In this week’s Property Surveying blog post, we are going to be looking at party wall procedures and in particular whether a party wall surveyor is needed and necessary.
This is by far one of the most common questions that we find ourselves asked here at Stokemont and generally speaking tends to be from a building owner in advance of commencing their proposed construction works.
Building owners will naturally want to undertake a number of cost saving exercises during the course of their proposed works. One of the most common ways in which we tend to see a building owner attempting to do this is to try and avoid the party wall procedures, or attempt to gain a positive party wall notice response from their adjoining owner and neighbour.
Under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, a building owner has a legal duty and responsibility to serve a Party Wall Notice upon an adjoining owner in advance of the proposed works commencing.
In response to that Party Wall Notice, the adjoining owner has the legal right to appoint a party wall surveyor on their behalf, with that party wall surveyor acting to administer the Party Wall Act and also ensure that the risks associated with the works are as low as they can be.
The party wall surveyor’s role will be far and wide, however will include;
- Reviewing the building owner’s construction works from the perspective of the adjoining owner’s property;
- Assessing any risk associated with those works, to ensure that they are as low as they can be;
- Requesting any drawing amendments or additions in order to best safeguard the adjoining owner’s property;
- Requesting any contractor method statements in order to ensure that the adjoining owner’s structure has been fully taken into account;
- Requesting any specific drawings or details from the architect or designer to ensure that the adjoining owner’s property has been fully considered;
- Undertaking a Schedule of Condition report of the adjoining owner’s property in advance of the building owner’s construction works commencing;
- Agreeing a Party Wall Award to legally protect the adjoining owner in the event of any issue of damage;
- Undertaking a post work inspection once the construction works are finished to ensure that there is no damage to the adjoining owner’s property.
Whether a party wall surveyor is appointed or not is wholly down to the adjoining owner and their chosen Party Wall Notice response. It is worth noting that the response is intended to be made free from bias or prejudice from the building owner themselves.
Here at Stokemont, we often see that in many cases a building owner can be somewhat surprised or put off by the fact that the adjoining owner wants to dissent the Party Wall Notice and appoint a party wall surveyor.
We advise that a building owner consider the overall works from the perspective of the neighbouring property and ultimately take into account that an adjoining owner dissenting to Party Wall Notice is usually nothing more than them wanting the full protections that the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 affords them.
As set out above, these protections are comprehensive and wide, and ultimately ensure that the adjoining owner is not left in a position whereby they are potentially out of pocket, their property is damaged, the nuisance associated with the works is higher than it should be, and that they have the full legal protection that the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 affords them.
For an adjoining owner whose property is likely to be affected by the building owner’s proposed works, we would advise fully considering your neighbour’s works both in the short and long term.
Short term, in so far as you will want to ensure that the contractors take into account any concerns that you may have, while also ensuring that the drawings and proposals are reflective of your property and structure thereby reducing the chances of any risk in that regard.
Long term, you will want to ensure that there are not going to be any future issue or damage associated with the works, in almost all cases a good experienced and qualified party wall surveyor will be able to confirm that and ultimately safeguard you in the form of the Party Wall Award.
If you are planning on undertaking construction works to your property and you would like to discuss how our qualified and experienced party wall surveyors can be of assistance to you, give us a call today and we will be more than happy to discuss your project, requirements and what sets us apart from our competitors.
Equally, if your neighbour is planning on undertaking works to their property and you have concerns above and beyond that of planning, give our team of qualified and experienced party wall surveyors a call and we will be more than happy to discuss your concerns and best advise you in that regard.
