CCTV Drain Survey Cost: Prices & Shared Sewer Surveys

A CCTV drain survey shows what is happening inside accessible underground pipework, but its cost depends on the question you need answered. A quick camera check of one problem is different from a recorded inspection with a report for a house purchase or building work. We carry out CCTV drain surveys in Birmingham, Solihull and the wider West Midlands, and below we explain the CCTV drain survey cost for each option and what to establish before accepting a quote.

Editor's Note [14.10.26]: This article was originally published on 18 June 2026. In today's update on 14th October 2026, we've clarified camera-check and report options, added our shared sewer survey scope for extension work, and explained the drainage checks in a normal home survey. The earlier £85 camera-check figure has been corrected to the current £100 standalone offer shown on our service page; report requirements and delivery should be agreed when booking. The heading was ‘CCTV Drain Survey Cost: What You'll Pay and What You'll Get’; it is now ‘CCTV Drain Survey Cost: Prices & Shared Sewer Surveys’. The page title has changed from ‘CCTV Drain Survey Cost 2026 | From £85 | Cofton DJS’ to ‘CCTV Drain Survey Cost | Shared Sewer Surveys’.

How much does a CCTV drain survey cost?

Our standalone look-and-see camera check is advertised from £100, while our recorded CCTV survey starts from £250 including VAT. The lower price is a starting point for a particular camera check, not a promise of a whole-property report. If you need a plan and a document to share with someone else, explain that before booking so the quote covers the right work.

A starting price cannot describe every property's drainage. Several branches, restricted access or a report for a particular application can change the scope. We quote commercial work individually because a shop's short private run and a larger site's drainage network may need very different visits. Ask for the survey, any clearance and any repair to be identified separately rather than treating one headline price as covering all three.

What's included in a CCTV drain survey?

Once you have chosen the purpose of the survey, the useful question is what evidence you will receive. A live explanation may be enough to understand a local problem; a solicitor, builder or insurer may need a written record in a particular format. Our walkthrough of a CCTV drain survey explains the visit itself. For comparing prices, agree these deliverables:

• Recorded footage: Which runs will be inspected, how you receive the recording and whether any section could not be reached.
• A drainage plan: Whether the quoted package includes a plan, chamber positions and pipe information, and whether locating the route with a sonde is required.
• Defect images: Screenshots and measured distances that let you relate a finding to the inspected run rather than an unlocated photograph.
• Condition coding: Whether WRc coding is required by the person using the report and included in the agreed reporting scope.
• Recommendations: An explanation of the next step, including whether the evidence supports cleaning, monitoring, a repair assessment or further investigation.

Our standard survey offer includes findings explained on site and footage you can keep. A homebuyer survey includes the written report, screenshots, plan and recommendations. If you need a document for another purpose, send us that requirement before the visit. A report should state the access points and direction of inspection, the sections covered and the limits of what the camera could see. A blocked or inaccessible run is not evidence that the unseen pipe is sound.

Agree the delivery date as well as the contents. Being shown a finding on the monitor during the visit is different from receiving a finished report afterwards. If a building application or exchange deadline depends on the document, let us know when booking so the required format and timing can be confirmed.

Do you need a drain survey before buying a house?

A house purchase is one reason to request a written survey rather than a quick look-and-see. Before paying for another inspection, read the drainage observations in your home survey and ask your surveyor or solicitor what concern needs resolving. A valuation, a drainage search and a camera survey answer different questions; do not assume that having one means the inside of the pipes has been recorded.

The RICS Level Two inspection scope includes a visual inspection of safely accessible drainage chambers. That does not give the surveyor a recorded view along every underground pipe. A separate CCTV inspection can examine accessible interiors for cracks, displaced joints, roots or deformation, while recording any section that remains out of reach.

