These terms apply to every inspection, report and advisory service we provide. By booking, you accept them.
1. Who we are
Antipodean Building Services Lda, NIF 517 418 657, IMPIC Alvará n.º 109726-PAR, registered in Portugal. Contact: admin@antipodeanporto.net, +351 969 718 294.
2. What an inspection is
An inspection is a visual, non-destructive examination of the property on the day of the visit, limited to the parts that can be reached and seen safely at that time. We use thermal imaging and moisture metering where they help. We do not open up walls, floors or ceilings, lift fitted coverings, move furniture or stored goods, or test anything that would need dismantling or specialist equipment.
3. Roofs
We do not go onto, into or across a roof as part of a standard inspection. Roof coverings are looked at from ground level, from windows, balconies and neighbouring vantage points, from inside accessible roof spaces, and from a drone where one is flown and the weather allows. We access a roof only where two things are both in place: the property owner has given specific written permission for it, and the client has specifically requested it. Even then, we go up only where it is safe to do so on the day; the decision is ours and is final.
Older roofs, and roofs with poor or no safe access (no hatch, no fixed ladder, fragile tiles, steep pitches, no edge protection), are not accessed under any circumstances during a standard inspection. Where a roof cannot be seen properly from the vantage points available, the report will say so, and we will recommend a roofer’s inspection with proper access equipment before you commit. Concealed defects in coverings, flashings, membranes, valleys and gutters may not be visible from ground or drone level, and where the underside of a roof is lined or the roof space is closed, the structure and any membrane cannot be inspected.
4. What an inspection is not
The report is not a structural engineer’s certificate, a valuation, a survey of boundaries or title, a legal or planning opinion, an energy certificate, a pest or timber-treatment report, or a guarantee of the property’s condition. Electrical, gas, plumbing and drainage systems are checked visually and by simple operation, not certified. Where we recommend a specialist, that is part of the advice.
5. Costs in the report
Indicative repair costs are budget ranges, ex IVA, based on our experience of the local market on the date of the report. They are for weighing up the purchase, not for procuring the works. Prices from contractors will differ.
6. Booking, access and payment
The inspection is confirmed once we have agreed a date and the fee. You arrange access with the seller or agent, including keys, alarms, and entry to every floor, roof space, basement, garage and outbuilding. If access is not available on the day, we inspect what we can and the report will list what was not seen; a return visit is charged at our current rate. If we arrive and cannot enter at all, the visit is charged at 50% of the fee plus travel. Fees are quoted ex IVA and invoiced on booking; the report is released on payment. Bookings cancelled with less than 48 hours’ notice are charged at 50%.
7. Who may rely on the report
The report is prepared for the client named on it, for their own decision about that property, and may not be passed to, relied on or used by any other person without our written consent. It is not addressed to sellers, agents, lenders or later buyers, and we owe them no duty.
8. How long it holds
The report describes the property as it was on the day of inspection. Buildings change, weather changes them, and works may be done after we leave. Do not rely on a report for a decision more than six months after the inspection date without asking us first.
9. Our liability
We carry out every inspection with reasonable care and skill. Our liability to you for any claim arising from an inspection or report, however arising, is limited to the fee paid for that service. We are not liable for defects that were not visible or accessible on the day, for the accuracy of information supplied by others (sellers, agents, documents), for indicative costs, or for indirect or consequential loss. Nothing in these terms limits liability that cannot be limited by law.
10. Complaints
Tell us in writing within 30 days of receiving the report and we will look at it again. A report is not a defect because a later specialist finds something concealed at the time.
11. Confidentiality and data
We keep your details and your report confidential and hold them only as long as needed to provide the service and meet our legal obligations. We do not sell or share client data. Photographs taken during the inspection belong to us and are used only for your report and, with identifying details removed, for our own records and training.
12. Advisory and management services
Property Advisory, handover inspections, project management and build oversight are provided under a written proposal that sets out the scope, fee and programme. These terms apply to them except where that proposal says otherwise.
13. Law
These terms are governed by Portuguese law. Any dispute is subject to the courts of Porto. Consumers keep every right the law gives them that these terms cannot exclude.
Version 1, 29 September 2026. These terms may be updated; the version on the site at the time of booking applies. Versão em português.