises, no upsells
- STEP 01Quick phone brief
We take address, reason for the survey, and any known issues — and quote a fixed fee.
- STEP 02On-site setup
Locate the manholes, set up the colour CCTV crawler with sonde location tracking.
- STEP 03Run the survey
Camera tracks the full system, recorded to WRc standards with audio commentary.
- STEP 04Defect grading
Each defect is timestamped, severity-graded and noted on the system map.
- STEP 05Report & footage
PDF report, system map and MP4 footage emailed within 24–48 hours.
What you get
Concrete outcomes — not vague promises
Industry-recognised grading scheme — the format your solicitor, insurer and surveyor expect.
You keep the full video file — useful for sellers' solicitors, insurers and future buyers.
Hand-drawn or scaled map of where everything runs — invaluable for future works.
Where defects need repair, we quote them as fixed prices alongside the report.
Reports issued within 24–48 hours — fits neatly into a typical conveyancing timeline.
Format and content accepted by every major UK home insurer and conveyancing solicitor.
Technical detail
What a proper CCTV drain survey looks like — and how to read the report
Not all CCTV surveys are equal. A £75 'quick look' with a handheld camera and no report is essentially worthless. A WRc-standard survey is a defensible piece of evidence that holds up in conveyancing, insurance and small claims. Here's the difference.
Equipment we use
Colour CCTV crawler cameras with pan/tilt heads for 100mm+ pipework, push-rod cameras for smaller diameter runs, sonde transmitters for above-ground locating, and digital recording with overlay (depth, distance, defect timestamp). All footage is captured to MP4 with audio commentary explaining what the engineer sees in real time.
WRc Manual of Sewer Condition Classification
The industry-standard reporting framework used across the UK water industry. Each defect is coded (e.g. CR — circumferential crack, FL — fracture longitudinal, DEC — displaced joint), measured (clock-face position, length, severity) and graded for structural and service condition. This is the format insurers and solicitors expect.
- Structural grades 1–5 (1 = minor, 5 = imminent collapse)
- Service grades 1–5 (operational impact on flow)
- Clock-face referencing for every defect
- Distance from each manhole logged
Pre-purchase surveys — what to look for in the report
Key red flags in a pre-purchase report include grade 4–5 structural defects (likely needing imminent action), unlicensed connections (kitchens into surface water), shared drainage with unclear responsibility, evidence of root ingress, and partial blockages indicating poor maintenance. We highlight all of these clearly with recommended next steps and indicative costs.
Pre-build and extension surveys
Before any extension that adds bathrooms, kitchens or rainwater outlets, the existing drains should be surveyed to confirm capacity and condition. We provide flow assessment, defect identification and a written recommendation that supports building control submission.
Insurance and subsidence claims
For escape-of-water or subsidence claims, we provide surveys that conform to insurer requirements: dated footage, GPS-stamped location, named engineer, WRc-graded defects and a clear causal narrative. We work routinely with loss adjusters and structural engineers on these reports.
Frequently asked
Straight answers to the questions Kent homeowners ask us most
How much does a CCTV drain survey cost?+
A standard residential pre-purchase survey is a fixed fee, including site visit, full CCTV recording, written PDF report, MP4 footage and system map. Commercial and multi-property surveys are quoted individually.
How long does the survey take?+
Typically 60–90 minutes on-site for a standard residential property. The report and footage are emailed within 24–48 hours.
Will it interfere with the property?+
No. The survey is non-invasive — we use existing manhole access points. There's no digging, no mess, and no need for water to be turned off.
Do I need a survey before buying a house?+
Strongly recommended, particularly for properties built before 1965, properties with mature trees within 5m of drain runs, and properties with extensions that may have stressed original drainage. The cost is trivial compared to the potential liability.
Will insurers accept your report?+
Yes — all our reports are written to WRc standards and accepted by every major UK home insurer. We also work directly with loss adjusters on claim-driven surveys.
What if you find serious defects?+
We quote the repair work as a fixed price as part of the survey deliverable — there's no obligation to use us for the repair, but you'll have the numbers to negotiate with the seller or plan the work.
Can you survey shared drains?+
Yes — and it's one of the most common reasons for boundary disputes. We map exactly where the shared section starts and ends, which is essential for clarifying repair responsibility.
Do you provide reports for solicitors?+
Yes. Reports are written specifically to support conveyancing — clear, dated, signed and accompanied by full footage. Solicitors across Kent regularly act on our reports.
How quickly can you attend?+
Most surveys are booked within 24–72 hours. Pre-exchange urgent surveys can usually be booked next-day if needed for a transaction deadline.
Do you cover the whole of Kent?+
Yes — including Medway, Maidstone, Tunbridge Wells, Sevenoaks, Ashford, Canterbury, Thanet and Dartford. We also survey across London, Sussex, Essex, Surrey, Hampshire, Hertfordshire and Berkshire for pre-arranged work.
Related services
Book a pre-purchase drain survey before you exchange.
Fast turnaround, WRc-standard reports, MP4 footage included. We can usually attend within 24–48 hours — even on a tight conveyancing timeline.
Fully insured · Workmanship guarantee · 7 days a week