Sewage Backup — What to Do Right Now
Sewage in the property is a health emergency. Stop water going in, get everyone out of the affected room, and let us assess — cleaning before we've traced the cause can void insurance.
Make it safe — before anything else
Do not touch electrics in standing water
Kill the circuit at the consumer unit first. If the consumer unit itself is affected or you can't reach it dry, call an electrician urgently.
Full PPE — you and us
Nitrile gloves, waterproof boots, mask if the smell is bad. Sewage carries E. coli, hepatitis A, giardia. Keep children and pets out of the room.
Ventilate but don't spread
Open a window in the affected room, close the door to the rest of the house. Don't run extractor fans that share ducting with living areas.
Insurance photos first
Wide shot, close-ups of damaged items, timestamped. Insurers will not settle without evidence of the pre-clean state.
What Kevin (our AI) will check first
Message Kevin and he'll ask exactly these questions before we send an engineer, so we bring the right parts on the first van.
- Where exactly is it backing up — WC, shower tray, wet-room drain, kitchen sink, outside gully?
- Are neighbours affected — is this a shared / lateral drain issue?
- Recent heavy rain? Combined sewers can back up in a storm.
- Any visible cracks in floor tiles, damp patches on walls, or a sinkhole in the garden?
- Do you know where your soil vent pipe exits — is it capped or open at roof level?
Common causes of a sewage backup
Collapsed drain under the property
Older clay or pitch-fibre drains fracture and sag. Waste can't leave, so it comes back up the lowest fixture.
Blocked main sewer or shared drain
If neighbours are affected too, the blockage is on the water company's side. United Utilities in the North West responds free — but we'll confirm first.
Root ingress in the main run
Roots enter through joints and form a mat that catches wipes, fat and paper. Jetter with a cutter head clears; CCTV shows the repair scope.
Storm overload on a combined sewer
In heavy rain, older combined sewers back up. Non-return valves on your gullies stop it happening again.
Fatberg / wipe raft
Long-term fat + wipes build up in the main run. Needs high-pressure jetting; sometimes requires council or water-company involvement.
Honest cost band — why we won't quote blind
Typical
£220 – £480 for emergency attendance, initial jetting and containment advice
Complex
CCTV survey £180 – £320. Repair / lining / non-return valve fit £600 – £2,400. Excavation £1,500 – £4,500+.
Sewage backup can be a shared-drain issue clearable by the water company (free) or a collapsed private drain (major work). £50 diagnostic gets you a written fixed price and identifies who pays.
Fixed £50 diagnostic
Flat fee. No hourly meter running.
Fair quote or refund
Transparent pricing — refunded if we don't fix it.
Vetted UK engineers
DBS-checked, insured, real reviews.
AI-triaged in seconds
KJ chats first so the right engineer arrives.
Related emergencies
Blocked outside drain
Emergency guide
Overflowing toilet
Emergency guide
Foul drain smell
Emergency guide
See all in the emergency plumbing hub — or the leaks & water damage hub.
Areas we cover for sewage backup
Same-day across Greater Manchester and Rochdale.
Sewage backup — FAQs
Dealing with a sewage backup? Chat with Kevin now
Real triage in seconds. £50 diagnostic visit — refunded if we don't fix it.
Related hubs: emergency plumbing, leaks & water damage, all services.
Chat with Kevin about Sewage backup