Our homebuyer survey is advertised from £250 including VAT. The value is the evidence it gives you before a decision, rather than a guarantee that a property has no drainage faults. Arrange the seller's permission and access in time for the report to be considered before exchange. If a defect is found, your solicitor can advise how it should be addressed in the purchase; a camera finding on its own does not establish the final repair bill or who must pay it.

If the property you are buying sits near an existing sewer, future extension plans may need additional drainage evidence. A survey with agreed locating and mapping can record accessible routes, helping your designer compare the proposed footprint with the pipework. Any inaccessible or inferred sections should remain clear on the plan rather than be presented as measured positions.

Shared sewer camera inspections for extension work

For extension planning, we survey accessible shared sewer pipelines within the client's property boundary. A shared sewer carries wastewater from more than one property, so the run beneath your garden may serve a neighbour as well as your own house. We establish the reachable route and condition relevant to the planned work. Once the line reaches the road, surveying that network falls outside our offered scope and should be arranged through Severn Trent and its contractors.

This working limit is separate from asset ownership: a sewer inside your boundary can still be public. The current Severn Trent build-over guidance explains why approval may be needed for work over or near its pipes and why some shared sewers do not appear on maps. A camera inspection records accessible pipework; permission for the proposed construction is decided by the water company, not granted by the survey visit.

What affects the cost of sewer camera inspection?

The extension footprint, accessible chambers and required evidence determine the quotation. A survey that needs a located route, depth information and a condition report involves a different scope from checking one suspected blockage. Before attendance, provide your designer's plans and any requirements supplied for the application. We can then agree which runs, locating and documents the visit will cover, including how an obstruction or missing access could affect completion. The domestic starting prices above are not a fixed tariff for every shared asset pipeline.

Our build over agreement guide introduces the approval process. For a formal application, confirm the current report requirements before commissioning the inspection, and agree delivery around your building programme. Severn Trent's published process also includes a post-construction CCTV report. If that return inspection is required for your project, it should be separately identified in the scope and quotation rather than assumed to be included in the first survey fee.

What affects the price of a drain survey?

With that purpose agreed, the drain camera inspection cost mainly follows the amount of accessible pipework and the evidence needed afterwards. Two quotes can look quite different while covering different tasks. These are the details we would establish before comparing them:

• Number of pipe runs: A short straight run from a house to the sewer connection differs from several branches and chambers. Tell us about known access points; the size of the house alone does not describe the drainage.
• Access: Buried, sealed or difficult covers can require additional work. Explain any paving, decking, parking or restricted access before the visit, and agree who is arranging safe entry to the inspection points.
• Pipe condition: A blockage or deposits can prevent the camera progressing or obscure a defect. High-pressure drain jetting may be needed first, but its scope and charge should be agreed rather than assumed to be part of every survey.
• Property and equipment: A commercial site or larger pipe network may need different equipment, working arrangements and inspection time from an ordinary domestic run. Quote the actual network and access requirements.
• Report type: A recorded diagnostic inspection, a homebuyer report and evidence for building work may need different plans and reporting detail. Identify the intended recipient and any format they require.

For example, a camera may reach the suspected problem through one accessible chamber and provide enough information for a clearance decision. A buyer who needs several foul and rainwater runs documented, including a route the seller cannot identify, is asking for more work. Neither visit is usefully priced by counting bedrooms alone. If a camera stops at an obstruction, ask what has been inspected, what remains unseen and whether further work would require another agreed visit.

What should the drain camera survey cost cover?

• Total price: Is the amount inclusive of VAT, and what could change it after the engineer sees the access?
• Coverage: Which pipe runs and chambers are included, and how will an incomplete inspection be recorded?
• Clearance: Is rodding or jetting included, optional or a separate quote?
• Documents: Are footage, screenshots, tracing, a plan and the required report included?
• Delivery: When will each document be available, and would a further visit be needed to finish the agreed scope?

Our drain unblocking cost guide explains clearance options when a restriction needs removing. A survey fee pays for the agreed inspection and evidence; it does not automatically approve whatever repair might be recommended afterwards. Ask to see the relevant finding and a separate repair scope before making that decision.

