Storm Damage to Your Roof? What to Do First

After a big storm, a damaged roof needs calm, quick action, not panic.


Oxfordshire sees its share of rough weather. Recent autumn and winter storm seasons have battered properties across the county, and exposed rural homes on the outskirts of Bicester have taken some of the hardest hits. Loose ridge tiles, torn flashing, and blocked gutters are common results. The good news is that acting in the right order makes everything easier, including any insurance claim you need to make.


Here is what to do, step by step.



Make It Safe First


Your first job is to keep people safe. That means staying off the roof entirely. A wet, wind-damaged roof is unstable ground, and amateur inspection from above causes more injuries and more damage than it prevents. Do not climb up to check the tiles yourself.

Instead, start from inside the house.


Check the loft.
Go up with a torch and look for daylight coming through, damp patches on the timbers, or water pooling on the insulation. If you see any of these, you have a breach somewhere in the roof covering.


Contain any water ingress.
Put buckets under active drips. Lay down old towels to protect floors and ceilings. If water is coming through a light fitting, switch off the circuit at the consumer unit and leave it off until a qualified electrician has checked it.


Move valuables away from the affected area.
Water travels further than you expect. A drip in one corner can run along a joist and appear several feet away. Move furniture, electronics, and anything irreplaceable out of the room if you can.


Check outside from ground level.
Walk around the property and look up. Missing tiles, sagging gutters, damaged fascias, or debris on the roof are all visible from the ground. Take note of what you can see without getting close to the building.


If the roof is severely compromised and water is entering in volume, call our emergency line now. We cover Bicester, Thame, Oxford, and the surrounding villages, and we can get someone out to you quickly. Emergency calls go to 07451 293917.


Document the Damage for Insurance


Before any repair work starts, you need a clear record of what the storm did. Insurers expect evidence, and the more thorough your documentation, the smoother your claim will be.


Photograph everything you can safely see.
Use your phone and take wide shots to establish context, then closer shots to show specific damage. Photograph from multiple angles. Date and time stamps are useful, so make sure your phone's camera is set to record them.


Write down what you observed inside.
Note where you saw water coming in, what time the storm was at its worst, and how quickly the ingress started. A short written account, even a few sentences, helps insurers understand the sequence of events.


Keep any debris that has fallen.
Ridge tiles, sections of flashing, or pieces of felt that have come off the roof can all be used as evidence. Put them somewhere dry if you can.


Contact your insurer promptly.
Most household policies require you to report storm damage within a set timeframe. Check your policy documents and make the call. Let them know you are arranging a professional inspection and that you will have a written report.


This is where a professional inspection matters beyond just identifying what needs fixing. At M&C, we are fully insured and familiar with what insurers need to see. We can provide a written assessment of the damage that you can submit alongside your claim. We have helped homeowners across Oxfordshire navigate this process, and a clear professional report often speeds up a decision from the insurer considerably.


Book an inspection as soon as possible. Do not wait for the weather to improve by several weeks. Further rain on an already-damaged roof can turn a manageable repair into a much larger job.



How Emergency and Follow-Up Repairs Work with M&C


Once you have made the property safe and started the documentation process, the repair itself can begin. We handle storm damage in two stages, and understanding this helps you plan.


Emergency weatherproofing comes first. If there is an active breach in the roof, the priority is stopping water from getting in while a full assessment takes place. This might mean securing loose tiles, temporarily covering an exposed section, or making safe any flashing that has lifted. Emergency work is not the finished repair. It is a holding measure to protect your home while we plan the proper fix.


A full inspection follows. Once it is safe to do so, one of our team will carry out a thorough inspection of the roof. We look beyond the obvious damage to check whether the storm has weakened anything else. Ridge tiles, valleys, lead flashings around chimneys, and the condition of the felt beneath the tiles all need checking after a significant storm. Homes in rural areas around Bicester, where roofs are more exposed to open-field winds, often have secondary damage that is not immediately visible from the ground.


The repair or replacement is then planned properly. Depending on what we find, you might need targeted roof repair services to a specific section, or in cases where the roof is older and the storm has accelerated existing deterioration, a full replacement might be the more cost-effective long-term answer. We will explain what we find, give you options, and let you make the decision without pressure.


Insurance documentation is part of our process. We know that many homeowners going through storm damage are also managing an insurance claim at the same time. We can provide the written evidence your insurer needs, and we are used to working alongside the claims process rather than around it.


We have been working on Oxfordshire roofs for more than 30 years, and the M&C name has been established for 20 of those. We carry full insurance on all our work and back every job with a written guarantee on workmanship. When a storm has left you in a difficult position, you need a contractor who will give you a straight answer and get on with the job.


Our
roof repair services cover everything from a single lifted tile to sections of roof that have taken serious structural damage. Whatever the storm has left behind, we will tell you exactly what it needs.


If you have storm damage and need a professional eye on it, get in touch with us to book a free, no-obligation inspection and quote. You can reach our
contact page to send an enquiry, or call directly: Bicester 01869 931016, Thame 01844 614317, Oxford 01865 679011, or our emergency line on 07451 293917.



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