A snagging report template needs a header (site, date, inspector, conditions), a scope and limits note, a summary by severity, then defects with a reference, location, caption, severity, responsible trade and photo number. AI can draft the photo captions from your notes, but the inspector must verify every item before the report goes out.
The order that helps the builder is severity first and room second, because a loose balcony rail should not sit on page nine behind a paint scuff. Keep one master list and sort it two ways, rather than writing one document for walking the house and another for sending it.
One list, two views: walk order for you, severity for the builder
An inspector walks a house room by room, because that is how you avoid missing a cupboard. A builder fixes by trade and urgency, because that is how the work gets scheduled. Those two orders are not the same, and forcing one document to serve both either buries the urgent items or makes the walk-round chaotic.
The fix is a single spreadsheet, the master log, where every defect is one row. While you inspect, you add rows in walk order. When you report, you sort the same rows by severity, then by room. Nothing is retyped, and the two views can never disagree about how many items there are. A snagging list is also called a punch list in some places, and the same structure works under either name.
The sections of the report, in the order the builder reads them
The table below is the template. Each section earns its place by answering a question the builder or buyer will otherwise ask you.
| Section | What it contains | Why it sits there |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Header block | Site or plot, date and time, inspector, who attended, weather and light, access arrangements | Light and weather change what you can see, so they belong on record |
| 2. Scope and limits | Visual, non-intrusive inspection; what you checked and how; what you did not | Stops the report being read as a guarantee of everything |
| 3. Summary and urgent items | Counts by severity and by room, then every severity 1 and 2 item in a short list | The reader who stops after one page still sees what matters |
| 4. Defects in severity order | Each item with reference, location, caption, photo number, responsible trade and target date, severity 1 first | This is the builder's work list |
| 5. Room-by-room log | The same items in walk order, as an appendix | Lets the buyer check their own rooms off |
| 6. Photo schedule | Photo numbers with captions | One place to see the evidence without paging through the log |
| 7. Not inspected or not accessible | Areas, systems and appliances you could not check, with the reason | Protects you from defects in places you never saw |
| 8. Sign-off and re-inspection log | Inspector's name, date, status of each item at each visit | Turns a list into a closing-out record |
The second section is the one most templates omit and the one that protects you. A line such as "Visual, non-intrusive inspection of accessible areas on the date shown; items listed under section 7 were not accessible" costs nothing and heads off a dispute about the loft you never entered.
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Buy nowFour severity levels, with response targets to agree in advance
Severity is a classification you make, not a measurement the camera gives you, so define the levels before the inspection and share them with the builder. Four are enough for most homes. The targets below are illustrative; agree real ones in the contract, because a target the builder never accepted is only a wish.
| Level | What belongs here | Typical snag | Illustrative target |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Make safe now | Risk of injury or serious damage if left | Loose balcony rail, dead smoke alarm, unsecured glazing | Same day, with a phone call |
| 2. Weather and structure | Water entering or likely to, or movement you cannot call minor | Missing shower sealant, ceiling stain below a bathroom, open flashing | Within 7 days |
| 3. Function | Something that does not work as it should | Window that will not close, dead socket, extractor not running | Within 28 days |
| 4. Finish | Appearance and minor workmanship | Paint patches, mitre gaps, scratches, chipped tile | Before handover, or an agreed period after |
Two rules keep the levels honest. A caption describes what you see; the level records what it could lead to, and the two should not be mixed in one sentence. And any level 1 item is telephoned to the site manager the same day, so it never waits for the report to be typed.
The defect log: columns that earn their place, with ten filled rows
Ten columns do the work: reference, room, element, caption, severity, responsible trade, photo number, target date, status and verified-by. The reference should encode the room (BTH-01 for the first bathroom item), so a number quoted on the phone points straight to a place. The table shows ten illustrative rows from a new-build house, sorted into report order.
