UK water sector tops one million safe-digging searches as LSBUD activity hits record high

The UK water sector completed more than 1.13 million safe-digging searches in 2025. This made it the second-largest user group of the LSBUD platform.

The figure represents a 7% increase on the previous year. Water-related searches accounted for 27% of all enquiries made through the service. Across all industries, 4,094,214 searches were completed in 2025. This marked the first time annual activity exceeded four million.

Safe-digging searches reach record level

The figures are published in LSBUD’s latest Digging Up Britain 2026 report. Total search activity increased by 6% compared with 2024.

Searches increased across almost every category of excavation work.

The strongest growth was recorded in EV charger-related domestic works, property conveyancing, development projects and agricultural works.

Water companies remain major users of LSBUD

Seven of the ten most active users of the LSBUD portal were water companies.

The figures highlight the importance of underground asset information for utilities carrying out excavation, maintenance and network improvement work.

Water companies routinely work around buried pipelines, cables and other critical infrastructure.

Checking asset records before excavation can therefore reduce the risk of service disruption, infrastructure damage and safety incidents.

Platform aims to reduce underground asset strikes

LSBUD provides underground utility information to contractors, utilities, local authorities, landowners and other organisations before digging work begins.

The service says more than 5.8 million potential asset strikes were avoided across its ten largest asset owners during the year.

The actual total is expected to be higher once other asset owners are included.

Richard Broome, Managing Director of LSBUD, said the record level of activity showed safe-digging behaviour was becoming more established.

“For the first time ever, searches through the LSBUD platform have exceeded 4 million, a sign that safer behaviour is becoming much more deeply embedded across our industry, which is a significant achievement for ourselves and the sector.”

Broome said the water industry’s continued high level of activity demonstrated growing awareness of underground infrastructure risks.

“It’s fantastic to see that the water industry is once again our second most active industry when it comes to safe digging.”

He said the number of searches and prevented asset strikes showed the safe-digging message was becoming increasingly embedded across infrastructure sectors.

Regional safe-digging activity increases

The South West recorded the strongest regional growth in 2025.

Search activity in the region increased by 18%.

The South East generated the highest overall number of enquiries.

A total of 612,546 searches were completed in the South East during the year.

This represented a 7% increase compared with 2024.

LSBUD also launched its service in Northern Ireland during 2025.

The expansion generated immediate interest from users carrying out excavation and infrastructure work.

More underground infrastructure added to the platform

LSBUD says its registered asset base grew by 25% during the year.

More than 170 organisations now contribute underground asset information to the platform.

Together, these organisations account for more than 2.5 million kilometres of pipelines and cables.

The platform contains information covering water, electricity, gas, telecommunications and other underground infrastructure.

Broome said increasing the number of participating asset owners gives people planning excavation work access to more complete infrastructure information.

“Our asset base has grown by 25% in the past year – a massive increase.”

“This means that more than 170 organisations, accounting for over 2.5 million kilometres of pipelines and cables, are now LSBUD members, all of which are reaping the benefits of being on the platform and protecting their assets.”

Underground asset protection remains a water-sector priority

Damage to buried infrastructure can cause significant disruption to water services and other utility networks.

Asset strikes can also increase repair costs, delay projects and create safety risks for excavation teams.

Digital searches give project teams access to infrastructure records before work begins.

This helps contractors identify where pipes and cables may be located before excavation starts.

For water companies, safe-digging information is particularly important as major infrastructure investment programmes increase the volume of excavation work taking place across the UK.

The latest figures indicate that underground asset protection is becoming increasingly embedded in routine water-sector operations.

H2O Global News continues to cover developments in water infrastructure and asset management as utilities increase investment across their networks.

Safe digging becomes increasingly embedded

LSBUD says the growth in search activity reflects wider awareness of the importance of checking underground infrastructure before work begins.

The organisation’s long-term objective is to reduce damage to buried assets and improve excavation safety across the UK.

For the water sector, more than one million annual searches demonstrate how widely digital asset information is now being used during infrastructure work.

As network investment grows, accurate underground asset data is likely to become even more important for protecting pipelines, avoiding disruption and supporting safe excavation.