What You Get: A Drone Roof Survey Report (Example)
Most drone operators hand over a folder of photographs and a page of notes. Ours is built so that a landlord, a managing agent, a buyer's surveyor or a loss adjuster can act on it without ringing us. Eight parts, every photograph timed and positioned, every defect rated with a timescale, delivered within 48 hours as a PDF and a private web page you can forward.
- 60 to 120 photosGrouped by roof section
- Severity 1 to 5Each with a timescale
- Time and GPSPrinted under every photo
- 48 hoursPDF plus private web page
The Eight Parts of the Report
The pages below are an illustrative example for a Victorian terrace in south east London, written to show the structure. They are not a real property or a real client.
Drone roof survey
DRS-2026-0XX
Three-storey Victorian terrace, two pitched slopes, one back addition flat roof, two chimney stacks. South east London. (Illustrative.)
- Prepared for
- The client (landlord)
- Prepared by
- iRopeAccess Ltd
- Report issued
- Within 48 h of the flight
- Verified by
- IRATA Level 3 supervisor
Flight record
- Date and window
- Tue, 10:30 to 11:05
- Wind
- 9 mph, gusting 14 mph, SW
- Weather
- Dry, overcast, roof dry
- Pilot / observer
- Named, Flyer ID on file
- Aircraft
- UK1 class-marked, serial recorded
- Operator ID
- GBR-OP-…
- Authorisation
- CAA Open category A1
- Airspace check
- Reference logged, no FRZ
Overall condition
Fair
Sound coverings with two items that will let water in this winter if left.
Items by severity
Recommendations
- Within 0 to 6 months: re-dress and re-fix the lifted lead back gutter at chimney 2 (photos 14 to 17) and clear and re-seal the blocked outlet on the back addition flat roof (photos 41 to 43). Both are rated 4 and both should be confirmed by hand before pricing.
- Within 6 to 12 months: re-bed six displaced ridge tiles on the main ridge (photos 5 to 8) and repoint the open joints on the party parapet (photos 28 to 30).
- Monitor: moss on the north slope and hairline cracks in the chimney 1 flaunching (photos 11, 22). Re-inspect in 24 months or after the next named storm.
Observations and recommendations are kept apart: the register records what was seen, referenced to photographs; this page says what we would do about it, and we are open that we can quote for it.
| Rating | Meaning | Timescale | Typical examples | RICS equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Advisory | Cosmetic or very early wear. No action needed now | None, monitor | Moss, staining, weathered but sound pointing | 1 |
| 2 May cause problems | Deteriorating. Will become a defect if ignored | 12 to 24 months | Corroding fixings, failed mastic, standing water, hairline cracks | 2 |
| 3 Needs attention | A defect. Not yet letting water in, or only in heavy weather | 6 to 12 months | Displaced ridge tile, missing mortar, slipped slate, leaking gutter joint | 2 |
| 4 Will cause damage | An open route for water. Internal damage likely this season | 0 to 6 months | Lifted or missing lead, missing tiles, blocked outlet, split membrane | 3 |
| 5 Health and safety risk | Risk of falling material or imminent failure | Immediate | Loose coping over a pavement, leaning stack, hole in the roof | 3 |
| POI Point of interest | Not a defect. Worth knowing about | None | Previous repair, unusual detail, access route, old aerial fixings | n/a |
| Id | Roof section | Sev. | Defect | Recommended action | Confirm by hand | Photos |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D-01 | Chimney 2, back gutter | 4 | Lead back gutter lifted at the upstand, 400 mm length, daylight visible under the lap | Re-dress and re-fix, replace if split; renew soakers if found short | Yes | 14 to 17 |
| D-02 | Back addition flat roof, outlet | 4 | Outlet blocked with debris, ponding 2 m², membrane lap lifting beside it | Clear, flush, re-seal lap, fit leaf guard | Yes | 41 to 43 |
| D-03 | Main ridge | 3 | Six ridge tiles with bedding mortar missing, one displaced 20 mm | Lift, clean and re-bed in lime-cement mortar | No | 5 to 8 |
| D-07 | Chimney 1, flaunching | 2 | Hairline cracking across the flaunching, pots secure | Monitor; re-flaunch when the stack is next accessed | No | 22 |
Observation. Lead back gutter lifted at the upstand over about 400 mm. Daylight visible under the lap. Staining on the brickwork below consistent with water tracking behind the lead.
