Electrics and gas

Should you ask for service records even though the survey did not test the appliances?

Yes. Records show whether anyone has serviced the boiler, the fire or the heating, and what they found. They do not replace a test. They stop you treating a silent survey as a service history.

Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.

What is the fuller explanation?

Ask the solicitor to request boiler services, any Gas Safe records, electrical certificates, and the date of any rewire. The surveyor will not have chased those papers as part of a visual inspection. Missing papers do not prove a defect. They prove you do not have the history. That is still worth knowing before you rely on an ageing boiler.

If the papers show a fault that was never cleared, put that next to the survey. You may then want a Gas Safe visit or an electrician. If the papers show a regular service and the survey saw nothing alarming, you may decide that is enough. Say so deliberately. Do not confuse “no papers” with “failed test”.

What should you ask your surveyor?

Which appliances did you see, so I know which records to request?
Did the seller leave any certificates on the kitchen table that you read?
What limits should I put on the words “the surveyor did not test this” when I write to the solicitor?

What are the typical next steps?

Ask for the records through the solicitor, not in a side conversation you then forget.
If a recorded fault matches a survey comment, book the relevant specialist.
If there are no records, decide whether you want your own inspection. The decision is yours.

Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.

Also asked about this

Does a digital service app count?

Yes if you can see the engineer, the date and the findings. A reminder sticker with no name is weaker. Keep what you are given.

Should the price change because papers are missing?

Only if you choose to negotiate on that uncertainty. There is no schedule that says a missing service record is worth a set sum.