When Do I Need A Dilapidation Report, And What Exactly Is It?

What is a dilapidation report?

Protecting your house and belongings is essential, which is why you should insure it against natural disasters like floods and fires. Therefore, it is prudent to safeguard your property from harm when construction work occurs in your area. The best method to safeguard your house during construction is to commission a dilapidation report.

What is it, and how does it function?

A dilapidation report is an actual record of the state of a building as of a certain date. It is in the best interest of both property owners and builders for a dilapidation report to be completed on neighboring properties before any nearby construction work begins. This protects property owners if any damage is incurred due to construction, and it protects builders from any exaggerated claims of damage from property owners.

Many types of construction projects can cause damage to your home or other structures on your property, including new construction, renovations, drilling and digging for water supply or sewer pipelines, paths, roads, level crossing removals, tunnels, and other government infrastructure projects. Heavy machinery operating nearby can cause soil slippage or erosion, damage to neighboring retaining walls and fences, and damage to asphalt, driveways, and landscaping, all of which can have structural repercussions.

How do we fit in?

Our experts will thoroughly inspect your home’s inside and exterior to provide an accurate record of its present state. We ensure to put together a thorough report on the desired property, documenting the presence of any exterior or interior flaws like cracks, gaps, or sinking. Our engineers do comprehensive property assessments, outlining the house’s state with supporting images and relevant measurements to provide the clearest picture possible of the evaluated structures before development begins.

We’ll come back and do a side-by-side inspection of the impacted regions if you think the neighboring construction has degraded your property. We always keep our customers’ needs in mind. We want to assure you that we’ve done all possible to give you reliable findings and clear guidance about how to proceed.

Since completing the report will require access to the neighboring properties, we want to ensure that all parties are aware of and have consented to the inspection before proceeding. If you request a dilapidation report on neighboring properties because your property is currently under construction, you must inform your neighbors of this decision.

If you’ve obtained this report for your home because of nearby work, you probably won’t need to notify your neighbor or the construction crew. However, in the event of structural damage, it’s a good idea to let them know what’s happening. Helping others is what we do, so if you have any questions about the dilapidation report procedure, including but not limited to the findings, the scheduling, or the booking, a staff member will always be present to respond and assist you.