A CCTV drain survey sends a camera down your pipework to show exactly what's wrong — useful when a drain keeps blocking and you need to know why, not just clear it again. Here's what one actually costs, broken down by the type of survey rather than one vague number.
UK average is around £250, but the right figure depends heavily on which of these you actually need:
| Type | Typical price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Basic survey (look-and-see) | £100-£150 | Identifies a simple blockage; usually no written report |
| Full domestic survey with report | £150-£350 | Camera inspection + video + a detailed drainage condition report |
| Homebuyer drain survey | £200-£400 | Full map of the property's drainage system |
| Drain mapping survey | From £315+VAT | Up to 4 manholes; roughly +£67.50+VAT per extra access point |
What moves the price beyond the base survey type: property size (larger properties often run £350-£450), access difficulty (excavating or locating a hard-to-reach drain entrance can add £100-£300), location (London and the South East typically run 20-30% higher than the rest of the UK), and whether the drain needs clearing first (a heavily blocked pipe needs high-pressure jetting before the camera can even get through, adding roughly £150-£300).
If this is a one-off blockage, a normal call-out and jetting is usually enough and cheaper. A CCTV survey earns its cost when the same drain keeps blocking (it tells you whether it's recurring debris or a structural problem — root ingress, a cracked or misaligned pipe), or when you're buying a property and want to know the drainage system's actual condition before you commit.
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Cost figures and survey-type breakdown sourced from UK drainage-industry pricing research on 2026-09-04 (see docs/supporting-content-plan.md) — these are market-wide figures, not quotes from any specific company, and will vary by provider.