| Ref | Where | Caption | Level | Trade |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EXT-01 | Rear balcony | Balustrade, rear: top rail moves by hand at left post | 1 | Carpenter |
| HAL-01 | Hall ceiling | Smoke alarm, hall: no indicator light and no response to test button | 1 | Electrician |
| BTH-01 | Bathroom 1 | Shower tray, bathroom 1: no sealant along tray-to-tile joint, approx. 900 mm | 2 | Tiler |
| BED2-01 | Bedroom 2 ceiling | Ceiling, bedroom 2: brown stain approx. 300 mm across, below bathroom; dry to touch | 2 | Plumber to investigate |
| KIT-02 | Kitchen | Socket above worktop, left of hob: no power when tested | 3 | Electrician |
| LIV-01 | Living room, north window | Casement window: does not close fully, gap approx. 3 mm at top corner | 3 | Joiner |
| BTH-02 | Bathroom 1 | Extractor fan, bathroom 1: does not run when light is switched on | 3 | Electrician |
| EXT-02 | Front elevation | Render: hairline crack from window head upwards, approx. 1.2 m | 3 | Plasterer |
| HAL-02 | Hall | Skirting, hall: open mitre approx. 4 mm, left of front door | 4 | Joiner |
| BED1-01 | Bedroom 1 wall | Wall, bedroom 1: roller marks and a missed patch about A4 size, left of window | 4 | Decorator |
Look at the captions as a set. Each starts with the element and place, states one observation, and gives a size only where the inspector measured one. None says why the defect happened, who is to blame or what it will cost. That restraint is what makes a caption safe to send and easy to audit, and it is exactly what an AI draft needs to be told to do.
A caption formula the AI can follow, and the rules that stop invention
The pattern is: element, location, then what is visible, then the extent if you gave one. Your note carries the facts the photo cannot, such as a measurement or the fact that a stain is dry. The prompt below turns that pattern into rules.
I am a snagging inspector. For each photo I attach I will also give a short note with the room, element and anything I measured.
Write one caption per photo, maximum 25 words, in this pattern: Element, location: what is visible, extent if given.
Rules: describe only what is visible in the photo or stated in my note. Do not state causes, blame, cost or severity. Do not invent measurements; use approx. only where my note does. If the photo does not show the defect clearly, write NOT CLEAR and say what extra shot would help.
Return a table: Photo file name | Caption | Confidence (High or Check).
I will verify every caption myself.Three details in that prompt do most of the work. The file name column lets you match each caption to its photo. The NOT CLEAR instruction gives the assistant a way out other than guessing. And the Confidence column is a courtesy to yourself: Check rows get your attention first, though you will read all of them.
Upload six photos at a time, not forty. Large batches are where captions drift onto the wrong photo, as the fifth example below shows, and six thumbnails are easy to check against six captions on one screen.
Five captions: what the AI wrote and what the inspector changed
The examples below are illustrative, but each failure is an ordinary one. The first draft is the AI's; the last column is what the inspector sent.
| Inspector's note | AI draft | Sent | What went wrong |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bath 1, shower tray edge, no sealant, 900 mm | Shower tray, bathroom 1: no sealant along the tray-to-tile joint, approx. 900 mm. | Unchanged | Nothing: it matches the photo and the note |
| Bed 2 ceiling stain, 300 mm, dry | Ceiling, bedroom 2: brown water damage from a leaking pipe above. | Ceiling, bedroom 2: brown stain approx. 300 mm across, dry to touch. | It invented a cause the photo cannot show, and dropped the size and the dry note |
| Balcony rail loose at left post | Balustrade, rear balcony: top rail loose at left post, risk of structural failure. | Balustrade, rear: top rail moves by hand at left post. | It slipped into an engineering judgement; the severity level carries the consequence |
| No note, one blurred window photo | Window frame, living room: paint defect and gap at corner. | Casement window, living room: gap approx. 3 mm at top corner when closed (after a re-shot). | It guessed two defects from one poor image; NOT CLEAR was the right answer |
| Batch of twelve photos | Caption 7 attached to photo 8 | Captions matched to file names, rerun in batches of six | Order drifted in a large batch; caught only because the file-name column was checked against the thumbnails |
Row 2 is the most common failure, because a stain looks like a leak and an assistant happily says so. Row 3 is the most costly if it slips through, since "structural failure" in a caption can start an argument that a plain description would not. Plan on editing every draft. Some will pass untouched, and that is a bonus, not the norm.
The time effect is easy to estimate, so measure it. If 46 captions take two minutes each by hand, that is 92 minutes in all. With a draft and a check at about 45 seconds each, it is 34.5 minutes, a saving of 57.5 minutes. Those timings are illustrative, and the check is the part you cannot shorten.
A walk through 46 snags: counts, summary table and front paragraph
After a walk round a three-bedroom new-build house, an inspector's log holds 46 items. Sorted for the report, the summary page opens with a count by room and severity, so the builder sees where the work is concentrated before reading a single caption.
| Room | Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Level 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kitchen | 0 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 9 |
| Living room | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| Hall and stairs | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Bathroom | 0 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| En-suite | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Bedroom 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Bedroom 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Bedroom 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Exterior | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 7 |
| Total | 2 | 7 | 17 | 20 | 46 |
Check the table's own arithmetic before it goes in: the rows add to 46, the columns add to 2, 7, 17 and 20, and the total of the column totals matches the row total. A spreadsheet does this for you, which is another reason to keep the master log there. The two level 1 items, the hall smoke alarm and the balcony rail, were telephoned to the site manager on the day, and the report records the call.
