FAQs

Compliance is the responsibility of the owner of the property or land where the septic tank or treatment plant is located or being used.

Not necessarily. While the occupier might manage the day-to-day use, the legal responsibility for compliance rests with the owner of the property or land.

Yes. The owner can have a written agreement with another person (e.g., a tenant, leaseholder, or management company) who will then be responsible for the operation and maintenance. In this case, that person is considered the "operator."

The written agreement should clearly explain the maintenance tasks that need to be carried out for that specific system to ensure it complies with the General Binding Rules.

In cases where a system is shared, the responsibility for operation and maintenance is also shared among all the property owners who benefit from using the system. There can be multiple "operators" in this scenario.

In most cases, if you can comply with the General Binding Rules, you will not need an environmental permit to use your septic tank or sewage treatment plant. However, properties located in environmentally sensitive areas may require a permit to ensure the protection of important habitats in England. You can check with the Environment Agency to determine if your property is in such an area.

The key requirements for compliance are:

• Regularly empty/desludge your septic tank or small sewage treatment plant and ensure it does not cause pollution.
• Repair any faults or problems immediately.

Yes discharges to ground (drainage field, soakaway) are limited to 2000lts of effluent a day

Discharges from a sewage treatment plant to a ditch, river stream, are limited to 5000lts per day

It is recommended you seek professional advise prior to installing a domestic or commercial sewage system to check your requirements meet the required criteria for compliance.

All new systems must meet British Standard BS EN 12566

If you sell your property, you must inform the buyer in writing about the septic tank or small sewage treatment plant. This information should include details about its location, condition, and any maintenance requirements.

Septic tanks and small sewage treatment plants no longer need to be registered in order for a property to be sold.

Any defects in the system are generally expected to be addressed through negotiation between the seller and buyer, similar to how other property defects are handled during the sale process. This could involve the seller repairing the issue before completion or the buyer agreeing to take on the repair as part of the sale agreement.

A home purchase or sale sewage system compliance survey can help avoid any unnecessary costs.

In general dependent on the system you have you may hear a humming or vibrating sound but usually this is not noticeable unless you are in the vicinity.

Domestic systems are generally inexpensive to run roughly costing £20-30 per month.

In some cases it is possible to connect to the main sewer but this will require some investigation first, contact your local water provider as they will be able to advise the location of the sewer.