Brighton and Hove · London and the South East
Rottingdean Drone Roof Survey
We carry out drone roof surveys in Rottingdean and the rest of Brighton and Hove. Surveys run on weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays.
- Slipped or missing slates on a high roof
- Moss building up on slopes and in gutters
- Eroded pointing on a chimney stack
Why act early in Rottingdean
Small defects on a high roof grow with each storm. Spotting them early keeps the work smaller, whatever height the roof is. For an older or listed building in a place like Rottingdean, repairs may need matching materials and consent, so a defect found early gives time to plan the work properly.
Price depends partly on the package: from £150 for Basic, £250 for Standard and £400 for Premium, including VAT. The roof’s size, height and access matter as well.
What you get with us
- Covered by professional indemnity and public liability insurance
- Plain-English reports with photos
- 20+ years’ experience
- 98% customer satisfaction
Take a look at our cost guide and our case studies.
Drone roof survey in Rottingdean: what you get
A drone can see more than your roof, so we take care. The camera stays on your roof, not on neighbouring homes and gardens. If your roof is joined to a neighbour’s, it is worth letting them know about the visit. We inspect only what the owner has asked us to. Flights are kept as short as the job allows and focused on the roof in question. We survey fragile roofs, chimney stacks and valleys and parapet gutters, and common reasons people get in touch are ridge pieces that have lifted and slipped or missing slates on a high roof.
In a village or hamlet like Rottingdean, roofs can be steep, old and hard to see from the lane. Close-up drone photos and thermal images help show what cannot be reached safely. Both the forecast and the airspace are checked first. Older roofs with steep slopes and tall chimneys are where the extra view helps most.
We keep jargon out of it: where something needs attention, it says so plainly, and where it can wait, that’s said too.
- Location
- Rottingdean (BN2)
- Wider area
- Brighton and Hove
- Cost
- From £400 inc. VAT
- Reports
- A written report with photos, by email
- Survey days
- Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Insurance
- PI and public liability insurance
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
Also in Rottingdean
Drone roof surveys in Rottingdean: local notes
Rottingdean lies within about 1 mile of the sea, and wind near the sea can be strong. The weather on the day decides whether a flight goes ahead, as a small drone can’t fly safely in strong wind or a downpour. We fly a sub-250g drone and are a CAA-registered drone operator (Flyer ID and Operator ID). In the open category, flights stay below 120 m (400 ft) and within sight.
Royal Pavilion lies about 3.2 miles west, so building around Rottingdean goes back a long way. Older roofs nearby can be steep and hard to see from the ground, and a survey from above or with a thermal imager does not touch the roof itself. For site and facilities teams at buildings such as Longhill High School, big roofs are where photos from the air and thermal images show the most at once. The streets around a church like St Wulfran's Church are frequently among the oldest in a place, and if you own one of the older houses nearby, tall stacks and steep slopes are easier to judge with close-up aerial photos than from the pavement.
Rottingdean is about 3 miles west of Telscombe, in Brighton and Hove. Rottingdean gets the same service as everywhere else we work: a careful inspection, photos and a written report. We cover towns and villages across Brighton and Hove.
All of BN2 is within our area for drone roof surveys. If you need a drone roof survey at a property on Longhill Road, New Barn Road and Court Ord Road or a nearby road, we can help. Close by, we survey roofs in Ovingdean (1 mile west), Roedean (1 mile west), Saltdean (1 mile south-east), East Saltdean (2 miles south-east) and Telscombe (3 miles east). Within a short drive, we also cover Brighton (3 miles north-west), Brighton and Hove (6 miles west), Hove (5 miles west), Carlton Hill (3 miles west), Hanover (3 miles west) and West Hill (4 miles west).
Landmarks near Rottingdean
Locally, jobs take us to homes and businesses close to Ovingdean Hall School, Our Lady of Lourdes RC School and Beacon Hill and the streets around them. The closest station to Rottingdean is Moulsecoomb station, roughly 3.2 miles north-west of the centre. A little further out are Churchill Square (3.6 miles west) and French Convalescent Home (1.9 miles west). Open spaces near Rottingdean include Beacon Hill Local Nature Reserve and Newmarket Hill.
