Swansea sits in the path of pretty much every wet, gusty system that rolls in off the Atlantic. Mumbles, Gowerton, Killay, Sketty — wherever you are in the borough, fences here see weather most parts of the country never even hear about. So when a storm rolls through and yours doesn't make it, you're in good company. The trick is what you do next.
1. First — make sure nothing's actually dangerous
Before you start measuring or phoning round, take a slow walk along the line and check for the obvious hazards. Snapped post stumps with concrete still attached are heavy and sharp. Loose panels can move in the next gust. Anything dangling from height — a broken trellis topper, a bit of capping — needs to come down before it falls on a child or a pet.
If a panel has gone over towards a neighbour, knock the door before you start moving things. It saves an awkward conversation later, and it means they can move their bins or shed contents out of the way before you start tidying.
Power lines or live cabling?If a fence has come down on or near anything electrical — a streetlight stay, a meter box, a buried armoured cable — leave it alone and call the energy network. Fence fixing comes after the safety call, every time.
2. Photograph everything before you tidy
If you might claim on home insurance, every photo you take in those first few hours is worth its weight. We'd suggest:
- A wide shot of the whole run, so the insurer can see the scale
- One close-up of each broken post, panel or rail
- The base of any post that's snapped off — they'll want to see whether it failed at the timber or pulled the concrete
- Anything that came down with it — capping, trellis, gravel boards
- A quick phone clip walking the line, narrating what you see
Take more than you think you need. Memory cards are free; arguments with insurers are not.
3. Don't burn the broken bits yet
It's tempting to chop everything up for the firepit and start fresh. Resist for 48 hours — your insurer or a fencing contractor (ideally us, but in any case someone) may need to see what failed and how. A snapped 100 mm post tells a different story to a panel that simply lifted out of its slots, and the difference matters when it comes to whether you need a like-for-like replacement or a heavier-duty rebuild.
4. Phone before 4 pm
This isn't a marketing line — it's how the day actually works. We come back to the yard around 4 pm to load the van for tomorrow. If we hear from you before then, there's a good chance we can swing past on the way home for a free measure-and-quote, and have the materials with us first thing the next morning.
After 4 pm we usually can't see you the same day, but we can usually fit a survey in the next morning and start work later in the week.
Storm took our back fence down in November. JP came round next day, quoted on the spot, and had three new panels and two posts in by the weekend. Tidy, polite, fair price.
5. What we usually find when we get there
Most "the fence is down" calls fall into one of four buckets. Knowing which one you're in helps set expectations on cost and turnaround.
Lifted panels, posts intact
Lap or feather-edge panels can lift clean out of concrete-post slots in a strong gust without breaking the post itself. This is the cheapest fix — usually a same-day swap with the panels we keep stocked, and you're sorted before tea.
Snapped post, panels reusable
Timber posts that have rotted at ground level often go in a storm even if the panels are sound. We'll dig out the old stub and concrete, set a new post (we tend to fit concrete posts on storm-damage jobs to give you a one-and-done fix), and re-hang what we can.
Whole run twisted out of true
Sometimes a long run takes a body-shot from the wind and goes over together — three or four panels and the posts between them. This is more work, but still typically a 1–2 day job for a 6–8 metre stretch. We can usually quote on the day and start within the same week.
Tree on the fence
If a neighbour's tree or one of yours has come down across the line, the fence is the easy bit. The tree has to go first (a tree surgeon, not us) and only then can we see what's actually salvageable underneath.
6. What we'll bring on the day
For a typical Swansea storm-damage call we load the van with: 100 mm concrete or treated timber posts, gravel boards, a stock of feather-edge panels, capping rails, fixings, post mix, and a digger if access allows. The whole point is no second trip to the merchant — when we're there, we're there.
If you've got a particularly unusual fence — slatted contemporary, hit-and-miss, painted picket — let us know on the phone so we can pick up matching stock on the way.
7. Insurance-friendly invoicing
If you're claiming, we'll itemise the invoice in plain English — labour, materials, post mix, disposal — so your insurer can read it without going back and forth. We can also email a copy directly to a loss adjuster if you give us their address.
One thing worth knowing: most home policies cover storm damage to fences only when there are accompanying signs of high winds in the area (trees down, roof damage nearby, a Met Office named storm in the headlines). A fence that "just fell over on a quiet day" usually isn't covered. If you're not sure, claim anyway and let the insurer decide.
What it'll cost (rough idea)
Every job is slightly different, but as a rough order-of-magnitude:
- One panel swap, posts already in place: a small job — usually well under £150 fitted.
- One panel + one post: low-to-mid hundreds.
- Three panels + two posts (a typical "back-fence-down" job): mid-hundreds, usually finished in a single visit.
- Full new run after major damage: quoted by the metre, includes breaking out and disposing of the old line.
These are ballpark figures — the on-site survey is free and the quote is fixed before any work starts. No "while we're here" surprises.
Got a fence down right now?
Call us before 4 pm and we'll usually visit the same week — survey, quote on the day, repair as fast as the weather lets us.
Call 07931 691696