Drones are revolutionising property inspections – and this Manchester company is leading the way

We can thank drones for capturing jaw-dropping aerial images of some of the world’s most stunning – and in some cases hard to reach – places.

But drone photography isn’t just about beautiful pictures. There are in fact many practical uses for this most exciting of media advances.

For Phantom Drone Media, a drone enterprise based in Manchester, one of the key uses for their services is inspections.

The inspections team specialises in generating detailed aerial inspection reports for residential as well as commercial properties, with services including photo, video and 3D mapping analysis.

With fully qualified CAA approved drone pilots and the latest UAV’s featuring 360° collision sensors, PDM can safely create photos and video to show an extraordinary amount of detail – which is ideal if you want to find out more before you make an offer on a new property, for example.

“We can do basically a complete health check on the roof,” says UAV Pilot Joseph Rapacchietta.

“We take photography of each area, then we pull all the media together and we can send it all across to the customer.

“It can be really useful if you’re buying a property, to assist with the surveyor’s report.”

A UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) provides a quick and safe inspection, all being at a very low cost compared to traditional methods such as ladders and scaffolding. 

An average drone inspection can be completed within a few hours, and the media available the same day through Google Drive.

And it’s not just useful for new properties, either, since drones can easily access difficult, out of reach areas on any buildings, even through scaffolding.

“Maybe you’re not buying somewhere new, but you’ve got an older property and you want to get it completely checked over,” says Joseph.

“If you want quotes off builders for repair work, then our media is great for finding out exactly what the problem is.

“A lot of surveyors just use a pole and a little camera, so they can’t get a detailed analysis like we can with a drone.”

The experienced team uses a combination of photography and videography, depending on the size of the property in question – and after receiving your media, you can easily assess your roof for wear and damages. 

“We’ve found several issues using drones that might not have been picked up until much later otherwise, from cracked chimneys to water coming into the loft,” says Joseph.

“It’s not an expensive service – but you really do get peace of mind.”