How can I avoid paying for an unecessary mundic test?

Thrugelmir

Section62 said:

Foxgloves_2 said:

The house is mainly granite construction from the early 1800's but it has a kitchen extension that we understand was built in the 1970's or 80's.

I was just wondering what has triggered the lender's request/demand? Is it just the location?

Be the locally sourced materials that were used in the construction. 

cajef

Mundic block was used extensively in Cornwall in the early part of last century.

What was the mundic block used for in Cornwall?

It refers to a historic building material that was particularly popular in Cornwall between around 1900-1950 1952, which used waste materials from nearby mines as a concrete aggregate (“mundic” is simply the Cornish word for mine waste). It was fairly common in those times for concrete to be mixed locally, using the materials that were at hand.

Section62

Thrugelmir said:

Be the locally sourced materials that were used in the construction. 

cajef said:

Mundic block was used extensively in Cornwall in the early part of last century.

Yes, but the question is what has triggered the requirement for a test in this case.

Is it because a survey has identified construction techniques used in the property which strongly indicate the presence of mundic?

Or is it because a computer algorithm has seen "Cornwall" and "pre-19xx" and concluded a test is required?

Keswick1uk

The problem you will have is that some local block companies didn't stop selling them. 

So we didn't get a mundic test on our house (1956) 30 years ago because we were considered built in the safe era. However,  in the past 30 years its found some builds much later used these blocks. 

So, some lenders could get jittery with pretty much any historic date build.  

Just do it.  Annoying but youll presumably have it on file for the future if your sale is lost, as you've paid for it.

Jaybee_16

Having Googled this term as I'd never heard of it, I would also want these tests if I was a purchaser.

Ramouth

Foxgloves_2 said:

Thanks Ramouth. Next question is, where could I find such maps? I'm thinking maybe Kresen Kernow could help.

Their website does seem quite good but the photos might not be modern enough.  Google would be my first point of call.  Your local library may have historic ordinance survey maps which will show the outline of the house.  They do update to show extensions now but I’m not sure how accurate they were pre digitalisation.

anselld

Surely this is like any other test, report or survey, ie buyer wants, buyer pays.  Or in this case buyer's lender wants, buyer pays.

Section62

Ramouth said:

Your local library may have historic ordinance survey maps which will show the outline of the house.  They do update to show extensions now but I’m not sure how accurate they were pre digitalisation.

As per my earlier post, the answer is they aren't.

And the absence or presence of a line on an Ordnance Survey map doesn't prove or disprove anything.  The outline of the house could exclude the extension because the cartographer didn't consider it to be a significant deviation from the main part of the house, or if the outline does look the right shape it doesn't mean the thing the cartographer saw was the extension, it could have been a previous building such as a lean-to shed or outside toilet.

The 1:2500 scale maps were comprehensively revised in the early 1970's.  Much of that revision involved new aerial photographs being taken, which the OS also sold on to local authorities and other interested parties.  It is possible the OP would be able to track down a copy of the photos for their area (possibly in the county archives) - which if sufficiently oblique might help identify if the current extension was there on the date of the photograph.

Aerofilms Ltd are another source of UK aerial photographs going back to the 1920's, but it will be pot luck whether or not the OP's house is covered.  Some of Aerofilm's archives have been digitised and published for free access on the Britain from Above website, but it will be even more pot luck if the published ones cover the right area.  http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/


Unfortunately the OP could expend a lot of effort researching this and not come up with a definitive answer. It would be far easier to invite the buyer to pay for the testing themselves, just as they probably would if they wanted a drainage survey, asbestos testing, EICR, or structural survey etc.

sheramber

and the onus is on us to pay for it. 

Who says?

lender?

Your solicitor?

Buyer?

oystercatcher

If I was the buyer, the fact that the OP is trying to avoid the test would look really suspicious so I would just find another property.