WHAT IS A DILAPIDATION REPORT?

A Dilapidation report is an inspection and written report, supported with photographs of the condition of a building or adjacent infrastructure that is undertaken prior to work commencing on an adjoining property.

The proposed work can include a new building, alterations to a retaining wall, road works, underground tunneling or demolitions.

Our dilapidation reports are a third party factual record that cannot be refuted.

A thorough and comprehensive inspection and report is undertaken prior to works commencing so that any cracking and or building damage is documented. A final inspection can be undertaken on completion of the works and any changes are documented so remedial work can be undertaken.

Councils can request that a dilapidation report cover areas outside of a building site such as, footpaths, kerbing, and the condition of the road as they are a council asset and any damage must be repaired.

The report documents the condition of a property or building and lists existing damage or cracks.

If a dilapidation report is not undertaken then it will be difficult to verify if damage occurred during construction of the adjoining property .This often leads to frustration in a claim for damages.

On many occasions we have shown a home owner a crack that exists in a building prior to work commencing and they were unaware that it existed and this is where many frustrating attempts are later made for damages as often as the owner becomes aware of the possibility of cracks.

Most Councils now require a dilapidation report as part of their approval processes for a development to commence and it is essential that both a qualified and an independent person is to undertake the inspection. This allows the expert to accurately document the condition of a building and not have any bias towards the owner or developer.