UNITED KINGDOM / AGILITYPR.NEWS / October 19, 2026 / With damp and mould cases rising as temperatures drop, the Federation of Damp is urging homeowners not to pay for treatment until they understand exactly what's causing the problem, warning that rushed or unqualified diagnoses are leaving people out of pocket and still living with damp.

The independent training and certification body says it regularly hears from homeowners who were offered treatment before anyone properly explained what was wrong with their property, or who received conflicting diagnoses from different tradespeople looking at the same patch of damp.

The Federation is advising homeowners to watch out for five warning signs before agreeing to any work this winter:

• Treatment offered before the cause is explained. A quote for remedial work with no clear account of what's causing the damp is a red flag.

• Conflicting diagnoses. If one visit says rising damp and another says condensation, something in the process has gone wrong.

• Expensive work pushed through immediately. Reputable surveyors give homeowners time to think, not pressure to sign on the spot.

• Credentials that can't be checked. Anyone can call themselves a damp surveyor - there's no legal requirement for training.

• No clear explanation of findings. A proper inspection should produce a report that sets out what was found and why, not just a verdict.

Sam Fitzgerald, founder of the Federation of Damp, said treatment should never come before a proper investigation. "Treating damp as a repair rather than a diagnosis is the biggest mistake people make. Skip the diagnosis and you're not fixing the problem, you're scheduling its return," he said, adding that the quality of an inspection comes down to process.

"A competent inspection starts with the building, not the mould. It investigates the source rather than describing the symptom, and it produces a report someone else can follow and challenge."

Homeowners can protect themselves by asking three simple questions before any work begins: what damp training the surveyor has completed, whether they belong to an independent body with a complaints process, and whether they can see a previous report the surveyor has written.

To help homeowners find a properly trained, independently certified surveyor, the Federation of Damp maintains a public Find a Specialist register, allowing anyone to check a surveyor's credentials before committing to treatment.

For more information, please visit federationofdamp.co.uk.