Nashville, Tennessee

Who pays for sewer lateral repair in Nashville?

Direct answer

The customer owns and maintains the private sewer service line from the building all the way to the public main, including portions beneath a sidewalk or road. After a service interruption, a demonstrated good-faith effort to fix it, and owner-provided clear excavated access at the right-of-way or easement boundary, Metro Water Services must make any necessary repair from that boundary to the main. Residential customers are not billed for that Metro repair; commercial customers are.[1][3][2]

verified

Governing authorityMetro Water Services (MWS)

This page applies only where Metro Water Services is the sewer provider. A Nashville or Davidson County mailing address is not enough by itself; verify the sewer utility on the bill before following Metro's assistance process.

Editorially verified2026-07-29

Confirm time-sensitive details before work begins.

Most important next actionIf a licensed plumber cannot resolve the private-line failure, contact MWS before digging to confirm the easement boundary and required assistance-request steps.

Open Metro's assistance process

Official contact: Metro Water Services · 615-862-4600

Fast answer

Responsibility at a glance

Pipe segment	Likely responsible party	What the official sources say
House to property line	Property owner or customer verified	The customer owns, maintains, and initially pays for the private-property portion of the service line.[1][3]
Property line through right-of-way	Owner generally; MWS after all statutory prerequisites verified	The customer still owns the line. After good-faith troubleshooting and owner-provided clear excavated access at the right-of-way or easement boundary, MWS must make a necessary repair toward the main; residential customers are not billed for that Metro work.[1][2][3]
Sidewalk or under-street section	Owner generally; MWS for a qualifying repair verified	The official brochure says Metro's conditional assistance area may include sidewalk or road. The owner must pay for prerequisite troubleshooting and access; a qualifying Metro repair is not billed to a residential customer.[1][3]
Connection to the public main	Owner owns the service line; MWS performs qualifying repair verified	The owner's service line reaches the public main. Section 15.40.050 requires MWS to make a necessary repair between the main and the right-of-way or easement boundary after all prerequisites are met.[1][3]

Ownership, maintenance, initial payment, and reimbursement

Ownership and general maintenance remain with the customer from the building to the main. Initial troubleshooting, the plumber, and required access preparation remain owner costs. A separate statutory payment rule requires MWS to perform a necessary qualifying right-of-way or easement repair without billing a residential customer after the prerequisites; commercial customers are billed.[1][2][3]

verified

Important exceptions

MWS's repair duty is triggered only after service interruption caused by service-line failure, the owner's demonstrated good-faith effort to remedy it, and clear excavated access at the right-of-way or easement boundary.[1][2]
Residential customers are not billed for the Metro repair under section 15.40.050; commercial customers must pay Metro's repair costs.[1][3]
Metro restores approximate grade when it repairs but is not responsible for plants, structures, or personal property in the work area; final nonstandard restoration remains the owner's concern.[3][4]

The question most guides bury

Who pays when the problem is under the street?

The owner does not automatically pay for every under-street repair. The owner must first make a good-faith remedy attempt and provide clear excavated access at the right-of-way or easement boundary. MWS then must make any necessary repair from that boundary to the main, and it cannot bill a residential customer for that Metro repair.[1][2][3]

verified

Action paths

What to do next

If sewage is backing up now

For an overflowing sewer or urgent sewer issue, call MWS 24/7 Emergency Service at 615-862-4600.
If MWS identifies the private service line, hire a licensed plumber and document the good-faith attempt to clear or repair it.

[9][10][3][2][1]

If a camera inspection failed

Have the plumber state whether the problem can be fixed from the private side and locate the failure relative to the recorded right-of-way or sewer easement.
If the plumber cannot resolve it and the failure may be in Metro's conditional repair area, contact MWS before excavation for boundary and request instructions.

[3][2][1]

If you are buying or selling

No sewer-specific Metro sale mandate was found; use a voluntary sewer scope for condition evidence and confirm any property-specific Codes requirement.
If the scope fails under the street, follow the MWS assistance prerequisites rather than assuming the seller must fund all right-of-way work.

[11][6][1][2]

If damage appears to be under the street

Complete the plumber and good-faith step and contact MWS to confirm the right-of-way or easement boundary.
Call Tennessee 811 before digging, expose the line, and have the required two-foot section removed at the location MWS identifies.
Submit the Sewer Service Line Assistance request so MWS can inspect toward the main and make any necessary qualifying repair.

[1][2][3]

If you need financial assistance

Use the MWS assistance request for a qualifying right-of-way or easement failure; it is an in-kind benefit rather than a cash grant.
Budget for the plumber, required access work, and final nonstandard restoration; residential customers are not billed for Metro's qualifying repair itself.

[2][1][3][4]

Before hiring or permitting the work

Verify a Tennessee CMC-A or CMC contractor license and Metro registration, and ask which plumbing and MWS permits are required.
Do not tap or reconnect to the public sewer without the written MWS permit and required inspection.

[7][6][8][5]

Verified program status

Financial assistance

Metro Water Services has a current Sewer Service Line Assistance process implementing Code section 15.40.050. It provides an in-kind necessary repair inside public right-of-way or easement after prerequisites, not a cash grant or reimbursement for private-property work.

verified

Eligibility: MWS customer with service interruption from private-line failure; a plumber or other good-faith effort did not resolve it; owner provides required excavated clear access and submits the assistance request.
Benefit: MWS makes any necessary repair from the public main to the right-of-way or easement boundary. Residential customers are not billed; commercial customers are.
Cap: No dollar cap is stated in the ordinance or current assistance page.
Covered work: Necessary Metro repair within public right-of-way or easement after the prerequisites. Private-side work, preliminary plumber effort, and access preparation remain outside the Metro repair benefit.
Deadline: No annual deadline is stated.

