Under section 75, an undertaker executing street works is required to pay the street authority a prescribed fee in respect of each inspection of works carried out by the authority. Section 75 also empowers the Secretary of State to make a scheme under which the prescribed fee is only paid in respect of such proportion or number of street works as the scheme may determine.

Whilst the Act does not make any provision for the Secretary of State to issue or approve a code of practice on inspections of street works, the highway authorities and utilities have agreed that it would be prudent to have a non-statutory code covering not only aspects of inspections determined under the Secretary of State’s scheme but also matters not covered by specific legislative requirements. This Code of Practice gives practical guidance on procedures for inspections, investigations, improvement plans, fee arrangements and reports.

The NRSWA 1991 Act makes undertakers wholly responsible for the management of their street works. Street authorities are responsible for monitoring the performance of the undertakers and wholly responsible for co-ordination. Street authorities are empowered to charge undertakers for a number of sample inspections that they will carry out to monitor undertakers’ performance. Sample inspections may also be supplemented by the results of routine street authority inspections and by reports from the police and members of the public. Defect inspections may be carried out prior to, during and after the remedial work to defective reinstatements, and fees may be charged to the undertaker concerned.