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Why
does it take so long for my drainage search to be completed? |
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This is due to the fact
that the search is performed by the Water Authority, and we
are dependent on their turnaround times.
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Please can you
forward a Land Registry or Location Plan? |
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When conducting a Drainage
and Water Search, we initially need to identify where the site
is located. If the property and surrounding roads are newly
built, they may not yet appear on our mapping system. We receive
regular map updates from Ordnance Survey but there are some
inaccuracies on these maps and if we are not certain of the
correct location of the site we will request a Land Registry/Location
Plan. If you require surrounding land to be searched you need
to mark the area on the plan.
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What is the name
of the developer of the property, the development site name
and development phase? |
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When a new housing development
is built the developer constructs a new road structure on the
site and a private drainage system, which connects to the existing
public services. The developer applies to the Local Authority
for the road to be made public and to the local water company
for the sewers that run under the new public roads to be adopted
under Section 104 of the Water Industry Act. When we are conducting
a Drainage and Water Search, we are required to give details
of any current or pending statutory adoption agreement applications
that affect the property. The adoption agreement is between
the developer and the water company. In order to make an accurate
check we need to know the name of the developer, the name of
the development and development phase of the site on which the
property is located.
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Was the property
originally built by a Local Authority or government body? |
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When we are conducting
a Drainage and Water Search, we are required to give details
of any current or pending statutory adoption agreement applications
that affect the property. It is relevant for us to know if a
building has been part of a Local Authority, government office
or MOD sponsored housing development. as we require these details
in order to accurately provide this information. This question
can also establish the reasons for sewers being private and
not appearing on the public map of sewers as belonging to the
water company.
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What is the age
of the property or stage of build? |
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If a search is requested
on a property that is part of a new or an established housing
development, we frequently find that the property is surrounded
by a private drainage system. The approximate age of the property
helps us to determine which internal checks are necessary in
order to find out if an adoption agreement application is in
progress or if the property is likely to be newly connected.
This information also helps us to determine any ex-section 24
sewers that may be present in the back garden.
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What is the complete
Royal Mail address of the property? |
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The full Royal Mail address
details of a site enables us to identify the correct connection
status of an established or newly built property. If the search
is for a flat or an office it also helps if we are given the
flat/office number or the floor on which the property is situated.
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Has the property
changed name recently or has it ever been known under a different
name? |
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This question is usually
relevant if the name of the property supplied on the Drainage
and Water Search application is different to the name of the
property as described on our mapping or customer account system.
This is particularly relevant where there have been infill developments
or when two or three properties have replaced one.
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Is there a building,
of any kind, on the piece of land you wish us to conduct a search
on? What is the purpose of the building? |
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When we are asked to provide
a search on a piece of land, if our records show buildings of
any kind on the site we need to know the function of those buildings.
We are required to comment on the connection status of any building
that is currently within the boundary of the land outlined on
the application for a search.
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Has the property
on the site been demolished or is it being refurbished? |
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When we are conducting
a search on a site and or customer records indicate that a customer
is not currently being billed for our services, we need to investigate
further. A frequent explanation for this is where the property
concerned has been demolished or the building is currently being
renovated. In both of these cases the service will be disconnected
and reconnected on application at a later date. This information
is relevant as our Drainage and Water Search provides details
of the connection status of the property.
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What is the name
of the current occupier and/or the current bill account number
for the property? |
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When providing a Drainage
and Water Search, we are recurred to give details of the connection
and metering status of a property or properties on a site. If
we have difficulty in locating the right customer account for
the site, the current billing account number or name of the
current occupier will help us to locate the correct account. |
