Backyard flooding is common during Queensland's wet summers, but who is responsible for stormwater that flows onto your property from your neighbour's house?
What do you do? Call the council?
According to Brisbane City Council (BCC) opposition leader Jared Cassidy that's exactly what residents have been doing.
He said complaints about flooding had increased over the last two years, while new drain construction and repair spending had "stagnated".
"In 2019 there were 852 [complaints], in 2020 there were 1,379 and in 2021 there were 1,228," he said.
"When you look at the investment this Lord Mayor is putting into drainage, it's sitting stagnant at around $17 million for new drainage and $7 million for drainage repairs."
Cr Cassidy said areas in his northern Brisbane electorate of Deagon experienced inundation during king tides and normal tidal activity this year, while parts of Hemmant and Tingalpa were "flooding like it never has before".
"These increases in complaints are correlating directly with the lack of funding for basic drainage," he said.
BCC civic cabinet chair for Parks and Sustainability, councillor Tracy Davis, said the data Cr Cassidy referred to about flood complaints reflected all resident inquiries made to council, not just complaints.
"The number of enquiries is also directly linked to the weather," she said in a statement.
"According to the Bureau of Meteorology, 2019 was Brisbane's driest in 22 years, while 2020 and 2021 recorded above average annual rainfall."
When to call?
Retired BCC senior engineer and Stormwater Queensland treasurer David Simpson has spent the last 25 years designing drainage around the city.
He said when water ran onto your property after a storm, identifying its source – not immediately calling your local council – should be the first thing you do.
"If your neighbour's property discharges water onto your property then legally you have to accept that water and handle it," he said.
"If the water is coming off a street or council land then council is responsible and you should contact them and lodge a complaint."
Civil matters
Mr Simpson said councils wouldn't get involved if storm water flowed onto your property from a neighbouring lot.
"There are a lot of properties that slope down from the street and don't have anywhere to easily discharge their stormwater, so it runs onto their neighbour's property," he said.
When two parties could not come to resolution, Mr Simpson said the next step for home owners was legal action.
"That's when it becomes a civil matter and may end up going to court, but hopefully it could be sorted out before that," he said.
Conditions apply
Mr Simpson said if an uphill neighbour developed their land and caused an increase in the volume of water flowing onto your property, council could act.
"If someone does an extension, for example, and there's more runoff from the roof onto the ground, then that wouldn't be allowed," he said.
Mr Simpson said the rules were the same for new developments.
"If there's a recent development upslope from you and it's causing problems, council may get involved because the developer might not have complied with the development conditions," he said.
Mr Simpson said while neighbours were not legally required to contribute to the cost of upgrading drainage on your property, it was possible to negotiate a solution.
"The uphill neighbour can do other things like providing a charged downpipe system where the water from their roof can be pushed up to the road above," he said.
Mr Simpson said if water frequently pooled on your property after rain and storms, you may need to invest in some earthworks or channelling to safely divert it around your home.
He said anyone unsure about their obligations, or curious about what to look for when buying residential property, could access a free online guide published by Catchments & Creeks.
