Greater London · London and the South East
Chimney Survey in Highgate
An experienced roof surveyor for chimney surveys in Highgate. More than 20 years and over 5,000 surveys across London and the South East.
- A chimney out of line
- Gaps where the stack meets the roof
- Damaged chimney pots and cowls
Why act early in Highgate
Cracked flaunching and worn pointing are often modest repairs when they’re caught early. Left for a few winters, frost and water can loosen pots and bricks, and the work grows. London’s older roofs often have bitumen felt underlay or none at all, so once the slates or flashings let water past, little stops it reaching ceilings. Left alone, that means wet timbers and plaster, which is a far bigger job than the roof fault itself.
The Premium Survey includes thermal imaging and drone inspection where applicable, from £400 including VAT. We can help you choose the package that fits what you’d like to know.
What you get with us
- Professional indemnity and public liability insurance
- Drone and thermal imaging surveys available
- A report with photographs
- Over 20 years’ experience
Read our cost guide or two real surveys.
Chimney survey in Highgate: what you get
A chimney stands up above the roof, exposed to wind, rain and frost on every side. In time, flaunching cracks, mortar washes out and flashings come loose. That lets water into the brickwork, which can show up as damp on a chimney breast or in the loft space. A survey finds these problems and records them with photos. We survey chimney pots and cowls, brick chimney stacks and flaunching, and the problems we’re asked to look at most are a stack that appears to lean and spalled or crumbling bricks.
Much of London’s housing is flats, in converted houses or purpose-built blocks, where the roof is normally a shared part of the building. Whoever looks after the building needs a clear picture of the roof, chimneys and gutters, in Highgate as anywhere. A defect on a shared roof can reach more than one flat. A report gives everyone the same picture to plan from, with photos.
After the visit, you get a written report with photographs, emailed to you. It sets out the condition of the chimney stack, any defects and our written recommendations.
- Location
- Highgate (N6, N19, NW5)
- Region
- Greater London
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Reports
- A written report with photos, by email
- Appointments
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Insurance
- PI and public liability insurance
- Telephone
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Also near Highgate
Also in Highgate
DIY checks: what’s safe
Watch the gutters in a downpour, from a window or the ground. Water spilling over the edge can point to a blockage or a sagging run.
Look up at the roof after a storm, from ground level: pieces of tile or slate on the ground, a gap in the ridge or a lifted flashing are all worth noting. Don’t go up yourself.
Chimney surveys in Highgate: local notes
Historic houses such as Witanhurst, about 0.4 miles south-west, show how far back building in the area around Highgate goes. If yours is one of the older homes, expect a mix of original materials and later repairs on the roof, and the council can say whether a home is in a conservation area. Inner London’s Victorian and Edwardian terraces frequently have Welsh slate roofs. Many have butterfly roofs draining to a central valley gutter, with parapet walls and gutters hidden behind them. Shared chimney stacks, party-wall upstands and lead work come with this kind of house. Whatever the covering, it’s frequently the fixings, flashings, valleys and gutters that give out first.
If you look after a shop, office or commercial unit, for example near The Mall Wood Green, knowing the roof’s condition lets you budget for work rather than pay for emergencies. If you look after a building like St Michael's Church of England Primary School, its roofs, gutters and any chimneys need the same checks as a house’s, just on a bigger scale. Trees in and around Whittington Park shed leaves that can end up in nearby gutters, and an overflowing gutter soon means a wet wall.
Highgate is about 2 miles north-east of Hampstead, in Greater London. Roofs in Highgate get the same thorough look as anywhere else in Greater London. Highgate is one of the places in Greater London we cover for chimney surveys.
We cover every part of the N6, N19 and NW5 postcode area for chimney surveys. Local streets include Wood Lane, Grange Road and Talbot Road, all of which we cover. Close by, we survey roofs in Upper Holloway (1 mile south-east), Dartmouth Park (1 mile south), Lissenden Gardens (1 mile south), Crouch End (1 mile north-east) and Tufnell Park (1 mile south-east). Further out, we also cover London (5 miles south-east), City of Westminster (4 miles south), Marylebone (4 miles south), Kensington (6 miles south-west), St Pancras (3 miles south) and Shoreditch (4 miles south-east).
