Whether you’re facing difficulties with a mortgage application, property sale, or survey, our experienced team provides expert advice and professional solutions tailored to your property. We pride ourselves on delivering a reliable, hassle-free service with the highest standards of workmanship from start to finish.
As well as specialist spray foam removal, we offer a range of professional roofing services to restore, repair, and protect your roof once the insulation has been removed.
Our skilled team is committed to providing quality workmanship and excellent customer service.
Contact Foam Free Lofts today for a free, no-obligation quote and let us help protect the value and integrity of your home.
NATION WIDE COVERAGE
Wherever you are in the UK, we’re here to help. Our nationwide team specialises in spray foam insulation removal, offering expert surveys, professional removal, and certification for homeowners across the country.
Trusted experts in spray foam insulation removal with the knowledge to resolve even the most complex cases.
Professional spray foam removal and certification for homeowners across the UK.
Clear, practical guidance with recommendations tailored to your property and your needs.
Whether you’re looking to resolve mortgage issues caused by spray foam, improve your home’s energy efficiency, or make more use of your loft space, our expert team delivers high-quality, long-lasting results tailored to your home.
Safe and professional removal of spray foam insulation to resolve mortgage, ventilation, and structural concerns—restoring your loft to a surveyor compliant, breathable condition.
We know that finding spray foam in your roof is stressful. Our goal is to fix the problem with total transparency.
Whether you need safe access to your loft, improved insulation to reduce heat loss, or durable boarding to create practical storage space, professional loft improvements can turn an unused roof area into a clean, secure, and functional part of your home.
We understand that unlocking your loft space should be simple and stress-free.
If spray foam insulation is making it difficult to sell your property, we can help. Our specialist spray foam removal service ensures your home meets lender and survey requirements, helping to remove barriers that could be affecting your sale. We make the process straightforward, helping you move forward with confidence.
Spray foam insulation can sometimes trap moisture and restrict ventilation, leading to damp-related issues in your roof space. Our expert removal service addresses these problems at the source, helping to restore proper airflow and protect your roof.
Spray foam insulation is a liquid plastic material that is sprayed onto a surface, where it expands and hardens into a solid foam. In UK homes, it is most commonly applied to the underside of pitched roofs, covering and filling the spaces between and over the timber rafters.
Spray polyurethane foam (SPF), also known as PU foam or simply spray foam, is created on-site by combining two liquid chemicals. When mixed and applied, they react immediately, expanding and curing within seconds to form a solid insulating layer.
According to the RICS consumer guide, the combined chemicals can expand by around 60 times their original volume, and in some cases up to 100 times. It is typically applied at depths of up to 300mm. As it expands, the foam adheres firmly to the surface it is sprayed onto, filling gaps and creating a continuous layer of insulation.
While it is most commonly used in roof spaces, spray foam can also be applied to walls and floors. The Property Care Association estimates that approximately 250,000 UK homes currently have spray foam roof insulation (House of Commons Library, CBP-10658).
Having spray foam insulation in your roof can reduce the number of potential buyers, particularly those who need a mortgage. Some lenders are reluctant to lend on properties with spray foam insulation, and surveyors may highlight its presence during the buying process. As a result, property sales can be delayed or even fall through once the survey has been completed.
Although this can present challenges, you still have several options. Cash buyers may be willing to proceed, although they may take the potential cost of removal into account when making an offer.
If you have documentation relating to the installation, along with an independent survey carried out in line with Property Care Association (PCA) guidance, this can help reassure buyers and their lenders.
Where spray foam insulation is preventing a sale, professional removal may be the most practical solution.
Spray foam insulation does not automatically prevent a property from being sold with a mortgage, but it can reduce the range of lenders willing to offer finance. Guidance from industry sources, including the House of Commons Library and RICS, indicates that the issue is not about the property being “unmortgageable”, but rather that it may fall outside certain lenders’ lending criteria.
The key issue for lenders is inspection access. Once spray foam has been applied to roof timbers, it can obscure the structure and make it difficult for surveyors to carry out a full visual assessment. RICS notes that when timber elements are covered in spray foam, they cannot be properly seen or inspected. This lack of visibility introduces uncertainty, which leads some lenders to take a more cautious stance rather than assuming there is a defect.
However, this is not a one-size-fits-all situation. The way a lender views a property will depend on several factors, including the type of foam used, how it was installed, the roof construction, and whether there is supporting documentation or evidence of condition. In cases where the installation is well understood and the roof has been professionally assessed, some lenders may still proceed with a mortgage offer.
It is also worth addressing a common misconception that almost all lenders refuse properties with spray foam insulation. In reality, lending decisions are more nuanced, and outcomes vary between lenders and individual cases. The situation is far from absolute, and many properties are still able to be financed where sufficient evidence is provided.
Because of this variability, the most reliable approach is to obtain a specialist assessment. This gives both buyers and lenders clearer information and helps reduce uncertainty during the sales process.
Most homeowners did not actively seek out spray foam insulation; in many cases, it was recommended or sold to them as an upgrade at the time.
It was commonly promoted as a way to reduce heat loss and lower energy bills, offering what was presented as a quick thermal improvement. It was also used in loft conversions to create a “warm roof” system, and in some cases applied to older roofs to help stabilise coverings, particularly where closed-cell foam was used to hold loose or slipping tiles in place.
Wider adoption was also influenced by government policy and financial incentives. Spray foam insulation qualified for schemes such as the Green Homes Grant (2020–2021) and, in certain circumstances, benefited from VAT relief, which contributed to increased uptake.
Based on a BBC survey of the UK’s 20 largest lenders (November 2024), mortgage policies towards spray foam insulation vary significantly. It’s important to treat this as a snapshot in time, as lending criteria can change, and individual decisions should always be confirmed directly with a lender or qualified mortgage adviser.
Lenders that typically decline properties with spray foam in the roof space
Some lenders reported a general policy of not lending where spray foam insulation is present in the roof structure. These included TSB, Skipton Building Society, The Co-operative Bank, Principality, and equity release provider Aviva.
Lenders that may decline depending on extent or condition
Others may take a more restrictive view where large amounts of spray foam are present, with decisions influenced by the scale and impact of the installation. This includes lenders such as Yorkshire Building Society and Metro Bank, where outcomes can depend on the individual case.
Lenders that assess applications case by case
A number of major lenders, including Lloyds, Nationwide, Barclays, NatWest Group, and Santander, are more likely to review each application individually. In these cases, the final decision is typically based on the surveyor’s report and supporting evidence provided.
It’s important to note that “case by case” does not guarantee approval. It simply means the decision is not automatic and will depend on the findings of the valuation and the information available about the property.
Lenders may also be more comfortable where spray foam was part of the original building specification, such as in a new-build property or an approved loft conversion, rather than a later retrofit installation.
Source BBC News: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cqjrpv218r0o
