Flooding: How a survey can tell you what you need to know

In recent months, the UK has been battered by a series of heavy storms, with the worst being Ciarán, Gerrit and Henk, which have washed out swathes of countryside and towns across the country, with Scotland, the north of England and the East Midlands bearing the main brunt.

As of 11 January 2024, there are no longer any weather warnings in place as high pressure has brought in calmer if colder weather, but there are still 65 flood warnings and 109 flood alertsin place. In the meantime, the Met Officehas stated that their measurements show that many parts of the country have received almost the average rainfall for the month of January in the first five days.

It's natural for home- and business-owners to feel aggrieved and worried about what this means for the future, particularly if they have been directly affected in these or previous storms and floods. 

And the damage caused is a costly business to resolve and prevent, at a national, local and even personal level. A report by the UK Government shows that the cost of flooding runs to £2.2 billions every year.

With the increased problems of climate change, bringing with it warmer temperatures and heavier rainfall, it means that the number of homes in the UK at risk from flooding - currently 17% or one in six - is expected to double by 2050.

The problem is a side-effect of the climate change emergency - normally the rain would fall as snow and slowly melt away over a few days rather than falling and collecting in dips and hollows in a shorter space of time.

Buildings that have been badly affected by flooding can often be weakened by the amount of water that's poured into their foundations, resulting in subsidence, heave and several other effects including the effects of consistent damp and rot, not to mention flowback from poorly maintained sewers.

Anyone buying a home should therefore always insist that their conveyancing solicitororders a flood search report that will reveal if the property is in a flood risk area and if there are any historical flood events. This is an additional cost to a third party (known as a disbursement) over and above the quoted conveyancing fee, and will be in the region of £48 (inclusive of VAT).

In addition to the results from the search that your conveyancer can order, you'll be able to back up the findings in the resultant report by organising a comprehensive RICS Level 3 Survey, which will be carried out by a chartered surveyor who is a member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). 

Where the flood search indicates current and historical potential for flooding, getting a detailed survey is essential and your legal team will advise you to appoint a surveyor as soon as possible.

The completeness of the information and guidance obtained will help to inform your decision on the options regarding the purchase of the property.

You can compare RICS Level 3 Surveys to understand the advantages and peace of mind you'll get once your chartered surveyor has completed their analysis.

And that's where it is really worth contacting Surveyor Local! 

Surveyor Local only works with members of RICS to offer home buyers a comprehensive range of surveys that are affordable and will provide the information required on a property. 

Your appointed surveyor will be local to the property you are buying so they will know the area and bring that knowledge to their assessment and their analysis of the issues with the new home.

Not only will the surveyor work hard to find all the problems affecting the property, they will also be keen to adopt new and proven technology in order to give the best survey possible.

Surveyor Local will provide a quote that will not change - what you are quoted is what you pay. 

Next-day bookings are usually available, and your appointed surveyor will look after arranging access to the property with the estate agent and the seller. Once the survey is complete, they will send you a PDF copy of the report by email.

Call  to get your survey quote started, or to discuss your concerns with the acquisition of your planned property.

Or you can get a quick quote, using Surveyor Local's easy-to-use quote generator. Simply input your name, postcode, email address, phone number and an approximate value of the property (usually the agreed price), and we'll give you an instant quote for the work (with an email copy). 

We'll do the rest once you confirm your acceptance of the quote.