Removal of chimney breast

ck7ah

I am in the process of purchasing a property, a semi detached house. I have noticed that the chimney breasts have been removed upstairs and downstairs however the vendor has no documentation from building control to say they have been done correctly. The vendor has admitted he did the work about 8 years ago.
I have also contacted the local council and they are not aware either.
Anyway, the vendor has contacted the council to get a building regulations certificate. Without this, I am reluctant to exchange.
What will the building inspector do to ensure they are ok or will a structural engineer need to visit and check?
This is the only thing that is stopping me from exchanging.

G_M

Could take a while.
And a SE may need to strip away plaster etc to see what's behind and holding up (or not) the chimney above.
I'm surprised the seller is going down this potentially disruptive route....

ck7ah

I was surprised, I raised it and initially he didn't admit to doing the work but then he finally did and he said it was all legit but has lost the paperwork.
I am thinking of doing a loft conversion and I am not sure how this could affect it hence making sure my back is covered.
I believe that the estate agent convinced him to do it and he believes he can get a certificate by middle of next week!

sevenhills

ck7ah wrote: »

I was surprised, I raised it and initially he didn't admit to doing the work but then he finally did and he said it was all legit but has lost the paperwork.

If he did it himself, what paperwork is he talking about?

daivid

sevenhills wrote: »

If he did it himself, what paperwork is he talking about?

Building control sign off? Though I would be doubtful if he initially denied having done the work at all...

Davesnave

sevenhills wrote: »

If he did it himself, what paperwork is he talking about?

OP was probably speaking generally, as in, "We did the new bathroom last year," when in reality a plumber was employed.

But it's unlikely he has simply lost paperwork in the form of calculations from a SE, which is what's required for building regs. They're substantial and don't come on the back of fag packets nowadays.

There ought to be a substantial RSJ up there somewhere and it might be visible in the loft. Gallows brackets are also a possibility.

I'm guessing, but if visible, a SE could look, give a nod and a wink to the BCO and paperwork might follow fairly swiftly ,but it's a long shot!

ck7ah

I mean he was the owner of the property when the chimney breasts were removed by builders he must have hired.
He doesn't have any paperwork like structural reports or building reg sign off.
This leads me to believe that it might not have been done properly but only time will tell.

G_M

ck7ah wrote: »

I was surprised, I raised it and initially he didn't admit to doing the work but then he finally did and he said it was all legit but has lost the paperwork.

Oh well that's OK then. If the paperwork was originally obtained, but he lost it, Building Control will have it on file..... :rotfl:

Mutton_Geoff

Take a builder and look in the loft, should be fairly easy to determine what sort of job has been done. Or knock £5k off the price to put it right.

ck7ah

G_M wrote: »

Oh well that's OK then. If the paperwork was originally obtained, but he lost it, Building Control will have it on file..... :rotfl:

the issue here is that building control at the local council are not aware of him removing his chimneys, hence why they need to send a building inspector around.
The vendor claims he cannot find any paperwork relating to the removal, which i find a little dodgy

ck7ah

Mutton_Geoff wrote: »

Take a builder and look in the loft, should be fairly easy to determine what sort of job has been done. Or knock £5k off the price to put it right.

Is it just the loft that would need to be checked, nothing else?