Linked to D-01, severity 4, confirm by hand.
Each photograph is printed with the capture time, position, altitude and heading from the aircraft, so any image can be placed on the roof and, if needed, re-flown from the same spot next year for a like-for-like comparison. Sections used: Front Roof, Rear Roof, Left and Right Slopes, Ridge, Hips and Valleys, Chimney 1 to n, Gutters and Outlets, Parapets and Party Walls, Flat Roof Areas.
- ✕ North west corner of the rear slope, obscured by a neighbour's sycamore. About 3 m² not seen.
- ✕ Underside of the satellite dish bracket on chimney 1.
- ✕ Roof void, deck, battens, felt and insulation: not visible from the air by definition.
An explicit list, every time. If an area was not seen, the report says so rather than leaving a gap for someone to assume it was fine. It is also the list we use to decide whether a rope access visit is needed to close the picture.
This report records a visual inspection of the roof from the air on the date and in the conditions stated in the flight record. It is not a RICS Home Survey, a building survey, a structural assessment or a measured survey. Nothing was walked on, opened, lifted, sounded or tested. The deck, battens, underlay, insulation, fixings, internal structure and the condition of materials beneath the visible surface were not inspected. Material composition, including suspected asbestos cement, cannot be confirmed from photographs. Resolution, angle, light and obstructions limit what can be seen, and areas not inspected are listed separately.
Severity ratings describe visible condition and a recommended timescale for action. They are not a guarantee of performance or remaining life. Items marked "confirm by hand" should be inspected at close quarters, by rope access or other means, before works are specified or priced. The report is prepared for the client and property named and does not purport to be a definitive list of every defect present.
Raw images and flight logs are retained securely for three years, in line with the record-keeping period for drone operations, and are available to the client on request. Public and sample copies carry no location metadata.
On the private web page every item rated 4 or 5 carries two buttons. One books the rope access verification, the other asks us to price the repair. Either way the request arrives with the report attached, and the survey fee is credited against repairs of £1,500 or more.
The PDF carries the same information without the buttons, for the file, the freeholder or the insurer.
What a Surveyor, an Insurer or a Freeholder Looks For
Provenance
Who flew, when, in what weather, under which CAA rules, with which aircraft. The flight record answers all of it on page one.
Evidence that can be placed
Time, position, altitude and heading under every photograph. A loss adjuster can tie an image to a date; a surveyor can tie it to a slope.
Ratings with timescales
A 1 to 5 scale mapped to RICS 1 to 3, so the findings slot into a Level 2 or 3 report, a Section 20 schedule or a planned maintenance budget without re-interpretation.
Honesty about limits
Observations separated from recommendations, a not-inspected list and a limitations block. No insurer pre-approves any contractor's report; what they test is whether it was candid.
Where a claim or a tender needs a hands-on opinion rather than photographs, the rope access verification turns the report into a contractor's statement of cause and a priced specification. That is the Survey & Verify option, and it is why a report from us can go further than one from a drone-only operator.
PDF, Private Web Page and the Raw Files
The PDF
The eight parts in one file, photographs at print quality, for the records, the freeholder, the solicitor or the insurer.
The private web page
The same report at a private link you can forward. Photographs zoom, the register filters by severity, the 4K fly-round plays inline, and the next-step buttons work.
The raw files
Full-resolution images with their metadata and the video, on request, for your surveyor or your own records. Kept securely for three years.
This Report, for Your Roof, in 48 Hours
From £295 + VAT for a house and £495 for a block, report included. Send the address and we check the airspace today.
This work as a standalone service