A roof leak is rarely as dramatic as it feels, but the first hour genuinely matters. Most of the cost of a leak is not the roof repair — it is the plaster, flooring and belongings underneath.
Start from the inside
Almost everything useful you can do is indoors. Working inside is safe; climbing onto a wet roof is not.
- Move people, pets, electronics and furniture away from the affected area
- Put down buckets and towels, and lift floor coverings if you can
- Take photographs as you go — useful for both the roofer and any insurance claim
- Note the weather when it started: driving rain from one direction points somewhere very different to steady vertical rain
If water is near anything electrical
Switch off the circuit for that area at the consumer unit if you can do so safely and without standing in water. If you are unsure, keep everyone out of the room and call a qualified electrician.
If a ceiling is bulging with trapped water, if the roof structure appears to be sagging, or if you suspect an electrical hazard, keep clear of the area entirely and seek appropriate professional help before doing anything else.
What not to do
- Do not go up a ladder in wind or rain
- Do not walk on a wet or storm-damaged roof
- Do not apply expanding foam or mastic into the leak from inside — it makes tracing the entry point much harder
- Do not have the ceiling re-plastered before the roof has been fixed and given time to dry
What to have ready when you call
- Property type and roughly how old the roof is
- Where the water is appearing inside
- Whether it is dripping now or only during rain
- Photographs of both the inside and, from ground level, the outside