Pflugerville resident faced challenges getting reimbursement after city sewer line clog

Pflugerville family's home soaked in sewage

A Pflugerville family's home was soaked in sewage water after a city sewer line clogged in November. The city only offered to reimburse them a fraction of the cost of repairs, until we asked why.

PFLUGERVILLE, Texas - A Pflugerville family's home was soaked in sewage water after a city sewer line clogged in November. 

The city only offered to reimburse them a fraction of the cost of repairs, until we asked why.

Local perspective:

On Nov. 13, 2025, Darrel Benavides and his wife noticed water coming out from under their toilets. They shut the water supply off, but it kept coming. They put down as many towels and linens as they could. 

"It was a futile effort. The more towels we put down, they just kept getting soaked full of water, not good water, and it wasn't a very pleasant experience," Benavides said.

It went all the way to their front door. Benavides says his neighbor knew to call the city in the middle of the night, because this had happened to him before. Crews told them they were clearing a blockage in the sewer line. 

"We were very concerned, but we're just still trying to figure out what we're going to do to get things corrected," Benavides said.

Featured

article

Texas got rid of paper tags. Now, fraudsters are using fake metal plates

Last year, Texas got rid of paper tags, trying to combat fraud, but now the issue has moved to metal plates. If you're buying a used car online, you should be careful.

The moisture had seeped under the flooring, and the carpet had to be ripped out.

"It was a lot worse than we thought," Benavides said.

A mitigation company placed dehumidifiers and fans to run for nearly a week. 

"It was like a jet engine in the house. It was pretty taxing on the nerves," he said.

Benavides says the cleanup, demolition, and restoration would be $32,000. The city filed an insurance claim for them, but they were going to get $5,000.

"It's not like I want the house leveled and rebuilt into a mansion. I just want it back like it was, and I don't think that's too much to ask," Benavides said.

Dig deeper:

FOX 7 asked the city why their payment doesn't cover the full cost of repairs.

"As incidents like this occur, the City follows a standard process to submit an insurance claim through our insurance provider, which provides coverage up to $5,000. Any costs exceeding this amount, if necessary, require City Council approval, and the City will proceed through that process as necessary," they said in an emailed response.

Benavides said he wasn't aware of that.

"I didn't know until you told me that was an option, that if the $5,000 wasn't sufficient, that there was an option to meet with the City Council and present our case," he said.

Featured

article

Some Travis County residents concerned about condition of Hodde Lane

Some residents in Northeast Travis County, just outside Pflugerville, are concerned about deteriorating roads not keeping up with growth.

He was also hesitant to sign the payment form because of what it said.

"It was basically a release saying that anything in the past, present, or future that happened again to that extent, basically they had nothing else they could do for us," Benavides said. "That was a little concerning, and I was a little reluctant."

FOX 7 Austin asked the city if something like this happened again, would the homeowner have to pay out of pocket? They said in an emailed response, "The City would submit an insurance claim, as we have done in this case, and follow through that process."

"It was something that was definitely not within my control. I would hope that the city lines are maintained regularly to prevent things like this from happening. The population growth out here has been incredible, so I just think that the infrastructure might be taxed," Benavides said.

The city says the issue was a blockage, not a break in the line. The pipe was inspected and found to be in good shape. No repairs were needed.

Benavides' case is on Tuesday's Pflugerville City Council meeting agenda to get fully reimbursed for all the costs, minus the $5,000 pending payment. 

Pflugerville recently received a $176 million federal loan to modernize drinking water and wastewater infrastructure because of growth in the area. 

We asked the city if any of that money is going towards the sewer line and payments, and they said, "This sewer line was inspected and is in good condition."