Prove the state of your home before construction next door

If cracks appear after excavation and piling start next door, the builder will first say “those cracks were old”. The answer is a dated record made before the work began.

Before the work starts

1. Photograph the walls facing the site, inside and out, corner to corner.
2. Shoot every existing crack up close, with a tape measure and a note showing the date.
3. Film doors and windows opening and closing smoothly.
4. Do not forget the basement, foundations, garden wall and floor finishes.

Prove it and notify

Prove everything in one pack on the File Proof page. Email the photos and proof files to the builder and your building management, which also records that they knew the starting state.

While work continues

At each key stage (excavation, piling, frame) shoot the same angles and make a new pack. A new crack shows clearly as the difference between two dates.

Where serious damage is likely, you can also ask a court for an official inspection; this record supports it and can be made immediately.

5 common mistakes

1. Sending the photo on WhatsApp as a “photo”. The app compresses it, so the copy received no longer matches. Send it as a “document/file”.
2. Editing the original. Cropping, filters or re-saving create a new file. Leave the original untouched.
3. Waiting to prove it. A proof carries the date you take it. Prove the photo on the day you shoot it.
4. Keeping the .ots in one place only. Lose the phone and you lose the date. Email it to yourself or put it in the cloud.
5. Not telling the other side. Sending the proof that day also records that they were informed.

A message you can send

“Hello, attached are the photos I took at today's handover and their dated proof files. Anyone can check that these files existed in this exact form today at gepara.com/dosya-kaniti.html or at opentimestamps.org.”

The next day: one check

Bitcoin confirmation arrives within a few hours. The next day, drop the file and the .ots on the Check tab; for important matters keep a screenshot of the result. More: How it works · FAQ.

More guides

• How to protect your rental deposit with dated photos
• How to prove you created it first (song, design, writing)
• How to avoid car rental damage disputes
• A dated record of your home before an earthquake, flood or fire
• How to prove a parcel arrived damaged or incomplete