Greater London · London and the South East
Roof leak investigation in Forest Hill, Greater London
Tracing where water is getting into your roof for Forest Hill, from an experienced roof surveyor. You get a clear written report with photographs.
- Leaks that appear only in driving rain
- Water dripping from rafters or underlay
- Damp on a chimney breast
Before and after the survey
A little preparation and a few simple habits help. Some pointers:
- Clear the loft hatch so we can get in
- Let us know if there are tanks or pipes in the loft
- Don’t climb onto the roof to look
- Have an electrician check any wet fittings
The report gives whoever carries out the work a clear starting point. The photos show the defects and where they are, rather than at the stain.
Keep gutters, valleys and outlets clear, particularly in autumn. Blocked outlets on parapet and flat roofs cause many leaks. Use a professional rather than climbing up yourself.
Roof leak investigation in Forest Hill: what you get
The aim is to find where the water is getting in and explain it. You get a report with photos showing the likely entry point and the route the water is taking, plus recommendations on what needs attention. Whoever does the work then has a clear starting point. We find and report the source, while the repair is a separate matter. If you’ve noticed water that shows only in certain storms and damp walls below an overflowing gutter, a survey will tell you what’s going on.
Many London homes are well over a century old and their roofs have been patched more than once, so a new leak can be the latest sign of wear rather than a single event. Telling wear from a one-off event matters, because insurers normally exclude wear and tear. That’s as true in Forest Hill as anywhere in London. A written record with photographs helps you explain what was found to whoever deals with it next.
It isn’t only a list of defects. For each finding, it explains what it is, why it matters and what we’d recommend, so you can decide what to do next.
- Location
- Forest Hill (SE23, SE22, SE26)
- Region
- Greater London
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Reports
- A written report with photos, by email
- When we survey
- Weekdays and weekends
- Insured
- PI and public liability insurance
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
What affects the cost of roof leak investigations
Several things affect the price of a survey:
- Which survey package you book
- Whether it’s a home or a commercial building
- Height and safe access
- How big the roof is
The cost of a survey depends on the roof: its size, its height, how many sections it has and how safely it can be seen. Roof leak investigation starts from £150, including VAT.
Getting in touch
Here’s what helps us most when you get in touch:
- Your timetable, like an exchange date
- Any photos you have, taken from the ground or a window
- The style of property, from a terrace to a block
- Access details, such as a loft hatch or a shared roof
Our price is from £150, including VAT. What you pay depends on the roof’s size, access and the package, and you can ring 07833 053749 or email us to find out.
Forest Hill: your questions answered
Is parking a problem for a survey in Forest Hill?
Parking in Forest Hill, as in most of London, takes a little planning: a visitor permit or a bay close to the door helps a lot, so mention what’s available when you book.
Do you carry out roof surveys in Forest Hill?
Yes, Forest Hill is within the area we cover. We work right across London and the South East. You can ring 07833 053749 or send us an email with the address and some details.
How long will you be at the property?
It normally takes roughly 1–2 hours for most houses, or half a day or so for a commercial building. The report follows within 48 hours for Basic, 24 to 48 hours for Standard and the same day for Premium.
Do you carry professional indemnity insurance?
Every survey is covered by professional indemnity and public liability insurance.
What will the report tell me?
A written report with photos, covering the condition of the leaking roof, the defects we found and what we recommend. Standard adds moisture detection and a structural check; Premium adds thermal imaging, drone inspection where it applies and structural analysis.
Do you look in the roof space?
If the survey needs it and the roof space can be reached safely, yes. Please clear anything stored under the hatch.
Is this an asbestos survey?
No. We don’t sample or test for asbestos. Where a material might contain it, like old cement sheets on a building from before 2000, the report flags it.
Common roof problems in Forest Hill
Many leaks begin at a flashing. Where a roof meets a chimney, a wall or a dormer, lead or mortar seals the joint. Once that seal cracks or lifts, water gets behind it.
