Most homeowners pay between £150 and £350 for a standard domestic CCTV drain survey. What separates a £150 job from a £400 one is rarely the camera. It is the report you get at the end and what you need it for.

Typical CCTV drain survey costs in the UK (2026)

Buy the report, not the camera

This is the mistake that costs people money twice. A cheap inspection and a formal report are different products, and the cheap one is useless for the job most people need it for.

• A look and see gets somebody’s opinion on the day. Fine if you simply want to know why a drain keeps blocking
• A written report is what a solicitor, a lender, an insurer or a water company will accept

So say what it is for when you book. Booking the £120 option and then discovering your insurer wants a written report means paying again.

If you are extending, the survey may not be optional

Building over or close to a public sewer needs the water company’s agreement, and the rules differ by company. This is where a survey stops being optional and becomes part of the paperwork.

Severn Trent, covering the Midlands

Building close to or over a public sewer without formal approval is illegal, in their own words. The threshold is 3 metres, measured from the nearest part of the building including foundations to the centre of the sewer.

• Before you build: no survey needed on a 100mm to 150mm sewer if you can prove where it runs and that foundations will not affect it, or on a 225mm sewer at least a metre away
• After you build: a CCTV survey is mandatory in every case, to confirm nothing was damaged
• Application fees: £169.50 up to 150mm, £194.70 for 225mm, complex cases at cost

Yorkshire Water

Consent is required for building over or within 3 metres of a public sewer. They recommend a CCTV survey or a tracing service to establish what is actually there, rather than requiring one, with sewer records, deeds and neighbours as the alternatives.

• Never permitted: building over access points, over pipes larger than 225mm, or over pipes deeper than 3 metres
• Fees: £144 for a desktop study, £449 with a site inspection
• Timings: a response within 5 working days, technical assessment around 14 days

United Utilities, covering the North West

Worth knowing for a different reason. Any CCTV work on the public sewer itself needs formal permission from them, with explosion rated equipment, confined space trained staff and work restricted to normal working hours.

Your own private run is a straightforward booking. Beyond the boundary is their job, not a bigger invoice for you.

Buying a house: what the standard searches miss

The drainage and water search your solicitor orders, the CON29DW, tells you useful things. Whether the property is connected to a public sewer, where public sewers run, and whether anything has been built over one.

What it does not do is look inside the pipe. Neither does a standard building survey or a homebuyer report. Nobody in the normal conveyancing process puts a camera down the drain unless you pay for it.

On these property types that gap is worth closing:

• Anything built before the 1990s, where jointed clay runs are common
• Houses with mature trees anywhere near the run
• Properties with extensions, which may sit over the drain without an agreement
• Terraces sharing a run with neighbours, because you buy a share of the problem
• Anything with a cellar or basement, where a cracked drain is often mistaken for rising damp
• Converted flats, where the drainage was rarely upgraded when the house was divided

A few hundred pounds before exchange is small against the cost of a drain repair afterwards. Find a collapse after completion and it is entirely your problem.

What changes the price

• Level of reporting. The biggest factor. Verbal findings are cheapest, a coded written report with stills and a plan is the most expensive
• Access. A buried or paved over cover has to be found before filming starts
• Condition of the drain. A camera cannot see through standing water or heavy silt, so a blocked run often needs jetting first
• Size of the property. A small terrace with one run is cheaper than a detached house with several
• Where you are. London and the South East sit above the Midlands, the North, Scotland and Wales
• Time of day. Out of hours costs more, though a survey is rarely urgent enough to need it

What a proper survey should include

• Live camera inspection of every accessible run, not just the one nearest the problem
• Recorded footage you can keep, rather than something watched on a screen and forgotten
• Defects identified by name and position, roots, cracks, collapses, scale, displaced joints, standing water
• A plan or sketch of the layout, which matters most where nobody has a drawing
• Clear recommendations, separating urgent work from what can wait
• A view on ownership, saying whether each defect sits on your pipe, a shared run or the public sewer

That last point is the one that can pay for the survey. Since 1 October 2011 most shared private sewers in England and Wales transferred to the water companies, and they clear blockages on their own network at no charge. A report showing the defect is on their side turns your repair bill into their job.

Scotland works differently. The transfer did not happen there, and shared pipework in a tenement is normally jointly owned by the flat owners with the split set out in the title deeds.

Can I do it myself?

Not realistically. Pushing a cheap endoscope into a gully will not map a system or produce anything a solicitor, insurer or water company would look at.

It also will not tell you the one thing you are usually paying to find out, which is whether the pipe is damaged or simply dirty.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a CCTV drain survey take?

Most domestic surveys take one to two hours on site. The written report normally follows afterwards rather than being handed over on the day.

Do I need the drain cleared first?

Often yes. A camera cannot see through standing water or heavy silt, so a blocked run usually needs jetting before filming. Ask whether that is included.

Is a survey worth it before buying a house?

On anything pre-1990s, a property with mature trees, an extension, a cellar or a shared run, yes. The standard searches and a building survey do not film the pipe.

Does the drainage and water search cover this?

No. The CON29DW tells you about connections, where public sewers run and whether anything has been built over one. It does not inspect the condition of the pipe.

Do I need one for a build over agreement?

It depends on the company. Severn Trent require a CCTV survey after the work in every case. Yorkshire Water recommend one rather than requiring it. Check with your own water company before you apply.

Can I get a copy of the footage?

Usually, by email link, memory stick or download. It comes as standard with full surveys more often than with basic inspections. Confirm when you book.

Will a survey find tree roots?

Yes. Root ingress is one of the most common things a camera picks up, and it also shows whether the pipe around the roots is cracked or displaced, which decides whether you need jetting or a repair.

Will they fix problems on the same visit?

Many can clear a simple blockage or quote for repairs while they are there. Confirm it when booking.

Does the price include jetting?

Not always. Some quote the survey only, others include light jetting. Always ask what is covered.

Do I need a survey if the drain has only blocked once?

Probably not. A one-off blockage that has stayed clear since is usually just a blockage. Repeated blockages in the same stretch are the stronger reason.

Can I use the report for an insurance claim?

Usually, provided you booked a survey with a written report. Tell the company it is for an insurer so you get the right product.

Do I need to be there?

Usually yes, so the covers can be lifted. If any cover is buried or inside an extension, say so when you book.

Getting a quote

Tell us what you need the survey for and give your postcode. We pass it to drainage companies covering your area. Say if it is for a house purchase, an insurance claim or a build over application, because that decides the report you need.

See all areas for local survey prices in your town.