Housing disrepair damp surveys across Merseyside
Independent damp and mould evidence for disrepair cases — instructed by tenants, by landlords, and by the solicitors acting for either. A dated written report with photographic evidence and real testing, not an opinion on a meter reading.
Evidence that holds up to being argued with
Most damp disputes turn on one question: is this the building, or is it how the property is being lived in? A moisture meter cannot answer that, which is why so many disrepair arguments stall.
Our report records, for each affected area:
- Moisture readings taken on site, with the instrument and the method stated
- Thermal imaging and hygrometer readings where surface temperature and humidity are relevant
- Calcium carbide or gravimetric testing where a meter reading needs confirming against actual moisture content
- Salt analysis for nitrates and chlorides where rising damp is suspected
- Photographic evidence throughout, dated
- The diagnosed cause, stated plainly, and the remedial work it calls for, with costings
- Any area that could not be inspected, and why it could not be
What this is, and what it is not
It is an independent damp survey
A Federation of Damp certified surveyor attends, tests properly, and writes a dated report setting out the cause and the work required. It is the same diagnostic survey we carry out for a homebuyer, written for a situation where somebody is going to disagree with it.
It is not an expert witness report
We do not prepare CPR Part 35 expert reports, we do not act as a single joint expert, and we do not attend court. If that is what a case needs, say so when you contact us and we will tell you straight away rather than take the instruction and disappoint you later.
We would rather lose the job than be the reason a case falls over.
Three routes in
Tenants
You have reported damp and been told it is condensation, or your own fault, or nothing. An independent survey establishes what is actually causing it, in writing, so the conversation stops being one person's word against another's.
Landlords and agents
A claim has been intimated, or a tenant has reported damp and you need to know where you genuinely stand before you spend anything. Sometimes the honest answer is that there is no disrepair, and that is worth having in writing too.
Solicitors
You need the damp evidence in a case, on a deadline. Tell us the date you are working to when you instruct us and we will confirm whether we can meet it before we attend.
Where damp sits in housing law
This is general background, not legal advice. We are damp surveyors, not solicitors, and anyone pursuing or defending a claim should take proper legal advice.
Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 11
Requires landlords to keep the structure and exterior of the dwelling in repair, along with certain installations. Applies to both social and private tenancies.
Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018
Requires properties to be fit for human habitation at the start of and throughout the tenancy. “Freedom from damp” is one of the matters to which regard must be had. Applies to both tenures.
Housing Act 2004 — HHSRS
Damp and mould growth is a defined hazard under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System. Where a local authority finds a serious category 1 hazard, it must take enforcement action.
Environmental Protection Act 1990
Damp and mould that is prejudicial to health may amount to a statutory nuisance, with an abatement notice following.
Awaab’s Law
In force for social landlords in England from 27 October 2025 under the Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2025. Statutory timescales apply to investigating and acting on damp and mould. Read our guide for landlords.
The private rented sector
The government has said it intends to extend Awaab’s Law to private rentals, with the detail and timescales subject to consultation. No commencement date has been set.
What it costs
A disrepair survey is our standard diagnostic damp survey, so it follows the same published price ladder — from £249, with no VAT added because we are not VAT registered. The exact figure depends on the property’s size, access and the scope you need, and we confirm it before anything is booked.
Instructions involving several properties, or from solicitors and managing agents placing work regularly, are quoted individually. Ask and we will give you a figure.
Housing disrepair damp survey FAQs
Not on the same property. We take instructions from either side, but once we have been instructed on a property we act for that client only. Our findings do not change depending on who is paying; the point of an independent survey is that the evidence reads the same whoever commissioned it.
No. We provide an independent damp survey: a dated written report setting out what we found, the testing carried out, the diagnosed cause and the remedial work required, with photographic evidence throughout. We do not prepare CPR Part 35 expert reports and we do not attend court. If your solicitor needs a court-appointed expert, tell us early and we will say so rather than take the instruction.
The written report is normally with you within 48 hours of the survey. Where a case is working to a protocol deadline, tell us the date when you instruct us and we will confirm whether we can meet it before we attend.
Where the moisture is, how much of it there is, and what is causing it. That means moisture readings, thermal imaging and hygrometer readings where relevant, calcium carbide or gravimetric testing where a reading needs confirming, and salt analysis where rising damp is suspected. It also records which areas could not be inspected and why.
It will say what the evidence shows. Condensation caused by a ventilation or insulation defect is a building problem; condensation caused purely by how a property is being used is not, and the two look identical on a moisture meter. Distinguishing them is the whole reason the survey uses more than a meter.
Yes. Both. Different duties apply to each, and since 27 October 2025 social landlords in England have also been working to statutory timescales under Awaab's Law.
Instruct a survey
Tell us the property, who you act for and any deadline you are working to. We will come back to you the same working day wherever we can.
OPENMonday to Saturday, 8am–6pm. Closed Sunday.
“The report was very thorough with full photographic evidence. I was able to negotiate a reduction of £6,400 from the purchase price.”
Federation of Damp certified. We don’t do basement tanking, and we’ll tell you plainly if no treatment is needed.