People typically book a survey when they’ve noticed something like this:
- Wet patches high on an inside wall
- Damp underlay across a wide area
- Leaks that appear only in driving rain
- Damp on a chimney breast
If you let a flat or house near Honor Oak Park station, finding the cause of a leak fast keeps a tenant’s home dry and the work focused.
What to check before booking
- Their report turnaround times
- Whether they hold professional indemnity and public liability insurance
- Do they have a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID for drone work?
- Whether the inside of the roof is included
The survey, step by step
Photos are taken throughout the visit, so you can see in the report what we found and where. We take close-ups from wherever is safe. Most surveys take about 1–2 hours for most homes, though a hard-to-trace leak can take longer. In Forest Hill, as in much of London, lots of 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. If the building has a managing agent or access rules, tell us when you book.
- You let us know where the water shows and when it appears.
- We check the stain, the ceiling and the loft above it.
- Outside, we look at every likely route in.
- Where it helps, we take moisture readings and use thermal imaging.
- We email a report with photos, the likely entry point and recommendations.
Getting ready for the survey
- Let us know about parking near the property
- Make sure the loft hatch can be reached
- Have any paperwork from past roof work to hand
Booking a survey
If you have photos of the roof, send them over. Take them safely from ground level or a window; never climb up to get a better view. To get started, call 07833 053749 or send us an email.
Advice
Also near Forest Hill
Other services in Forest Hill
How the survey changes by roof type
Valleys
Leaves and moss build up in valleys and hold water back. During a downpour, water can back up under the coverings.
Lead flashings
A leak at a flashing often shows some way from the joint. That’s why we check the flashings near a stain, not just the one directly above.
Checking the roof from the ground
The one thing to avoid is getting up close. Slates, tiles, flat roofs and rooflights can give way. That’s where a survey comes in, using safe viewpoints and a drone where applicable.
It helps to keep a record: dates of leaks, photos from ground level and any work done on the roof. Send it with your enquiry and it will help the survey.
Leaks and storm damage in Forest Hill
Many homes in inner London are Victorian and Edwardian terraces, often with Welsh slate roofs. A butterfly roof with a central valley gutter, tucked behind a parapet wall, is common on these houses. If your home in Forest Hill is one of them, lead flashings, party-wall upstands and shared chimney stacks are part of the picture too. Knowing the roof type helps narrow down where water may be getting in. The wider area around Forest Hill has a long history of building, with Kingswood House about 1.6 miles south-west. Older roofs in the wider area can hide decades of patch repairs, so the detail matters, and a listed home or one in a conservation area may need consent for changes of material.
For site and facilities teams at buildings such as Fairlawn Primary School, a leak through a large roof is often found some distance from where the water shows inside. For businesses in and around places like Lewisham Shopping Centre, water through a ceiling can damage stock and close a sales floor, so the source needs finding fast.
Forest Hill is about 2 miles south-east of East Dulwich, in Greater London. Whether the building in Forest Hill is a house, a flat or a commercial unit, the roof can be surveyed. Across Greater London, we cover Forest Hill and the places around it.
Here we cover the SE23, SE22 and SE26 postcode area for roof leak investigations. Whether your property is on Ewart Road, London Road and Rojack Road or anywhere close by, we can help. We also cover Honor Oak (1 mile north), Perry Vale (1 mile south-east), Brockley (1 mile north-east), Crofton Park (1 mile north-east) and Dulwich (1 mile west). Within a short drive, we also cover London (4 miles north-west), City of Westminster (6 miles north-west), Marylebone (6 miles north-west), Kensington (7 miles north-west), St Pancras (6 miles north-west) and Shoreditch (6 miles north).
What’s near Forest Hill
Around Forest Hill, our work takes us to homes and buildings near Allenby Tutorial Trust, Capitol Cinema pub and Harris Girls' Academy East Dulwich, among other places. The nearest railway station is Honor Oak Park station, roughly 0.5 miles north-east. Nearby you will also find Greenwich Castle (3.1 miles north-east) and Horniman Museum and Gardens (0.5 miles south-west). The countryside around Forest Hill includes One Tree Hill and Knight's Hill.