Flash Flooding FAQs
Always prioritise the safety of people in your household over possessions. If you feel unsafe and need to be evacuated, call the emergency services on 999.
If floodwater is contaminated with waste from sewers, please call our 24/7 Customer Helpline on 0800 778 8778.
- Fit any property-level protection measures, such as floodgates, air brick covers, sand bags, if you have them
- Turn off your gas and electricity supplies
- Move medicines, electrical appliances, and valuables to higher areas in your property
- If you have time, and it is safe to do so, move your car to higher ground if possible
- Alert your neighbours, particularly the elderly and vulnerable
- Put plugs in sinks and baths (and overflows) and a sandbag (or equivalent) in your toilet bowl to prevent waste water from flowing back up
What Scottish Water Will Do:
- always attend and clean up following internal sewer flooding, and external sewer flooding on paths and driveway
- always proritise attendance to internal sewer flooding
It may take longer to attend and clean up if we are prevented from reaching you due to exceptional circumstances, such as severe weather, or we have a high volume of incidents.
What You Can Do:
- contact your insurance company
- wear rubber boots and gloves in and around the affected property
- if possible, do not enter floodwater
- keep children and pets out of floodwater
- lawns and borders should be left to recover naturally
If flood water has been contaminated with sewage, contamination can remain after flood water has gone and can be hazardous.
What Happens Next:
- Do not lift manhole covers to let floodwater drain, as this could put your health and safety at risk
- If you have contacted us regarding internal sewer flooding, Scottish Water will investigate the cause of flooding to your property
- If there are no issues other than volume of rainfall no further action will be taken after the cleanup
You can find further information in our Sewer Flooding Guide
