What to Do When Your Roof Is Leaking (Emergency Checklist)

It's 11pm, the rain is hammering down and water is dripping from the ceiling. Here's exactly what to do in the next five minutes.

Step 1 — Move and cover

Move furniture, rugs and electronics out from under the drip. Lay down towels and a bucket. If water is collecting in a bulge in the ceiling, place a bucket under it then carefully puncture the bulge with a screwdriver — controlled release is far better than the whole ceiling letting go at 3am.

Step 2 — Turn off the electrics if water is near a fitting

If water is dripping near a light fitting, ceiling rose, or down a wall with sockets, switch off the affected circuit at the consumer unit. Don't touch any switch the water has reached.

Step 3 — Get into the loft

Take a torch up and try to trace where the water is coming through. It's almost never directly above the drip — water runs along beams and felt before finding a low point. If you can see where it's entering, place a bucket up there too and put down old towels to soak the rafters.

Step 4 — Don't go on the roof

We can't stress this enough. More people are killed every year falling off roofs than working on them. Wait for a professional. A tarp thrown over a roof in the dark, in the rain, by an untrained person is a hospital trip waiting to happen.

Step 5 — Call an emergency roofer

We respond to emergency calls across Essex 7 days a week. Same-day attendance where possible, 7 days a week — temporary make-safe (tarp and batten), then a permanent fix booked in once the weather clears.

Insurance tip

Photograph the leak, the water damage and any fallen tiles before clean-up. If the leak is storm-related, this evidence is what your insurer will pay out on.

Emergency line: 07928 888913 — same-day attendance where possible, 7 days a week across Essex.