A repair scope builders can price line by line, £429
After a fire, a flood or a long-running leak, three builders will walk round and give you three different lists. We measure the damage once and write the repairs down item by item, so the quotes you get back are for the same work. £429, visit included.
- £429, visit included
- Measured, item by item
- Written for builders and loss adjusters to read
What does a repair scope of works cost?
The scope is £429, with the measuring visit included and no VAT to add. We inspect the damage, take the measurements and photographs, and write a schedule of repairs by room and element with quantities. Builders price each line. If you are claiming on insurance, the scope tells the insurer what the repair involves. We write the scope. The insurer and its loss adjuster decide the claim.
Structural calculations, engineering design and formal inspections are provided only through an appointed professional, such as a structural engineer or a building control surveyor. These reports do not replace them: where a report finds something that needs one, it says so and names the kind of professional to appoint.
What is in the £429 scope
- A measuring visit, with a photographic record of the damage room by room
- A schedule of repairs by room and element, with quantities builders can price against
- The sequence of the work, so drying, strip-out, repair and finishes happen in a sensible order
- A clear note on what we could not see, and any specialist the damage calls for, such as an engineer or an electrician
- A pricing sheet to send to builders, so each quote comes back in the same shape
What is a repair scope, and who reads it?
A repair scope is the list a builder prices from: each repair, where it is, how big it is and what it is made of. Without one, each builder invents their own list, and the smallest quote is often the one that left items out.
Three people read it. The builder uses it to price. You use it to compare quotes. An insurer or loss adjuster, if there is a claim, uses it to see what putting the building back involves.
Insurance claims: what we do and what we do not
We write the scope of repairs. We do not assess whether the policy covers the damage, we do not negotiate with the insurer, and we are not a loss assessor. The insurer and the loss adjuster it appoints decide the claim.
The FCA’s rules require an insurer to handle claims promptly and fairly and not to reject a claim unreasonably (FCA). A clear, measured scope gives the insurer less room to dispute what the repair involves.
Fire, flood and long-running leaks
After a fire the scope records the damage we can see and flags anything that needs a specialist to look first. Flood damage means the scope covers drying, strip-out and the finishes that follow, in sequence. After a slow leak the scope states what we found and which items may change once the area is opened up.
Where the damage looks structural, the scope says so and names a structural engineer to appoint. We then write that item as provisional until the engineer has reported.
Landlords and disrepair
A landlord must keep a home fit for human habitation throughout a tenancy (gov.uk). A repair scope with photographs and quantities shows what needs doing, in what order, and lets you get comparable quotes quickly.
It is not an expert report for a disrepair claim, and we do not write one.
Which report comes first?
If you do not yet know what is wrong, start with a building defect report for one problem or a property condition report for the whole house, then order the scope.
If the scope is only part of a larger refurbishment, our schedule of works and specification covers the full project, and a tender package sends the drawings and specification to several builders. Other reports are on the reports page.
Approvals the repair may need
Putting a building back can still need building regulations approval, for example replacing roof coverings or windows and doors (gov.uk). Repair to a shared wall can bring in the Party Wall etc. Act (section 2). The scope flags both so they are not discovered after the builder starts.
The rules behind an insured or landlord repair
- Promptly, fairly
- The FCA’s claims rule says an insurer must handle claims promptly and fairly. FCA Handbook, ICOBS 8
- Reasonably
- The same rule says an insurer must not unreasonably reject a claim, and must settle promptly once the terms are agreed. FCA Handbook, ICOBS 8
- Guidance
- An insurer must also give reasonable guidance to help a policyholder make a claim and information on its progress. FCA Handbook, ICOBS 8
- Roof coverings
- Replacing roof coverings, windows and doors, and electrics near a bath or shower are among the alterations the government lists as needing building regulations approval. gov.uk: when you need building regulations approval
- Party structure
- The Party Wall etc. Act 1996 lets a building owner make good or repair a party structure, subject to its notice rules, which matters where the damage is in a shared wall. Party Wall etc. Act 1996, section 2
- Several trades
- With more than one contractor on a domestic job, the client duties pass to the principal contractor, unless the client agrees in writing for a designer to take them on. HSE: CDM 2015, domestic clients
- Throughout
- A landlord must keep a rented home fit for human habitation at the start of the tenancy and throughout it. gov.uk: guide for landlords, Homes Act 2018
Repair scope of works questions
Will you deal with my insurer for me?
No. We write the scope of repairs. The claim is between you and your insurer, whose loss adjuster assesses it. If you want someone to manage the claim, that is a loss assessor.
Will the insurer accept your scope?
We cannot promise that. The insurer decides, and it may ask its own adjuster to check the scope. A measured, photographed scope is easier to review.
Is this the same as a schedule of works?
It is close in form. A repair scope is for putting damage right and includes the visit and measuring. A schedule of works is for a planned project and is written from drawings.
What if the damage is structural?
The scope marks it, tells you to appoint a structural engineer and treats that item as provisional until the engineer has reported.
Is £429 the whole fee?
Yes for one property, with the measuring visit included and no VAT to add. Builders, drying and any specialist are paid separately.
Other services people book with this one
Get the repairs written down once
Tell us what happened and where the property is. We reply with a visit date and the fixed fee.