You do not need a diagnosis. Homeowners who contact us have usually spotted a single clue: a tide mark across a spare-room ceiling, a slate on the lawn, a gutter spilling over in the rain or a ridge that dips when you look along it from the road. One clue is plenty, because finding the cause is the survey's job.
A price given from a description alone is a guess, and a low guess gets corrected later by a bigger bill. We climb up first. After seeing the covering, the timber beneath it, the valleys, the flashings and the chimney, the quote describes a job we have actually inspected.
- Send us the details. Use the form, ring or message us on WhatsApp with your address, what you have noticed and where water shows indoors.
- A roofer surveys. Every slope, the ridge, verges, valleys, flashings and gutters get checked, with photos taken as the work goes on.
- You see the photos. We scroll through the pictures with you, so a worn valley or loose ridge cap is something your own eyes have confirmed.
- One total in writing. The written price follows the survey, states what the job includes and tells you when work could start and what each day involves.
Before you contact us
What to put in your message
A few lines will do. Give the road and village at least, since the visit is planned around where the roof is, and the place decides which council or authority covers the consents. Taunton and the former Somerset districts fall under Somerset Council. A house just over the line in Devon sits with Devon County Council, and inside Exmoor the National Park Authority handles planning. Naming the place early lets us raise any consent question before the visit.
What helps us picture the problem?
Tell us what you saw and when. A drip that appears only in a south-westerly downpour points somewhere different from a patch that sits damp all winter. Say whether the stain is under the main slope, a bay, an extension or a dormer window, because each has its own joints.
- The covering, if you know it: slate, clay tile, concrete tile, felt or rubber
- Past work, such as a repair, new gutters or a loft conversion
- Listed status, or a home within a conservation area
- Awkward access, such as a narrow drive, a shared alley or a conservatory below the eaves
Is it worth sending pictures?
Yes. A snap from the garden or the street helps us arrive prepared, and you can add it to the WhatsApp chat once we have replied. Please stay off ladders and off the roof itself. The survey provides the full picture.
The visit
What the roofer checks on site
On a pitched roof, the roofer works across each slope looking for slipped, cracked or missing slates and tiles. The ridge, the crest along the top where one slope meets the next, gets a look at its bedding and end caps. Verges, the sloping edges at a gable end, are treated the same way. Valleys are the channels formed where two slopes join and run water toward the gutter, so worn linings and cracked lead show up there.
Flashings are the lead or metal strips sealing the gap between roof and brickwork. They are checked next, along with the chimney, the gutters and the fascia boards. On a flat roof the roofer looks for pools of standing water, splits, lifted seams and blocked outlets.
Why do the photos matter?
They replace opinion with evidence. A picture shows the very slate that has slid or the flaunching, which is the mortar fillet holding a chimney pot, cracking away. You can keep the set with your house papers, forward it to a letting agent or lay it beside another firm's advice.
If water is coming in
A leak that cannot wait
Say the word leak in your message. Our first move on a leak is a temporary fix to stop rain entering, and a price for the lasting repair comes when we know the cause. Regulation 28(1)(e) of the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 takes a visit you have asked for to carry out urgent repairs outside the 14-day cancellation right, so agree the scope clearly before anything starts.
Where a storm did the damage and you intend to claim, ring the insurer ahead of any repair, then keep your photos and receipts. Whether the claim is paid rests with them, not with the roofer. Our roof insurance claim page sets out the sequence. Unsure whether a roof is unsafe to stand under? Our page on dangerous roofs in Somerset lists signs visible from the ground.
Your rights
Changing your mind after saying yes
When you sign at home following a survey, the agreement counts as off-premises, and a 14-day cancellation period for services normally applies from the day you enter it. Your paperwork should explain how to use it. For advice on where you stand, the Citizens Advice consumer helpline is 0808 223 1133, and our page about cancelling a roofing contract walks through the steps.
It helps to know what a sound quote contains before you hold any two side by side. Our roofing quote checklist covers points such as VAT and scaffold being inside the total, and the costs page shows typical UK ranges from published guides.
Ready when you are
Send your details now
The quote form sits at the foot of this page beside the telephone number and the WhatsApp button. Give your village, what you have noticed and which days suit a visit. Prefer to talk first? Ring 01823 297042. Either way, the next step is the survey, and the form below is where you book it.