Roofs and flat roofs
Felt is torn around a squirrel nest. Has daylight through that tear been confirmed from outside?
Daylight through that tear has not been confirmed from outside. The felt is torn around a squirrel nest, so there is a hole in the underlay, but nobody lined that hole up with sky from the tiles. The survey can record the tear and the nest. It has not lifted the covering or matched the rip to a gap above. Squirrels can tear felt while the covering still looks intact from the ground. The report records the damage it could see. It has not decided that rain is already coming through that exact tear.
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?
Felt is the underlay beneath tiles or slates. A tear around a nest is a rip in that layer where animals have pulled the sheet. Daylight would mean a path through the covering as well as the felt, and that path was not confirmed from outside. The nest itself can block the view, so a dark loft does not prove the tiles are whole, and a bright spot was not recorded. The survey stopped at what could be seen without stripping the roof.
Ask the solicitor to raise the torn felt and the nest with the seller, and whether any roofer has already looked. A roofing contractor can lift the covering around the nest and see whether weather has a real path. That opening-up is not this survey. Tell a lender the defect is a recorded tear, not a proved leak through a named gap. Do not describe the whole roof as failed because one nest was seen.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Was daylight through the tear confirmed from outside, or only the rip in the felt?
- Did anyone lift tiles or slates around the squirrel nest?
- Has a leak through that exact tear been decided, or only damage recorded?
What are the typical next steps?
- Treat the tear as recorded damage, not as proved daylight.
- Ask the seller whether a roofer has already seen the nest.
- Instruct a roofing contractor if the covering must be lifted.
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
Does a nest in the felt mean tiles above are missing?
Not from this visit. A squirrel can tear underlay beneath covering that still looks continuous. The survey did not lift tiles or slates around the nest and did not match the rip to a gap. Missing tiles would be a separate observation. The report has not decided the covering is open, only that the felt is torn beside the nest.
Should the solicitor call the tear a proved leak in the replies?
No. The solicitor can pass on the survey note and ask the seller what they know. The note is torn felt around a nest, not a test that rain comes through it. A proved leak would need a traced path or clear water entry. That was not established from outside. Keep the reply factual and do not upgrade the tear into a measured leak.