Electrics and gas
A ground-source borehole cap is set in the driveway. Did the visit inspect the hole, or only the cap?
Only the cap. A ground-source borehole cap is set in the driveway, and the visit inspected that surface fitting, not the hole beneath it. The surveyor did not enter the borehole, measure its depth, test the ground loop or sample what seals it. What is below the cap is unknown from this attendance. The report can say a cap is there and where it sits. It has not certified the ground array and has not inspected the hole.
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?
The cap is the visible end of a ground-source circuit that otherwise stays buried. Looking at the cover tells you the driveway fitting exists and whether it is damaged, proud or incomplete at the surface. It does not tell you the loop is continuous, the bore is sound, or the array matches the heat pump indoors. The home survey did not test heat-pump efficiency. Approved Document L is energy-performance guidance for building work, and seeing a cap does not issue a building-regulations certificate for the borehole.
Ask the solicitor for the borehole log, the as-installed drawing and any commissioning record, and keep them separate from this look at the cap. A specialist would have to inspect the ground side if you need the hole known. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is a grant route in England and Wales toward a heat pump or biomass boiler, not in Scotland or Northern Ireland. This survey has not decided eligibility and has not quoted a grant. The visit stopped at the fitting in the driveway.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Where in the driveway is the borehole cap described?
- What below the cap does the report say was not entered?
- Does any borehole log appear in the papers the survey relied on?
What are the typical next steps?
- Treat the visit as an inspection of the cap only.
- Ask for the borehole log and commissioning record.
- Do not describe the ground array as surveyed.
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 warm house prove the borehole was inspected?
No. Heat indoors, if the system was running, does not mean the hole was inspected. The visit saw the cap in the driveway and did not enter the borehole or test the ground loop. Performance was not measured. A working system on the day would still leave the hole itself uninspected.
Has the survey decided the borehole qualifies for a grant?
No. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is a grant route in England and Wales toward a heat pump or biomass boiler, not in Scotland or Northern Ireland. The survey does not decide eligibility and has not quoted a grant. Inspecting the cap is not an application. The hole under the driveway cap remains uninspected.