In today’s Property Surveying blog post topic we are going to be discussing party wall surveying procedures and in particular the role of an agreed party wall surveyor.
Through our weekly blog post topics, here at Stokemont we discuss a range of property matters in order to advise our clients and readers.
Before an agreed party wall surveyor can be appointed, both the building owner and the adjoining owner must have concurred and agreed on the selection and appointment of a single party wall surveyor.
This situation will come about whereby the building owner serves a Party Wall Notice on the adjoining owner, with the adjoining owner opting and selecting to dissent that Party Wall Notice.
In dissenting to the Party Wall Notice, the adjoining owner would then be selecting the option whereby they are agreeable to one party wall surveyor acting impartially for both the building owner and the adjoining owner respectively.
Under the legal wording of the Party Wall etc Act 1996, and in particular Section 10, this appointment wouldn’t legally be required to as an agreed party wall surveyor’s appointment.
The exact wording is as below:
Where a dispute arises or is deemed to have arisen between a building owner and an adjoining owner in respect of any matter connected with any work to which this Act relates either
both parties shall concur in the appointment of one surveyor (in this section referred to as an “agreed surveyor”)
Much like a two surveyor role, an agreed party wall surveyor will be in place to resolve any disputes arising from the works, administer the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 and its procedures and ultimately agree a party wall award.
This will not only legally protect the adjoining owner in the event of issues of damage, it will also ensure that the building owner’s works are properly governed and fully accounting for the adjoining owner’s property.
One of the most common questions that we find ourselves asked here at Stokemont, is whether you can have an agreed surveyor without the agreement or consent of the adjoining owner.
The simple answer to this is no, in order to have an agreed surveyor, it must be at the agreement of the adjoining owner, hence the name agreed surveyor.
So what happens if the adjoining owner is agreeable to an agreed surveyor, however wants to use a different surveyor than that the building owner has instructed to serve the Party Wall Notice?
This is an acceptable compromise, and effectively will set out the procedures whereby the adjoining owners may have already had discussions with a party wall surveyor in response to the Party Wall Notice served upon them.
Alternatively, they may also have a surveyor in mind with whom they want to work with in agreeing Party Wall Award that will shortly follow.
Under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 this is considered to be a reasonable compromise, and the way we would advise a building owner looked at this aa good result, as effectively they are still gaining the time and cost efficiencies of an agreed surveyor, albeit a party wall surveyor that the adjoining owner has located and selected.
It is also worth noting that a building owner should bear in mind that an agreed surveyor will act impartially, the best way to describe this is that the surveyor acts for and on behalf of the properties, as opposed to the respective owners.
Understanding that logic, would effectively mean that the surveyor’s role is governed by the wording of the Act, therefore they would not be able to exercise any bias or favour to each of the respective owners.
Party wall surveying procedures can inherently be complicated and difficult to understand, especially if it is the first time you have embarked on the procedures themselves and are unsure about the phraseology, legal referrals and procedures.
If you would like to discuss the surveying procedures with our team or qualified and experienced party wall surveyors here at Stokemont, give us a call today and we will be more than happy to assist and advise you.
Did you know, that we also offer 30 mins advice for free with no strings attached?
To take us up on this offer all you need to do is get in touch, arrange a convenient time to have a telephone conversation, or a video call with one of our surveyors and they will be happy to run you through any specific queries you have or any general queries in respect of any party wall matters.