The summary paragraph on the front is a good job for the assistant, because it is text built from numbers you have already checked.
Using only these counts, write a three-sentence summary for the front of a snagging report. State the totals by severity level, name the rooms with the most items, and list the level 1 items. Do not give opinions about the quality of the build.
Counts: level 1 = 2, level 2 = 7, level 3 = 17, level 4 = 20. Most items: kitchen 9, bathroom 8, exterior 7. Level 1 items: HAL-01 smoke alarm, EXT-01 balcony rail.A reply might read: "Forty-six items were recorded: 2 at level 1, 7 at level 2, 17 at level 3 and 20 at level 4. The kitchen has the most items (9), followed by the bathroom (8) and the exterior (7). The two level 1 items are the hall smoke alarm (HAL-01) and the rear balcony rail (EXT-01), which were reported to the site manager by phone on the day." The fixing is short. Check the numbers against the table. And the clause about the phone call is a fact you never gave it, so either make it true, which is the better course, or delete it. If the reply adds a verdict such as "the build quality is below standard", delete that too.
Writing the not-inspected lines that protect you
Section 7 is short and valuable. For each area or system you could not check, write what was not done, why, and what should happen next. A reader should be able to tell the difference between "nothing wrong" and "not looked at".
- Loft: not accessed, hatch painted shut. To be inspected once the hatch is freed.
- Behind fitted wardrobes in bedrooms 1 and 2: walls not visible, wardrobes in place.
- Oven and hob: not powered at the time of inspection, so function was not tested.
- Heating: system not commissioned, radiators not tested.
- Roof and chimney: viewed from ground level only.
Each line states a fact and a limit and makes no promise. If the assistant tidies these for you, check that it has not turned "not tested" into "no defects found", which is a different statement and one a buyer will rely on.
Ten checks before the report leaves your hands
The verification step is where the inspector's name goes on the work, so it is worth a fixed list. Run it in this order, because the early checks make the later ones faster.
- Caption against photo. Read every caption beside its photo, one at a time, using the file name column.
- Judgement words. Search the text for caused, due to, because, poor, negligent, unsafe, structural and non-compliant. Each one needs a reason to stay, and usually it has none.
- Numbers. Every size in a caption must come from your note or your tape, never from the assistant.
- Names and references. Room names are consistent (Bedroom 1, not "master" in one place) and each reference is unique.
- Counts. The summary totals equal the rows in the log, and the columns add up.
- Level 1 items. Each has been phoned through, with the time and the person recorded.
- Severity. You set every level, not the assistant.
- Photos. Cropped or blurred so no people, documents, screens or house numbers show.
- Scope sections. Scope and limits, and not-inspected items, are completed.
- Sign-off line. It carries your name and the date.
Inspection date: [date] Report date: [date]
Inspector: [name]
Every item, caption and severity level in this report has been checked by the inspector against the photographs and site notes.
Captions were drafted with AI assistance from inspector notes and photographs, then verified item by item.
Items not inspected are listed in section 7.On the privacy of the photos, photographs taken inside an occupied home can show people, post, screens and valuables. Crop before you upload, and use a business plan whose data settings you have read. The main assistants' business plans say they do not train on business content by default, but terms change, so read the current ones.
Re-inspection: closing items without trusting the AI
A snag list earns its money at the second visit. Give each item a status that records who said what: Open; Fixed (claimed), meaning the trade says it is done; Verified closed, meaning you have seen it; Disputed; and Not accessible. Only the inspector can set Verified closed, and that rule is the whole point of the column.
The assistant can help with the wording of a closing caption, but not with the decision. Give it the original caption and the new photo and use a prompt like this.
Here is the original caption for item BTH-01 and a new photo taken at re-inspection. If the photo shows the defect is still present, say so. If it looks rectified, write: Appears rectified. Do not write verified or closed. Do not mention any cause.The instruction not to write "verified" matters, because "verified closed" is your professional statement and an assistant has no standing to make it. A good closing caption, once you have confirmed it in person, reads: "Shower tray, bathroom 1: sealant now continuous along tray-to-tile joint; verified on re-inspection [date]."
