Who Is Responsible For Rats In Drains?
Rats are destructive pests that can spread diseases and can damage your home and possessions. They also cause a major health hazard, as rats spread diseases and carry parasites.
As such, you need to deal with rat issues proactively. To stop rats from entering your property again, you need to find out how they got inside in the first place. While they can squeeze through existing gaps as small as 12mm, rats also have sharp teeth that are adept at making their own entry points.
If you can’t see a small crack or hole in your home’s facade but have a rat infestation, then they could be using your drainage system to enter your property. Rats can chew through pipes, foundations around pipes and rubber reducers that connect large external waste pipes to your internal pipework in their quest for warmth, shelter and something to eat.
As leading providers of drain surveys across Scunthorpe, Grimsby, Hull, and North Lincolnshire, Briarquest Pest Control understands the importance of dealing with rats in drains promptly. Keep reading to find out more about how you can find who is responsible for rats in drains.
Reasons Why Rats Are In Your Drainage System
Most rat infestations are caused by rodents looking for shelter and food. If they can’t find a usable entry point on the service, rats will use drains to enter properties and find somewhere safe and warm to build nests and find food.
Many rats can dig deep underground, and if they find drain pipes with small holes in them, they can make these larger to gain entry. Rats are confident swimmers, so they’re perfectly capable of swimming through sewage to get inside your home. They can also follow drain systems to find the foundations of your home and then dig their way inside through small cracks or gaps where the pipes enter.
Once they’ve found a route inside your home, rats will leave a pheromone trail behind to alert other rodents. As such, what starts as just one rat can quickly become a major rat problem. Also, the holes in your drainage system that are caused by rats entering via the drainage system can lead to issues such as leaks, low water pressure and other drainage problems.
Signs Of Rats In Drains
It’s not easy to tell if there are rats in your drains, but there are some simple signs you can look out for, including:
- Rat Infestations With No Signs Of Entry Points: If you have rats in your property but can’t see how they got in, this could be a sign that you have rats in your drains, and this is how they entered your property.
- Foul Odours In Your Drains: Drains might not remove wastewater properly with blockages caused by rats, so you might notice a bad smell in your home.
- Slow Draining Water: When your drain pipes aren’t working properly due to rats in your drains, you might notice that your water doesn’t drain or takes longer than usual.
- Leaks: For homes on a water meter, water companies will provide a statement on how much water is used. If you notice that your water usage is higher than usual with no obvious explanation, this could be a sign of leaks due to holes in pipes caused by rats in your drains.
Because drain pipes are underground, it’s impossible to check that you’re getting rats from your drains without a CCTV drain survey.
How To Find Out Who Is Responsible For Rats In Drains
The person who is responsible for rats in drains depends on where the rats get into your drainage system. If the rats are entering the drains from pipes on your property, then this is your responsibility, and you will need to cover the cost of the drain repairs.
For tenants, the drainage system is the responsibility of your landlord, so you need to contact them if you suspect rats are entering through the drains.
In some cases, the issue could be caused by drains on neighbouring properties, which will be the responsibility of the owner of these buildings. You can check your property boundaries and drain maps by viewing the deeds to your home or speaking to your local authority.
If the rats entered using a public drain, then this is the responsibility of the water company that is responsible for maintaining the public sewer pipes. You can find out which company is responsible for these drains by contacting your local council, and they can provide contact details.
To find out where the broken drains caused by rats originate, you need a CCTV drain survey. The drain survey report will explain the origin of the rat problem, and you can then work out who is responsible for these drains and contact them to arrange for necessary repairs to be made. You can also ask for compensation to cover the cost of the drain survey and any other costs associated with removing rats from your property.
If the person responsible for the drains the rats used to enter your property refuses to pay these costs voluntarily, you might be able to recoup them through the small claims court. Make sure you document all communication and keep detailed records so that you can improve your chances of getting adequate compensation.
Work With A Pest Control Specialist That Offers Drain Surveys
If you have rats in drains on your property, you need to work with experts. Briarquest offers professional pest control and is experienced at carrying out CCTV drain surveys to find rat entry points.
Once we have checked your drainage system for signs of rodent entry, we can carry out rat control to get rid of rats inside your home. To ensure they don’t keep using your drain pipes to enter your property, we can carry out minor repairs or recommend an experienced local drain specialist to fix major issues and prevent rats from returning.
It can be difficult to prevent rats from entering drains, but a simple approach is to regularly maintain drains on your property and check for any issues by getting a drain survey when needed. By working with a professional pest controller for your CCTV survey, you can ensure that you find out who is responsible for the issue and get it resolved as soon as possible to reduce damage caused by rats in your home. To book a CCTV drain survey and rat control services in Scunthorpe and the North Lincolnshire area, contact Briarquest today on 01724 376330.