Garden manhole covers

[tinky19]

My neighbour has asked us to pay a share of a bill because their garden was flooded with sewerage due to a blocked/ full drain due to wet wipes. I have never put wet wipes down the drain and was very cross as she didn't even inform us that she was calling someone out and I came home to find squashed plants from where the drainage man had dumped stones we had placed to hide/ cover it. I know you have to keep it open to access but I can't see how people should be allowed to come onto your private property without your permission when you haven't even got a problem!
I know the drains are linked but is it our responsibility and where they allowed to come onto our property?

I'd have thought a sewerage problem over rides any access debate.

Our drain backed up & overflowed. We called out our plumber (insured luckily) and he traced the block to 5 houses away! The drains get shallower & end with my neighbour on other side - but the person with the block was not affected yet as his drains were so deep.

Our insurance would only cover blocks on our property & we had to ask them to deal with it. If they hadn't, 5 houses would soon be flooding.

We also had our garden dug up (with permission) to improve the drainage for our neighbours. Couldn't say no - but it was a pain as we had a deep open trench for 2 days and it took a while to recover.

If you don't agree to pay the council get involved to mediate on shared drainage issues, but I don't blame your neighbour for acting if they had sewage on their property.

but we are 'up stream' from the blockage. The bockage was further down the line.

Do not pay a share of the bill.

There is probably something in the deeds or searches about drains, whose responsibility they are, how many properties flow through etc. Access for works or assessment is normally permissable in an emergency and they may not have had the plans to hand to check which way it went.