Who to Call for a Sewer Backup (And What They Charge)

Every homeowner's first instinct during a sewer backup is to call a plumber. It's the natural reflex — something went wrong with the pipes, you call the pipe person. The problem is that a plumber fixes the pipe. Nobody fixes the biohazard in your basement until you make a second call most people don't know to make.

Getting the call order wrong doesn't just slow things down. It can mean mold establishing in your walls while you wait for the right team, or an insurance claim denied because damage wasn't documented before cleanup started. Here's exactly who to call, in what order, and what each one will cost.

The call order — and why it matters

What each professional actually does — and doesn't do

The single biggest source of confusion during a sewer backup is that homeowners assume one type of contractor handles everything. They don't. The scope of work is split, and each professional has hard limits on what they'll touch.

Water damage restoration company

This is the team that makes your home safe to occupy again. They arrive with truck-mounted extraction equipment, HEPA-filtered air scrubbers, industrial dehumidifiers, and EPA-registered disinfectants. Their job, in order: establish containment to prevent cross-contamination to unaffected rooms, extract all standing sewage water, remove porous materials that cannot be disinfected (carpet, drywall below the flood line, insulation), clean and disinfect all non-porous surfaces, deploy drying equipment to bring moisture levels below mold-growth threshold, and document everything for your insurance adjuster.

What they won't do: repair or replace sewer pipes. That's the plumber's scope. Some large restoration companies (ServiceMaster, SERVPRO, Roto-Rooter's restoration division) have plumbing arms — if yours does, they can coordinate both. If not, you need a separate call.

Licensed plumber / sewer repair specialist

The plumber's job is to stop the backup from recurring by finding and fixing the cause. That starts with a camera inspection ($125–$500) to locate the blockage or damage, followed by the appropriate repair: snaking ($150–$700), hydro jetting ($350–$1,100), mechanical root cutting ($600–$2,000), trenchless lining ($3,500–$12,000), or full excavation and replacement ($4,000–$15,000+).

What they won't do: clean up the sewage contamination in your home, dry the structure, or handle mold remediation. A plumber who offers to "clean up" a sewage backup is operating outside their scope — and likely isn't using IICRC-protocol equipment.

What each one charges: real 2025 numbers

City sewer vs. septic system: who you call changes

If your home is on a municipal sewer system, the two calls are a restoration company and a licensed plumber. The plumber addresses the lateral line from your house to the street main.

If your home has a private septic system, the plumber call is replaced by a septic specialist. Septic backups have a different set of causes — full tank, drain field failure, distribution box problems — that require different tools and expertise than main-line sewer work. A general plumber may not have the septic-specific pumping truck or field inspection equipment. Look for companies that specifically advertise septic pumping and repair, not just general plumbing.

How to verify you're hiring the right company

In an emergency, it's tempting to call the first number that comes up and approve whatever gets said over the phone. That's how homeowners end up with unlicensed contractors and inflated invoices. Three quick checks take under five minutes.

For restoration companies: ask for their IICRC certification number. Legitimate IICRC-certified firms can look up their certification at iicrc.org. Ask specifically whether they follow the ANSI/IICRC S500 standard for Category 3 water damage — any credible company will know what that means. Ask for a written scope of work before work begins, not after.

For plumbers: verify their state plumbing license number. Most states have an online lookup. Ask whether they'll perform a camera inspection before quoting any repair — a plumber who quotes pipe work without scoping the line is guessing. Ask for three-year warranty minimum on any repair work.

For any contractor: get an itemized written estimate, not a ballpark range over the phone. The estimate should list labor, materials, equipment, and any scope exclusions separately. "We'll figure it out when we get there" is not an acceptable answer for work in the $2,000–$10,000 range.