Roofs and flat roofs
A rooflight was seen only from the room below and the flashing kit was not visible in the loft. What weather joint is unverified?
The weather joint between the rooflight and the roof covering is unverified. The rooflight was seen only from the room below, and the flashing kit was not visible in the loft. From the room you see glass, lining, and perhaps a stain. You do not see the upstand, the soakers, or the proprietary flashing that joins the frame to the tiles or slates. That joint is the weathering. It was not in the loft either, so the survey has not inspected it. A view of the glass is not a view of the joint.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
Rooflight flashings sit on the roof slope, outside the warm room and often above the line the loft ceiling lets you see. If the kit is not visible from the loft, nobody on this visit looked at the apron, the side flashings, or the overlap with the covering. The survey did not walk the roof to do it. Leaks at that joint can miss the glass entirely and appear in the slope beside the opening. None of that was checked. The report should say the rooflight was seen from below.
Ask the surveyor to confirm the flashing kit was outside the inspection, and instruct a roofer to look at the joint from the roof if the purchase depends on that opening. A dry ceiling under the glass does not close the gap. Tell the solicitor the weather joint is unverified. The home survey did not see it from the room and did not see it in the loft.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- What of the rooflight could you see from the room below?
- Was the flashing kit visible anywhere in the loft?
- Did you leave the weather joint unverified rather than passed?
What are the typical next steps?
- Treat the rooflight note as a view from the room, not from the roof.
- Record the flashing kit as unseen.
- Ask a roofer to inspect the weather joint if that opening matters.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
If the glass is modern, is the flashing kit modern too?
Modern glass dates the pane you saw from the room, not a kit you did not see. The flashing was not visible in the loft, so the weather joint is unverified. A new rooflight can sit in an old or a disturbed flashing. The survey has not made that distinction because the joint was never in view.
Does an unstained loft around the opening clear the joint?
No. The flashing kit was not visible, so the loft stain, or the lack of one, is not an inspection of the joint. Water can track away from the opening before it marks the timber the surveyor could see. The weather joint stays unverified. A clean patch of loft is not a flashing.