What to Do Before an Emergency Plumber Arrives

A burst pipe or major leak can cause thousands of pounds of damage in just a few hours. Knowing what to do in the first few minutes can significantly reduce the impact.

Step 1: Turn off the water supply. Locate your stopcock (usually under the kitchen sink or where the mains water enters your property) and turn it off immediately. This will stop the flow of water.

Step 2: Switch off your boiler and central heating to prevent further water circulation through the system.

Step 3: If the leak is near electrical fittings or sockets, turn off the electricity at the consumer unit for safety.

Step 4: Try to contain the water using towels, buckets, or containers. If the leak is coming through a ceiling, place a bucket underneath and consider making a small hole to allow water to drain into the bucket rather than spreading across the ceiling.

Step 5: Call an emergency plumber. At UK Reactive, we provide 24/7 emergency plumber response across the UK with target attendance times of under 60 minutes for urgent callouts.