A private water supply is any supply that does not come from the water company's mains: a spring, well, borehole, stream or loch, sometimes shared through a private pipe. They are common on farms and in the hills and on the coast, where holiday cottages, small hotels, campsites and rural pubs are found.
Size does not protect you
Small domestic supplies are often left alone, but a supply used for a commercial or public activity is regulated however small it is, including a single holiday cottage on its own spring. If your guests, customers or staff drink the water, cook with it or wash food in it, the rules apply to you.
You may be on both supplies. A site can use the mains for the main house and a private supply for a cottage, a pitch block or a shower block. If you are not sure, ask your council's environmental health team, which keeps a record of private supplies in its area.
What the council does and what you must do
The council risk assesses every regulated supply and reviews the assessment at least every 5 years. It samples the water at least once a year for a small commercial supply, investigates a failure and can charge you for its work. The Drinking Water Inspectorate and the Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland oversee the councils.
Your part is to give the council access to the source, treatment, storage and pipework, pay its invoices and keep the supply in a safe condition. If you disinfect the water, keep the treatment working. Anything you use to prepare or distribute the water must not leave it unwholesome.
The owner and occupier of the premises can both be liable, and so can anyone who manages the supply or owns land where part of it sits. A landlord cannot leave it all to a tenant or managing agent. If a supply is shared, the council can split the charges, taking into account any agreement on who pays for the water.
Before you buy, open or let a property
Ask the seller or the council whether the property is on a private supply, and ask for the latest risk assessment and sample results. Check who owns the source and every stretch of pipe, because a source on a neighbour's land is a common problem.
Get a quote for treatment before you commit. A supply that fails regularly usually needs disinfection, such as ultraviolet treatment, and filtration.
A supply that is new, or has been out of use for 12 months or more, cannot be brought into use until the council is satisfied it is not a potential danger to health. Tell the council before you switch it on.
Each season
Service the treatment on the maker's schedule and keep the records. Flush and inspect the plumbing in buildings that have been shut. A fault in a building's own plumbing can still lead to advice or a notice from the council. Check that the notice or information the council requires for guests is up to date.
If a sample fails
Follow the council's advice straight away, including any instruction not to drink the water. Tell your guests and staff, offer an alternative supply and keep a record of what you did.
The council must investigate the cause and tell people likely to drink the water about any potential danger. Find the cause with the council, fix it and ask for a repeat sample. The council cannot charge for a sample taken only to confirm an earlier result.
If the water is a potential danger to health, the council serves a notice on you that says what you must do and can prohibit or restrict use of the supply. Failing to comply with a notice is a criminal offence, and the council can do the work itself and recover its costs. Read the notice for the date by which you must act and for your appeal rights.
If you sell or hand over the business
Give the new owner the risk assessment, the sample history and the treatment records. A clean handover avoids an argument about who was responsible.
Legal basis
Primary legislation and key regulations