UK Home & Property Guides

Flat illustration of a homeowner standing at their front door checking a tradesperson's identity card against an official register on their phone, with a shield, a certificate and a large search panel behind them.

How to Check a Builder Is Registered in the UK (and Why There's No Builder's Licence to Check)

There is no builder's licence in the UK. See which register applies to your job, how to check it free, and the certificate you should be given.

September 11, 2026 · 19 min read

Flat vector illustration of a homeowner standing beside an open round inspection cover in their garden, a low fence and open gate marking the property edge, and a water company worker in a high-visibility tabard holding a drain rod beside a larger cover set into the pavement, with a dashed pipe running from the house wall under the fence to the pavement cover.

Who Is Responsible for a Blocked Drain? Where Your Pipe Ends and Your Water Company's Begins

Your water company owns more of your drainage than you think. Here is where your pipe ends, who pays to clear a blockage, and how the rules differ across the UK.

September 8, 2026 · 14 min read

A homeowner holding an open electrical condition report with a magnifier, and an electrician beside an open consumer unit, with dotted lines running from three rows of the report to three markers on the floor labelled must fix and optional.

Your EICR Came Back Unsatisfactory: What C1, C2 and FI Mean, and What You Actually Have to Fix

An EICR fails on C1 or C2; FI depends on the BS 7671 edition used. What you must fix, England's 28 day rule, and the £40,000 maximum penalty.

September 4, 2026 · 15 min read

Flat illustration of a homeowner holding a grant checklist beside a house with a wall-mounted heat pump unit and an oil storage tank, an MCS installer waving on the right, and a calendar marked 120-day lookback before a properly made application.

Do You Qualify for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme? The £7,500 Grant, the £9,000 Off-Gas Rate, and What Rules You Out

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme takes £7,500 off a heat pump, or £9,000 off-gas until 31 March 2027. Check the rules for your home, your nation and your heating.

September 1, 2026 · 17 min read

Flat vector illustration of a cutaway house wall on a ground line, with a homeowner holding a clipboard on the left and a surveyor kneeling at the base of the wall taking a sample on the right. Three dotted blue routes converge on the wall: one rising from below the ground line, one arriving through a downpipe outside, and one drifting from the room air. A magnifier hovers over the brick courses at the wall base, beside a raised garden bed that bridges them, and short labels read RISING, PENETRATING, CONDENSATION and CHECK FIRST.

Do You Really Need Damp Proofing? What the Survey Has to Prove Before You Pay for a Damp-Proof Course

Rising damp is the least common damp the English Housing Survey records. Here is what a damp report must prove before you pay for a damp-proof course.

August 25, 2026 · 15 min read

Flat vector illustration of a homeowner at a kitchen table calmly sorting an evidence folder, with a stalled part-built wall, a stepladder and an unplugged power tool behind, and three dotted routes running to a payment card, a small court building and a shield, labelled evidence pack, card claim, court claim and report it.

Builder Took Your Money and Disappeared? The Four Routes to Getting It Back in the UK

If a builder has taken your money and vanished, your route back depends on how you paid and which UK nation you're in. Here is the order to work through.

August 18, 2026 · 15 min read