Surveyors Report - Many errors

NeilC1965

We looked at buying a house and had a full structural survey done which cost us around £850. The report came back with many issues reported, so we pulled out of the purchase. The vendor asked to see a copy of the survey which I shared with them. The vendor has then demonstrated to me all of the errors in the survey report which are quite clearly incorrect.(one or two issues are correctly reported , but would not have stopped me from purchasing the property) What right of redress do i have with the surveyor? How do I obtain a refund on the survey for the many errors contained within the report?

Alter_ego

First  a formal written complaint to the surveyor.

lookstraightahead

How was it worded and what type of problems were they? 

princeofpounds

It depends on the precise language used in the report (e.g. 'may be a problem' vs. 'there is a problem' is very different) and what the surveyor could reasonably have assessed (e.g. 'risk of asbestos' may be fair on a visual inspection but the vendor may be able to produce test results to show it is not asbestos, which the surveyor obviously cannot do).

However, the first thing to do is ask for a copy of their complaints policy. Then make an official written complain to the surveyor and ask for a refund. If not satisfactory, you should find they are a member of an alternative dispute resolution scheme like an ombudsman, or you can discuss with RICS (but they will normally refer you back to the relevant ombudsman).

https://www.rics.org/uk/footer/contact-us/concerns/

greatcrested

As above, check the internal complaints process.

But I would also be scepticalabout the vendor's comments too. It's not unusual for for a home-owner/vendor to have a different opinion to a surveyor, and equally it's not unusual for a surveyor to flag up possible issues due to the limits of what can be seen, whereas a vendor may know the property more intimately.

I appreciate you may not wish to reveal details, but if you share relevant bits of the survey report alongside the vendor's comments, we could comment further.

AdrianC

NeilC1965 said:

We looked at buying a house and had a full structural survey done which cost us around £850. The report came back with many issues reported, so we pulled out of the purchase. The vendor asked to see a copy of the survey which I shared with them. The vendor has then demonstrated to me all of the errors in the survey report which are quite clearly incorrect.(one or two issues are correctly reported , but would not have stopped me from purchasing the property) What right of redress do i have with the surveyor? How do I obtain a refund on the survey for the many errors contained within the report?

You're going to have to go some to prove that the surveyor was somehow negligent in finding issues that simply didn't exist, rather than the vendor downplaying them.

What sort of issues are we talking about?

babyblade41

Again it depends how this is worded , it maybe just a jacksy covering exercise like so many other reports and with a slight adjustment on price could bring the sale back together ...but wouldn't take a vendors approach either.

What is stated on the report is important for anyone to give you advice .

I never bother with surveyors as I pretty much know how a property is and always budget accordingly as I only buy older properties 

Hannimal

This is an interesting one, some things are just opinions as well though. Like my full survey said there wasn't enough plug sockets in the kitchen for the number of appliances people keep in kitchens. There are 14 sockets (4 of which for big appliances - fridge/freezer, dishwasher, washing machine and dryer). I've never had that many sockets in a kitchen before and even with a microwave, coffee maker, two smart home devices, kettle, toaster and blender constantly plugged in (sockets not constantly on) there are still sockets left. So I am a bit confused about some of the things that come up in surveys. 

NeilC1965

Thanks for all of your input so far .Here is a list of what was incorrect on the survey .

The surveyors comments in ordinary font , the vendors comments in bold italics : -

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1/ E1 The chimney stacks have delaminating brickwork and loose pointing. Also noted that it is advisable to cap and ventilate any pots that serve redundant flues.

The chimney was rebuilt  two years ago and has no issues with the pointing or bricks delaminating. Additionally there are already capped pots in situ and bird guards fitted on the working flues. The surveyor must have assessed the incorrect chimney .

2/E5 The windows re of uPVC construction, with some timber frames

All of the windows are of Hardwood or engineered redwood . The surveyor then explains what can go wrong with UPVC windows , of which there are none.

3/E5 There is no proper fire escape from the windows to the upper floor . We recommend that you replace some of the windows. 

The property has a velux escape window fitted in the upper floor that allows for egress in the event of a fire. This was a requirement of the building regulations at the time when the loft conversion was done

4/ E6 The front door is of composite construction and the French doors leading off the dining room are of wood effect construction

 All of the doors are of engineered redwood

5/E7 The conservatory is built to a very basic standard . Demolition and reconstruction if required is the most realistic option.

The conservatory was built according to building regs requirements and is of sound construction with only periodical repainting of the hardwood required.Demolition and rebuilding would be a non sensical proposal.

It was built pre FENSA requirements so could not comply with this. All glazing is BSI approved tempered safety glass commonly in use when the conservatory was built.The roof is twin wall polycarbonate sheet.

6/F6 There are no built in cupboards or wardrobes

The house has understair cupboard storage, a walk in wardrobe in Bedroom 2 and built in wardrobes in the master bedroom

7/F9 We recommend that mains powered smoke alarms  and carbon monoxide detectors are now fitted as there are none currently installed.

The house has three mains powered , interlinked smoke alarms , one on each floor, fitted as part of the building regs requirement for the loft conversion. There is also a CO detector on the back of the boiler cupboard door that was visible when the property was inspected.

8/G1 The electrical installation does not not now comply with modern regulations and requires upgrading.

The property had a new electrical safety certificate completed one week before the surveyors visit, clearly showing compliance with the electrical safety requirements. We offered to show this to the surveyor who declined as he said we could have done modifications in the week since it was issued.-Really?? The consumer unit is a Wylex unit that has fuse wire holders not mcb’s . Perfectly acceptable in an installation , but not fitted to new installations anymore

9/G1 The provision of sockets appears inadequate by modern standards.

The house has more sockets in each room than the new build that we are buying, 47 sockets in total, all tested and complying with electrical safety test requirements

10/G2 Gas/oil -Condition rating 3

We have an annual boiler inspection . No request was made to see evidence of this

11/G3 Water . Condition rating 3

Nothing in the report to confirm why this rating has been assessed, only supposition

12/G4 Heating - cannot confirm the system meets the current standards.

We have an annual boiler inspection . No request was made to see evidence of this or to test the system. Central heating system works perfectly

13/Water heating.Condition rating 3

We have an annual boiler inspection . No request was made to see evidence of this or to test the system.Hot water system works perfectly

14/H3 The rear slopes towards the property and there is a risk of surface water ponding.Drainage should be improved 

There is no evidence of this , and it is not a problem in reality, having lived in the property for 32 years , this has never happened. Supposition by the surveyor based on no material facts or evidence to support

So, should I have pulled out from the purchase? Based on the surveyors report , yes, too many concerns/negatives. But having first hand seen the reply from the vendor and having had chance to review again in person , perhaps not.

Thoughts appreciated!

davidmcn

Have you checked the veracity of all of those rebuttals from the vendor?

Also, bear in mind that it's perfectly normal for surveys to recommend you get specialists in to check services, on the basis they're not gas etc experts - they will recommend you consider installations to be suspect until you've done that.

But even if everything there is true, I wouldn't say there's anything which looks all that significant a problem or would make me pull out. The whole point of a survey is to point out all the defects, not to tell you it's a lovely house.

Lespaul1960

If the vendors comments are all correct then I can see no reason to pull out whatsoever.