Condition ratings
A split in a lead valley was visible from inside the loft. Does that share the rating of the tiles next to it?
No. A split in the lead valley, visible from inside the loft, belongs to the valley, not to the tiles sitting next to it. Those tiles can look even while the lead underneath is open. The rating, if one was given, should name the valley. Do not copy a tile number onto the lead, and do not assume the loft view rated the outer covering.
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?
A lead valley is the lined channel where two slopes meet. A split seen from the loft is a gap in that lining, often with daylight or a stain on the timber beside it. The tiles to either side can still be seated. Their rating, if they have one, is about the covering units. The valley's rating is about the lead. A split that lets weather through can be serious or urgent, which is rating 3, and that is the point at which you should obtain written quotations before you are legally committed. It can also be recorded as a repair that is not yet urgent, which is rating 2. Whichever number is used, it is the valley's number.
Seeing the split from inside does not mean the outer face of every tile was inspected. The loft view is the underside. Concealed lengths of the valley, under a tight crawl or beyond a stored box, are not guaranteed sound, and a part that was not reached should be NI rather than rating 1. The what to do now note advises you. It does not require the seller to replace the neighbouring tile slopes because the lead is split. When you speak to a roofer, name the valley, say it was seen from the loft, and ask them not to price a whole recovering unless they find the tiles failed as well.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Is the rating attached to the lead valley, or to the tiles?
- How much of the valley could you actually see from the loft?
- Is the split serious or urgent, or a repair that can wait?
What are the typical next steps?
- Quote the valley, not the tile slopes, unless the report rates both.
- Do not read a loft view of lead as an inspection of every tile.
- If the split is rating 3, get written quotations before you commit.
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 tiles are rating 1, can the valley still be rating 3?
Yes. The lead can be serious while the tiles need nothing now. Keep the two numbers apart.
Does daylight in the loft automatically rate the whole roof?
No. Daylight at a valley is that opening. It does not regrade slopes the surveyor found intact.