CCTV drain survey costs across the West Midlands

We survey properties across Birmingham, Solihull, Coventry and the wider West Midlands. When comparing a CCTV drain survey cost in Birmingham or elsewhere in our coverage area, describe the property, access and report you need as well as giving the address. Ask for the complete quote rather than assuming a generic regional average or a distant property's price will apply to your visit.

In an older house in Harborne or Edgbaston, alterations and extensions may be as relevant as the original pipe material. A newer property in Solihull still needs its actual connections and access checked. Age or location alone cannot establish that the network is simple, complex or in good condition.

Mixed residential, commercial and former industrial sites need careful scoping. A survey around Brierley Hill may involve several changes of pipe material or a route altered during redevelopment. In Pensnett, access through yards and service areas can affect which runs the camera can reach. We agree the required access points and report detail before quoting, so a low headline price does not omit the section you need assessed.

If the survey uncovers damage, we can discuss a quote for drain repairs based on the evidence and access. The inspection should help you understand why a repair is proposed. A repeat blockage can need more than another clearance, but it does not justify replacing an entire run without explaining the fault, alternatives and parts of the pipe that have actually been inspected.

Questions we get asked

How much does a CCTV drain survey cost?

Our current standalone camera-check offer starts from £100; a recorded survey starts from £250 including VAT. The appropriate option depends on what you need to inspect and who will use the findings. Ask for the complete quote, including the VAT basis of a quick check, before booking. Clearance, restricted access or additional reporting should be identified expressly, so you can compare the same scope rather than just the lowest advertised figure.

Do I need a CCTV drain survey when buying a house?

A separate camera survey is worth discussing when the home survey identifies a drainage concern, a property has recurring blockages, or you need evidence about an inaccessible pipe run before exchange. It is not the same as the visual inspection of accessible chambers that may form part of a normal home survey. Speak to your surveyor and solicitor about the concern and the report they need, then arrange access with the seller. Do not assume a drainage search or a valuation has already recorded the condition inside the pipes. Where a camera cannot reach a section, the report should explain that limit rather than imply the whole system has been cleared of faults. If the findings lead to a proposed repair, obtain a separate scope and ask which inspected defect it addresses. Your purchase advisers can then consider the evidence, access permissions and any unresolved section before you commit.

What does a CCTV drain survey include?

The useful distinction is between on-site findings and the documents you need afterwards. Our standard survey offer includes recorded footage and an explanation of the findings. A homebuyer survey includes a written report, annotated screenshots, a drainage plan and recommendations. Confirm whether the particular quote also covers tracing, the required condition coding and the format requested by your solicitor, builder or insurer. The report should identify the runs inspected, locate findings and state any access or visibility restrictions. Clearing a blockage or repairing a defect is a separate decision unless that work is expressly included in the agreed scope.

How long does a CCTV drain survey take?

We allow around one to two hours for a standard residential survey and two to three hours for a homebuyer survey with a detailed report. Those are planning estimates; the number of runs, chamber access and pipe condition can change the visit. A camera held up by a blockage may not be able to finish the intended route until clearance has been agreed. Time on site is also different from report delivery. If you have an exchange date, insurance deadline or building application to meet, tell us when booking and agree when the footage, plan and written report will be available. That avoids relying on the visit date as a promise that every document will arrive immediately.

How much does a shared sewer camera inspection cost?

We quote shared sewer inspection work to the accessible runs and evidence needed for the proposed extension. Our scope covers shared pipelines within the client’s property boundary; inspection of the sewer in the road is referred to Severn Trent and its contractors. A garden boundary does not itself determine sewer ownership. Explain the proposed building footprint and provide any requirements from the water company or your designer before booking. The quote can then identify the footage, locating, plan and reporting required, plus any separately agreed clearance. The £100 camera-check and £250 survey starting offers should not be assumed to cover every extension-related inspection or a return survey after construction.