Dodgy survey?

Gracie_31

Hi, 
After many years of reading these forums, I'm finally posting a question!
I'm buying a house, a small 1960s detached. I paid for a RICS Level 2 homebuyers report and met the  'surveyor' on site on the day to talk through her findings. After much chasing, I finally have the written report, but it's been compiled by an admin person in the office and signed off by a completely different person with Assoc. RICS after their name. The on-site 'surveyor' who I met does not appear to be registered with RICS and there are a number of discrepancies between what they told me on site and what has been written -e.g damp found in floor, missing air bricks. Also no valuation has materialised.
My questions are: can surveyors deputise surveys like this? Can I claim back the cost and should I then go with another surveyor? The firm is RICS registered.

AdrianC

The survey is produced by the firm, they haven't "deputised" anything.

If there's discrepancies, raise them - but if they're simply discrepancies between the verbal and written report, rather than substantive inaccuracies, it may just be that the verbal report was nowhere near as comprehensive, and was just a precis of the major points.

Valuations are not a given these days, because there's so much volatility. Did you explicitly book one with the survey?

Thrugelmir

What does the survey say about the damp issue? 

Gracie_31

AdrianC said:

The survey is produced by the firm, they haven't "deputised" anything.

If there's discrepancies, raise them - but if they're simply discrepancies between the verbal and written report, rather than substantive inaccuracies, it may just be that the verbal report was nowhere near as comprehensive, and was just a precis of the major points.

Valuations are not a given these days, because there's so much volatility. Did you explicitly book one with the survey?

Well the survey is signed off by someone who says they have carried out the survey - but in actual fact they are 2 counties away and have never set foot in the house. I find that odd. Yes I have paid for and explicitly booked a valuation

Gracie_31

Thrugelmir said:

What does the survey say about the damp issue? 

It says high levels of damp in the floor of one room - an extension.

youth_leader

Have a look at this article, it describes damp in an area with a concrete floor. 

 Managing damp problems in old buildings (heritage-house.org)

Slinky

Our survey said we had damp floors in the extension. The vendor sent in a plumber who reckoned it was condensation from a washing machine, and a water butt outside leaking.

After we moved in we found out it was the old aluminium patio door leaking (for which we couldn't get new seals and had to replace) and water leaking in through the flat roof and running down the outside of the boxed in soil pipe.