The person who requests and books a drain survey normally pays the initial invoice. A written contract, tenancy arrangement or negotiated agreement can instead assign the cost to someone else.
Common payment situations
- Pre-purchase inspection: The buyer usually commissions and pays for the CCTV drain inspection as part of their due diligence.
- Seller-requested survey: The seller usually pays if they commission the survey before sale.
- Suspected fault or blockage: The property owner generally pays to investigate private wastewater pipework.
- Rental property: Payment depends on why the inspection is needed, the tenancy agreement and applicable NSW tenancy requirements. Neither the landlord nor tenant is automatically responsible in every case.
- Agent, strata manager or another party: The party named as the customer when booking is usually invoiced, unless another arrangement has been agreed.
Paying the plumber’s invoice does not prevent that person from later seeking reimbursement where a contract or other valid agreement allows it. Before booking, confirm in writing who will pay and whether the service must include CCTV footage, a report or the defect location.
Can Sydney Water pay?
Sydney Water does not automatically pay simply because a survey finds a fault in its infrastructure. Property owners are generally responsible for their private wastewater service, while Sydney Water manages its wastewater network; the precise responsibility boundary depends on the asset configuration.
Sydney Water may arrange an investigation or consider reimbursement in limited circumstances, subject to its current claims process and any authorisation requirements. Contact Sydney Water before approving further investigation or work on a suspected Sydney Water asset. Keep the invoice, CCTV footage, report and exact defect location.
Do not enter sewer access points, handle sewage or work on utility infrastructure. If the asset boundary or fault location is unclear, our Sydney plumbing team can inspect accessible private drains and document the findings.