Rottingdean questions
How do I find out if my home in Rottingdean is listed?
The council and Historic England’s list are the places to check. It is worth checking before planning roof work, as both can affect what’s allowed.
Is Rottingdean within the area you cover?
We do. A small place gets exactly the same survey as a big one, with the route planned beforehand.
Is it a structural engineer’s report?
No. We note visible signs such as sagging or deflection, but we are not structural engineers and do not carry out calculations. If we think you need an engineer, the report says so.
Do drone rules differ in central London?
Some areas need permission from NATS before any flight. Where we can’t fly, we use other safe vantage points and explain what we could see.
What does the report include?
It explains what we saw, what it means and what we’d suggest, with photos throughout. It also says if any part of the roof couldn’t be seen safely, so you know exactly what was covered.
Is this an asbestos survey?
No. We do not sample or test for asbestos. Where a material might contain it, such as old cement sheets on a building from before 2000, the report flags it, with a recommendation to have a specialist asbestos surveyor check before it is disturbed.
How do I book a survey in Rottingdean?
To book, phone 07833 053749 or send us an email with the address, the type of property and what’s prompted the survey. We’ll confirm the price and agree a day with you.
For landlords and managing agents
Buyers’ agents can book surveys on behalf of their clients. Reports are emailed, so they’re easy to pass on.
Landlords and letting agents in Rottingdean book surveys as well as homeowners. A written report with photos gives you a clear record of the roof.
What you can safely check yourself
After strong wind, take a look from the pavement or garden: pieces of tile or slate on the ground, a gap in the ridge or a lifted flashing are all worth noting. Leave anything above ground level to a survey.
The one thing to avoid is getting up close. Roofs are fragile and slippery, and falls from height are serious. That’s where a survey comes in.
What we can’t see
Without opening up the roof, some things stay hidden, so a survey has limits:
- Flights in a restricted zone without permission
- A flight on a day when the weather isn’t safe
- The underside of the roof (that needs an inside check)
Not sure which survey suits your roof? You can call 07833 053749 or send us an email and we’ll tell you before you book. What a survey covers and doesn’t.
What we look at
- Chimney stacks
- Tall and steep roofs
- Large and complex roofs
- Valleys and parapet gutters
- Flat roofs on upper floors
- Fragile roofs
What a survey costs
What a survey costs depends on the time and equipment it needs. The main factors are:
- The shape of the roof and its details
- The type of building, from a house to a block or an office
- The number of roofs, including extensions and garages
- The use of thermal imaging or a drone
What a survey costs comes down to the roof itself: its size, its height, how many sections it has and how safely it can be seen. Drone roof survey starts from £400, including VAT.
What we need to know
Getting the details right at the start saves time. It is useful to include:
- Any stains, drips or damp patches you’ve seen indoors
- Your timetable, such as an exchange date
- What kind of property and roof it is
- Access details, such as a loft hatch or a shared roof
Unsure which package suits your roof? It is easiest to phone 07833 053749 or email us and describe the roof and what’s worrying you. We’ll talk you through the options and what they cost.
The survey, step by step
A survey visit follows a simple order: we hear what you’ve seen, inspect the roof from every safe viewpoint, take photos as we go and record our findings for the written report. It normally takes roughly 1–2 hours for most homes, with the pre-flight checks included, and longer for big commercial roofs. Somewhere like Rottingdean needs a little journey planning: let us know about lanes, gates and parking. The roof is looked at from ground level, from windows, from the loft where there’s safe access and from the roof where it’s safe.
- We start by making sure a drone flight makes sense for the roof.
- We agree a date, including weekends, subject to the weather.
- Aerial photos are taken of your roof only, not the neighbours’.
- Where there is safe access, we check the loft as well.
- The report sets out what we found, with photos and recommendations.
How to prepare
- If you’re buying, let the agent know when we’re coming
- Mention any parking restrictions on your street
- For a flat or shared roof, check access with the freeholder or managing agent
Booking a survey
To get a price for drone roof surveys in Rottingdean, ring 07833 053749 or email us. Some details about the property and the roof help us price the survey accurately.