Buying in Jersey or Guernsey · Pre-purchase roof check

Pre-purchase drone roof survey before you buy

The roof is the single most expensive thing to get wrong when you buy a home in the Channel Islands — and the part most surveys never get onto. A drone gives you 4K close-ups of the actual roof surface before you exchange, so you commit with your eyes open.

Book a pre-purchase survey What we check

CAA-licensed · No scaffolding · Flown in around an hour · Report in 2–3 days — in time to exchange

Why check the roof first

The most expensive thing to get wrong

A full re-roof on a Channel Islands property can run into tens of thousands of pounds — far more than the price of finding out before you buy. Yet a standard RICS building survey or HomeBuyer report usually assesses the roof from the ground or the loft hatch, because getting a surveyor safely onto the roof means scaffolding nobody wants to pay for during a sale.

A pre-purchase drone roof survey closes that gap. We fly the whole roof in 4K, so you and your surveyor can see the real condition of the tiles, flashing, valleys, chimney and flat sections — the defects that turn into a five-figure bill the year after you move in.

What we check

What a pre-purchase roof survey shows you

A close, methodical look at every part of the roof you can’t see from the ground:

Slipped, cracked or missing tiles & slates — the early sign of water getting in
Flashing & lead-work around chimneys, valleys and abutments
Chimney stacks & pointing — condition and any movement
Flat-roof & felt condition — ponding, splits and failing seams
Moss, blocked or sagging gutters and overflow staining
Evidence of past repairs — patch jobs that hint at recurring problems
Ridge, hip & verge condition across the whole roofline
Overall remaining life — a clear read on how soon you’ll be spending

How it fits your purchase

Independent facts — before you exchange

It slots straight into the buying timeline. We can usually fly within the week and turn your report around in 2–3 days — so the findings are in your hands before you exchange contracts.

The report works alongside your RICS building survey, giving your surveyor the roof detail they can’t safely reach. And because we don’t do the repairs, there’s no conflict of interest — just the evidence. If there’s a problem, a dated, insurer-ready report is exactly what you need to renegotiate the price or ask the seller to put it right before completion.

Drone roof survey of a Channel Islands property before purchase

Simple, fixed pricing

Know the cost before you book

Visual drone roof survey

from £249

Full 4K aerial inspection of the roof
Flown on site in around an hour
Key imagery shared with you
Ideal for a quick condition check before an offer

Survey + full written report

from £375

Everything in the visual survey
Dated, insurer-ready written report
Condition assessed for every roof element
Evidence to support price renegotiation

See the full breakdown on our pricing page, or get a fixed quote for the property you’re buying.

Pre-purchase roof surveys — FAQs

Questions from buyers, answered

Isn’t the roof already covered by my building survey?

Only partly. A standard RICS building survey or HomeBuyer report usually assesses the roof from the ground or the loft hatch, because reaching the roof itself needs scaffolding that’s rarely justified mid-sale. A drone survey gives you 4K close-ups of the actual roof surface — the detail your surveyor can’t safely get to — so the two work best together.

When in the buying process should I get a pre-purchase roof survey done?

Ideally once your offer is accepted and before you exchange contracts — while you still have room to renegotiate or pull out. We can usually fly within the week and deliver the report in 2–3 days, so it fits comfortably inside a normal Channel Islands purchase timeline.

Do I need the seller’s permission to fly?

We’ll always confirm access and permissions before the flight, and in practice most surveys are arranged with the seller or agent’s agreement. We’re CAA-licensed and a registered operator with the Channel Islands Director of Civil Aviation (DCA), and we handle all the airspace permissions for you.

Can I use the report to renegotiate the price?

Yes — that’s one of the main reasons buyers commission one. The full package includes a dated, insurer-ready written report with high-resolution imagery, which gives you firm evidence to put to the seller, whether you’re asking for a price reduction or for repairs to be done before completion.

How much does a pre-purchase roof survey cost?

A visual drone roof survey starts at £249, and the full written Roof Health Report is £375 — a fraction of what a roof problem can cost to put right. You’ll have a fixed price up front before we fly. See our full pricing.

Do you cover both Jersey and Guernsey?

Yes. We survey roofs across Jersey, Guernsey and the wider Channel Islands, including Alderney, Sark and Herm by arrangement — so wherever you’re buying in the islands, we can help before you commit.

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