Sewer Lateral Repair in Los Angeles: Who Is Responsible, Permits and LA Sanitation Rebates

The sewer lateral is the private pipe that carries wastewater from your house to the public sewer main in the street. In the City of Los Angeles, LA Sanitation treats it as the property owner's private lateral, so when it cracks, sags or fills with roots, the repair is on the owner. The City does offer two rebates that can help.

Signs the lateral is the problem

• Slow drains across the house, not just one sink.
• Toilets that gurgle when another fixture drains.
• Backups at the lowest drain or cleanout.
• A history of roots. Tree roots are one of the most common causes.

Step one: a camera inspection

A CCTV camera run shows where the pipe is damaged and what kind of damage it is: roots, a crack, an offset joint or a belly where water sits. That video is also the first document the City's rebates ask for.

LA Sanitation lists a CCTV rebate of up to $300 for property owners who pay the City's sewer service charge. The camera work has to be done by a licensed and bonded sewer contractor, and it cannot be more than six months old when the application is completed. The video has to show the property address at the start, and you need the inspection report, the invoice, your most recent DWP bill and your parcel number.

Step two: the repair

If the video shows damage, LA Sanitation lists a repair rebate of up to $2,500 for repairs by a licensed, bonded contractor. The repair needs a City permit, and the final permit has to be signed by a City inspector no more than 60 days before the rebate application is completed. The invoice has to show the contractor's license number, itemized labor and materials, the work date, the address and proof of full payment.

Both rebates are first-come, first-served until the year's funds run out, so check with LA Sanitation before you count on one.

Repair options

• Spot repair: dig and replace only the damaged section, when the rest of the pipe is sound.
• Full replacement: a new lateral from the house to the connection at the main, when the pipe has failed in several places.
• Lining: a new pipe formed inside the old one, which avoids most digging when the pipe shape allows it.

Which one makes sense depends on what the camera shows, how deep the pipe is, and what is on top of it: a driveway, a tree or the street. Work in the street brings traffic control and pavement restoration to the agency's standard.

Measure before you price

Before we price a lateral, we confirm how far it runs from the property line to the main and where it connects. That distance drives most of the cost, and guessing it is how budgets go wrong.

Where we fit

We camera, locate, excavate and replace sewer laterals from the house's plumbing connection out to the main, including the connection in the street, and we restore the surface to the agency's standard. Plumbing inside the house stays with your plumber. Send us the video if you already have one, or we can run it.