Open the official assistance information[2][1][3]

Before a sale or excavation

Sale, inspection, and permit rules

Sale or transfer inspection

not found in reviewed sources

We did not find a current Metro Nashville sewer-lateral point-of-sale inspection requirement in the official sources reviewed on 2026-07-29. This is not a statement that no requirement exists for a special property, construction, or occupancy circumstance.

Next step

Confirm current requirements with Metro Codes and Building Safety at 615-862-6500 and use a voluntary sewer scope when the transaction needs condition evidence.

[11][6]

Permit and municipal inspection

verified

A written MWS permit is required before a sewer tap or connection, and plumbing work follows Metro's trade-permit process. Only licensed contractors with e-permit accounts can apply online. Nashville accepts State plumbing classifications CMC-A or CMC for registration, with Metro bond and insurance requirements.

Metro Water Services Development Services and Metro Codes and Building Safety

Verify a Tennessee CMC-A or CMC license and Metro registration, then confirm all MWS and plumbing permits before tapping, reconnecting, or covering work.

Open official permit information[5][6][7][10]

Official routes

Contacts and contractor verification

Metro Water Services

24/7 sewer emergency and customer service

Phone: 615-862-4600

Email: mwsssddispatchers@nashville.gov

Open official department page

Metro Water Services Development Services

Water and sewer permits

Phone: 615-862-7225

Email: mws.developmentservicescenter@nashville.gov

Open official department page

Metro Codes and Building Safety

Plumbing trade permits

Phone: 615-862-6500

Open official department page

Metro Codes and Building Safety Licensing Division

Plumbing contractor registration

Phone: 615-862-6598

Open official department page

Verify the contractor

State of Tennessee and Metro Codes and Building Safety: Verify the Tennessee contractor license, confirm CMC-A or CMC classification, and confirm Metro plumbing-contractor registration and permit eligibility.

Check the official license source

Audit trail

Official sources and limitations

An editor reviewed these sources on 2026-07-29. Linked pages can change after review.

Metro Code section 15.40.050 — Maintenance of service connection; owner's and department's responsibilityMetropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson CountyRelevant section: Section 15.40.050(A)-(B), owner ownership and maintenance, good-faith and access prerequisites, Department repair, and residential/commercial billing. Accessed 2026-07-29. Effective/expiration: Adopted in 2006; current code reviewed July 29, 2026.
Water Services Assistance and Protection Programs — Sewer Service Line AssistanceMetro Water ServicesRelevant section: Current Sewer Service Line Assistance process, plumber prerequisite, two-foot access opening, and request path. Accessed 2026-07-29. Effective/expiration: No expiration stated.
Private Sewer Service Line Policy brochureMetro Water ServicesRelevant section: PDF pages 1-2, owner-to-main rule, free residential service, easement caveat, 811 and two-foot cut, request, and restoration limits. Accessed 2026-07-29. Effective/expiration: Not stated.
Metro Code section 15.12.085 — Responsibility for work in public right-of-way or other easementMetropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson CountyRelevant section: Section 15.12.085, approximate-grade restoration and limits for privately owned material or infrastructure. Accessed 2026-07-29. Effective/expiration: Effective 2013.
Metro Code chapter 15.12 — Water and sewer service systemMetropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson CountyRelevant section: Written Water Services permit required before sewer tap or connection. Accessed 2026-07-29. Effective/expiration: Not stated.
Obtaining a Trades PermitMetro Nashville Department of Codes and Building SafetyRelevant section: Licensed-contractor e-permit rule, plumbing trade permit, and Codes contact. Accessed 2026-07-29. Effective/expiration: Page updated October 31, 2025.
Application and Instructions for Registration as a State Plumbing ContractorMetro Nashville Department of Codes and Building SafetyRelevant section: PDF pages 1-2, CMC-A or CMC classification, Metro registration, bond, insurance, and Licensing contact. Accessed 2026-07-29. Effective/expiration: Form dated 2019; current requirements should be confirmed before work.
License Search and VerificationState of TennesseeRelevant section: Official professional and contractor license verification portal. Accessed 2026-07-29. Effective/expiration: Not stated.
Request Emergency ServiceMetro Water ServicesRelevant section: 24/7 emergency number, overflowing sewer, and urgent sewer or water issues. Accessed 2026-07-29. Effective/expiration: Not stated.
Contact Water ServicesMetro Water ServicesRelevant section: 24/7 emergency, Customer Service, and Development Services contacts. Accessed 2026-07-29. Effective/expiration: Page updated June 15, 2026.
Code of OrdinancesMetropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson CountyRelevant section: Current code through Supplement 53; reviewed for a sewer-lateral sale or transfer inspection provision. Accessed 2026-07-29. Effective/expiration: Online code updated June 23, 2026.

What still needs confirmation

Metro's no-charge residential repair is conditional; the owner still owns the entire line and must complete the plumber, good-faith, and excavated-access prerequisites.
The brochure says easement width varies and is only commonly ten feet on each side of the main; that common width is not the legal boundary for a specific property.
No general sewer-camera point-of-sale requirement was found; confirm special property, construction, or occupancy circumstances with Metro Codes.

This guide is informational, not legal, engineering, or plumbing advice. Field conditions, easements, special agreements, shared laterals, and later rule changes can alter responsibility.