Do I have to tell my insurer about a new conservatory roof?

Buildings insurance is priced and written around what the building is made of and what it is worth to rebuild. The conservatory roof carries a lot of that picture. Twin-wall polycarbonate, glass and clay or concrete tiles are three quite different things to insure, even if the frame underneath looks identical from the garden.

Most policies also ask you to report changes to the property, and many make that a condition of cover. The exact wording differs from one insurer to the next, so the policy document and the schedule are the only reliable guide. Look for headings such as alterations, extensions, changes to your home or material facts. If the wording is vague, a phone call to the insurer or your broker settles it in a few minutes.

Do the same for any contents policy that mentions the conservatory by name, because some policies treat a conservatory as a separate item with its own limits.

Replacing a worn polycarbonate roof with new polycarbonate is the smallest change. Even then it costs nothing to let the insurer know, and the call tells you whether the conservatory is covered as part of the main building.

Moving to a different type of roof is the change most likely to matter. A glass roof changes the glazing, and a solid roof, whether tiled or a lightweight insulated panel, changes the structure. Homebuilding & Renovating describes a solid replacement as material alteration work, which brings a building control application with it. The frames are being asked to carry more weight, and insurers tend to want to know that someone has checked.

It is also worth mentioning a change of use. A conservatory that becomes a year-round dining room, an office or a bedroom may be rated differently from one that is used as a garden room. Our page on solid conservatory roofs covers what the structural side involves.

Keep the conversation short and specific. These questions cover most of what you need.

• Is the conservatory covered under the main buildings cover, or does it have its own entry on the schedule?
• Does the premium or the cover limit change if the roof is replaced with a different type?
• Do you need a copy of the building control completion certificate, and when?
• Are there any conditions about who carries out the work or how long the roof can be left open or sheeted over?
• Does the policy treat gradual leaking and wear differently from a sudden event?

Ask for the answer by email, or note the date, who answered and what they told you. A verbal reassurance with no record behind it is hard to rely on if a claim comes up years later.

Insurers and, later, surveyors acting for a buyer tend to ask for the same few documents. Gather them while the job is fresh.

• The written quote and the signed agreement, so the scope of work is clear.
• Survey photographs of the existing roof and frame, taken before anything is removed.
• Progress photographs while the roof is open, which show the frame, any strengthening and the fixings that will be hidden afterwards.
• The building control completion certificate where the work needed one. Where a council is the route, Swindon Borough Council runs its own building control team. The alternative is a registered building control approver.
• Any product data sheets and manufacturer details for the glazing or panels.
• Our workmanship guarantee, which runs for 10 years and is given in writing. It is a guarantee from us and is not an insurance policy, so it sits alongside your cover and does not replace it.

A single folder, paper or digital, with these items in date order is enough. It also helps when you sell, because conveyancing questions about conservatory work are common.

If water has already got in, say so when you speak to the insurer, and do not wait for the new roof to be fitted before raising it. The Financial Ombudsman Service explains that insurers look at whether a storm was really behind the damage or whether something else, such as an existing fault, was behind it. A lot of policies exclude slow deterioration and ordinary ageing, and Which? gives a leak through a poorly kept roof as one example of a claim that may fail.

Whether a claim is paid is the insurer's decision, and we do not deal with insurers on your behalf. What we do is stop further water getting in as the first job, then hand you clear photographs and a written description of what we found, which you can pass on if you choose. Our guide to overheating in a conservatory and the page on noisy conservatory roofs show other faults a survey tends to uncover at the same time.

When we survey the roof we photograph the frame, the glazing bars and the existing sheets, and the written quote that follows says what is proposed and why. If a solid or tiled roof is on the table, we explain whether the frame needs strengthening and we deal with the Building Regulations notification when the job needs one, so the completion certificate reaches your folder without being chased later.

For the full picture of how a project runs, see the main conservatory roof replacement page. When you are ready, the number is 01793 626096, with WhatsApp and the enquiry form alongside it. Mention your insurer when you get in touch, so you can put the right questions to them before the work is booked.