Who owns the water line in Surrey and Vancouver, and when to replace it

What is the water service line, and which part is yours?

The water service line is the buried pipe that brings water from the city’s main under the street into your house. It usually has two owners, the city and you, and the split is at a shut-off valve near the property line, often called the curb stop.

The City of Vancouver spells this out. It owns the shut-off valve at the property line and the line from that valve to the main, and it covers the cost of repairing leaks on that part. Everything from the valve to the house is the owner’s. When the leak is on the owner’s side of the shut-off valve, it will turn the water off so the owner can have it repaired, but it does not repair leaks on private property.

Surrey works the same way. The City turns water off at a curb stop at the property line, and says it is not responsible for detecting or fixing water leaks on private property. Surrey’s online map, COSMOS, shows where the water service to a property runs, which helps before anyone starts digging.

Who do you call when the water line leaks?

It depends on which side of the shut-off valve the leak is on.

• Vancouver. Call the City for a water service visit if you think the leak is on its side. If the cause turns out to be on private property, the City bills the owner for the visit. Its page lists $126 an hour on weekdays from 7am to 3:30pm, and $252 an hour after hours, on weekends and on holidays, tax included (as of November 2026).
• Surrey. The City’s Engineering Front Counter (604-591-4340) handles turning the water off at the curb stop, and the fees are set in the Waterworks Regulation Bylaw. A leak on your side of the curb stop is yours to have repaired.
• Burnaby. For a broken or leaking water line that is an emergency, the City asks you to call its emergency dispatch at 604-294-7200. If it can wait, call Operations at 604-294-7221.

If you can’t tell which side the leak is on, close the main shut-off inside the house first. Our guide on shutting off the main water valve shows where to find it.

What are the signs a water line needs replacing?

A buried line rarely fails all at once. Watch for these:

• A patch of lawn or driveway that stays wet when it hasn’t rained.
• Water pressure that has faded at every tap over months or years.
• A water bill that jumps with no change in how you use water.
• The sound of water running when every tap and appliance is off.
• Brown water first thing in the morning, which points to old galvanized steel pipe rusting inside.
• A line that has already been repaired once and is leaking again somewhere else.

Low pressure on its own can have other causes, such as a failing pressure reducing valve. Our guide to low water pressure helps you tell them apart.

Should you repair the line or replace it?

Repair it when one section has failed and the rest of the pipe is sound. A single leak from a fitting, or a section damaged by digging, can be cut out and replaced, then pressure tested before the hole is filled.

Replace it when the pipe is worn out along its length. A line that keeps leaking in new places will go on doing so, and each repair means another hole in the yard. Old galvanized steel that has rusted narrow can’t be cleaned out. Replacing the line also gives you a clean start if the pipe inside the house is being repiped at the same time.

Can a water line be replaced without digging up the yard?

Sometimes, at least in part. Trenchless methods pull or bore a new plastic line along the route, so the digging is mostly a pit at each end instead of a trench the whole way. Whether that works for your line depends on the soil, how deep the pipe is, the route it takes, and what sits on top of it, such as a driveway, a tree or another service.

Some digging is still needed to connect the new line at the shut-off valve and where it enters the house. How much is worked out on site, once the line has been traced and the leak found.

Do you need a permit or the city’s approval?

Check before the work starts. Surrey’s plumbing permit page says a permit is required under its Plumbing Bylaw, and lists repairing leaks in pipes among the jobs that don’t need one. Replacing the whole line is a bigger job than a repair.

On the city’s side of the curb stop, Surrey handles new and replacement water services through an application (Schedule A of the Waterworks Regulation Bylaw), which the registered owner has to sign in person at City Hall. If your line needs replacing on both sides of the property line, the city’s part is arranged with the city.

Does the city adjust your water bill after a leak?

In Surrey, it can. If a leak on your property pushed your bill up, fix the leak, read your meter to confirm your use is back to normal, then send the City’s Leak Adjustment Request Form with your repair receipts. You still need to pay at least half the bill by the due date. Missing receipts delay the request, so keep every invoice from the repair.

Surrey’s own figures show why a slow leak matters. A hole of 0.8 mm, about what a leaking toilet loses, wastes roughly 1,000 litres a day. Our guide on finding a hidden water leak shows how to check with your meter.

When to call a plumber

Call a plumber when:

• There is a wet patch in the yard that never dries.
• The water meter keeps moving with everything in the house turned off.
• The pressure has dropped at every tap and your neighbours’ water is fine.
• The line has leaked before, or you know it is old galvanized pipe.
• The city has told you the leak is on your side of the shut-off.

DrainX finds and repairs leaks in water service lines, and replaces lines that are worn out. We trace the line first so any digging happens where the problem is, and we go over the plan with you before work starts.