If you are comparing approaches to the same task, writing an architect's snagging list from site photos covers the site-photo side, and client updates and snag lists for builders covers the communication that follows. A painter's version, ending in a signature, is in snag lists and final walkthrough sign-off for a painting business. For the wording of repeated comments, building a comment library for inspection reports is useful, and the handover pack checklist and photos, voice notes and punch lists in the field cover what surrounds the report.
Snagging report questions from inspectors
Can AI write snagging photo captions?
Yes, for the wording. Give it the photo plus a short note with the room, element and any measurement, and ask for one plain caption per photo. It should describe only what is visible or in your note. The inspector still verifies every caption, because assistants invent causes, sizes and severity.
What order should a snagging report be in?
Severity first for the builder, so safety and water items come before cosmetic ones, with a room-by-room log as the working record behind it. Keep one master list and sort it two ways rather than writing two separate documents.
How many severity levels should a snag list have?
Four is enough for most homes: make safe now, weather and structure, function, and finish. More levels slow decisions, and fewer mix a loose handrail with a paint scuff. Agree the levels and response targets with the builder before the inspection starts.
Should I send photos of an occupied home to a chat assistant?
Only what the caption needs. Crop out people, documents, screens and valuables, avoid showing house numbers, and use a business plan whose data settings you have read. Business plans of the main assistants say they do not train on business content by default, but read the current terms.
Who decides a snag is fixed?
The inspector, on re-inspection, never the assistant and not the trade's own note alone. Record the date and initials, and use a closing caption such as Rectified; verified on re-inspection. If you could not see it, mark it Not accessible, not closed.
Further reads
- Glide Mobile App Builder: A Snag List Photo App for a Building Firm — A mobile snag-list app for a building firm, built without code.
- Mould Inspection Report Template: Findings, Photos and Limits With AI — Another inspection report: findings, photos and stated limits.
- Roof Inspection Reports: Photos to a Customer-Ready Report With AI — From roof photos to a customer-ready report.
- Water Heater Installation Checklist: Photo Proof and Handover Pack With AI — Photo proof and a handover pack for an installation.
- AI for Electrical Project Management: Diaries, RFIs, Snag Lists — Site diaries, RFIs and snag lists for electrical work.
- AV Installation Checklist: Commissioning Tests and Punch List With AI — A commissioning checklist and punch list for AV installs.
- Construction Final Account: Variations, Deductions and Sign-Off With AI — A worked small-job final account with variations, deductions and retention, plus an AI-drafted cover letter and the client sign-off checklist.
- Construction Retainage: Track It and Chase Release With AI Reminders — A retention ledger by job, release triggers that start the clock, and AI-written reminder emails that quote your contract and stay polite.
- Damp Survey Report: Write Findings and Quote Lines With AI — Turn readings and site notes into a clear damp report and quote lines in ChatGPT or Claude, while the surveyor keeps the diagnosis and checks every line.
- Handyman Checklist Template: Job Sheets and Sign-Off With AI — A copy-ready handyman checklist: tasks, photos, sign-off wording and a snag list, with AI prompts that build a version for each type of job.
- How to Use Google AI Form Builder for a Builder's Site Visit Checklist — A walkthrough for a small building firm: draft a site visit checklist with Gemini in Google Forms, add sections and photo fields, and link a response sheet.
- Practical Completion Certificate: What Each Clause Means, Then an AI Draft — Each clause of a practical completion certificate in plain English, a filled-in kitchen extension example, and an AI draft you check against the contract.
- Sewer Camera Inspection Reports: From Defect List to Customer Summary — How a drain survey firm turns coded camera findings into a customer summary with AI, with a prompt, a worked defect list and the surveyor's checks.
- Solar Installation Quality Checklist: Sort Photo Evidence With AI — A 32-shot solar photo checklist, a sorting prompt with a sample result, and the checks that keep commissioning tests in your hands.
- Workmanship Warranty: Exclusions to Draft With AI, Then a Solicitor Check — A bathroom fitter's warranty built from its own callback log: exclusions in plain words, claim steps, sample decisions and a solicitor-check pack.
- Thermal Imaging Survey Report: Turn Scans Into Plain-English Findings — How a thermal imaging surveyor writes captions, conditions and a limits statement, uses AI to draft from structured notes and reviews every finding.
- AI Tools and AI Development: The Complete 2026 Guide — the AI hub, including every tutorial in the AI-for-business series.
Sources: general inspection-report practice; no vendor pricing is quoted. Severity levels, response targets, counts and sample captions are illustrative. The privacy note reflects what the main assistants' business plans say about training on business content; read the current terms of your plan.