can heavy rain cause your plumbing to back up?

Yes if you have a septic system.

This is most common to sandy locations where the water table is high such as at the coast or the lake. The tank could be full of water and the ground saturated so that it cannot take no more.

It wouldn't actually back up into the house wrather nothing will go down quickly.

Actually though, tree roots or a collapsed sewer pipe are most common to those symptoms, but excessive rain will cause it.

Municipal sewer systems are also notorious for being overburdened in low lying areas during heavy rain periods. In this case, and since there are others up the hill from your house, the sewage could actually back up into your home unless it has a backflow preventer valve.

When I lived near a river this would happen every major storm. Turned out there were clogs in the city sewer system that once cleared stopped the problem. Was a bear getting them to admit the problem was theirs.

well in 27yrs of being a plumber, ive never heard of rain causing a drain to back up, open your manhole covers, you have a blockage somewhere, go buy some drain rods, job done.. it makes me laugh when i get a thumbs down, i dont see anyone else putting there source as being a plumber !!! well i have been for a long time, rain water in fact normally runs down a different drain for all the know it alls, you have storm drains and sewers, get your facts straight before you mark someone down.....

Yes, rain can cause the municipal sewer systems to back up, leading to back-ups in homes. I would ask my neighbors if they have similiar problems, if not it is likely confined to your plumbing. If everyone has the problem, contact your local sewer provider or health department.