Near you in Highgate
We work in homes and buildings around The Angel Inn, St Aloysius RC College and Whittington Park and the streets around them. For rail, the closest station is Upper Holloway station, about 0.9 miles south-east. Well-known places in the area include Highgate Private Hospital (0.6 miles north-west) and Montfichet's Tower (4.4 miles south-east). Not far away are Darland's Lake and Parkland Walk.
What a survey costs
Several things affect the price of a survey:
- If the survey needs thermal imaging or a drone
- The package you choose: Basic, Standard or Premium
- The roof’s overall size
- Features like valleys, chimneys, dormers and parapets
Simple, low roofs take less time to survey than tall or complicated ones, and the package you pick makes a difference too. We will give you the figure before anything is booked.
What we need to know
The more you tell us, the easier it is to price the survey. When you contact us, let us know:
- Any stains, drips or damp patches you’ve seen indoors
- Photos of the roof, taken safely from the ground or a window
- Anything about access we should know
- The address and postcode of the property
Buyers should book once an offer has been accepted, so you have the findings in time to act on them before you exchange. Otherwise, simply phone 07833 053749 or email us whenever suits you.
Rented homes, blocks and businesses
Where a roof is shared: access has to be agreed with whoever owns or manages the building. Let us know about it as you book and we will plan the visit with that in mind.
We also survey roofs for businesses and commercial landlords. Larger roofs take longer.
When you need someone else
This is not a RICS building survey, a structural engineer’s report or an asbestos survey. It also has these limits:
- A structural engineer’s assessment
- Gas safety checks, which need a Gas Safe registered engineer
- Parts of the stack that cannot be seen safely or belong to a neighbour we can’t access
Not sure which survey suits your roof? You can ring 07833 053749 or send us an email and we’ll tell you before you book. The full list of what we check.
Roofs we survey in Highgate
- Chimney pots and cowls
- Lead flashings
- Chimney breasts
- Flaunching
- Brick chimney stacks
- Shared and party-wall stacks
FAQs for Highgate
Is my home in Highgate listed or in a conservation area?
Your council is the best source, with Historic England’s list for listed buildings. Both listing and conservation areas can limit changes of roofing material, and councils can also use Article 4 directions.
Do you survey roofs for landlords with property near Upper Holloway station?
Of course. Let us know whether a tenant or an agent will let us in, and we can send the report to you or your agent.
Do you survey roofs on blocks of flats?
Yes, as long as access is agreed. Roofs over flats are often shared, so we need permission from whoever owns or manages the building. We can only inspect what we’re given access to.
How can you see the top of the stack?
We inspect from wherever is safe: from the ground, windows and vantage points, and from the loft where there’s access. A drone inspection is included in our Premium Survey where it applies. We note anything we couldn’t see.
Do you use drones?
Where it helps and the rules allow, yes. We hold a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID and fly a drone under 250g, and every flight depends on the airspace and the weather.
When does the report arrive?
Basic reports arrive within 48 hours, Standard reports in 24–48 hours and Premium reports on the same day. All of them come by email, ready to forward.
Can you survey at the weekend?
We survey seven days a week: weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Let us know which days suit you when booking.
What happens on the day
You do not need to do much on the day. Show us any stains, drips or problem areas you know about, and we’ll get on with the inspection. A typical survey takes between one and two hours for most homes, a little longer where there are several stacks. In Highgate, as in much of London, a good many properties are flats or terraces without side access, so rear slopes are viewed from windows, the loft or, where a flight is allowed, by drone. Mention any building rules, key holders or managing agents when you book.
- We start with the details: how many stacks, whether any are shared and any signs of damp.
- We inspect each stack from safe viewpoints outside.
- The pots, cowls, flaunching, pointing, brickwork and flashings are checked and photographed.
- We check the chimney breasts and the stack in the loft space where we can reach them.
- We send a written report with photos, the defects found and what we recommend.
Before the survey
- Tell us where we can park nearby
- Make a note of anything you’d like us to look at
- Have any paperwork from past roof work to hand
Book a survey
A quick phone call is typically the easiest start: phone 07833 053749 or use the contact form and we will ask a few questions about the roof. The price is agreed before a date is set.