Non-standard construction
Should the survey name a frame it could not see because the brochure names one?
No. A brochure, a neighbour’s house or a decade is not a frame the surveyor saw. The report should name a frame only where it could see it, and it should say unseen where it could not. Copying the sales description into the construction line is not an inspection.
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?
Sellers inherit names. Some are right and some were marketing. The Level 1 scope does not include removing secured panels, and a home survey does not open walls as a matter of course. If the only evidence is the brochure, the honest construction line is that the system was not identified on site. A more detailed survey of an unusual building still has that limit unless something was visible.
You can hand the surveyor the brochure before they visit so they know what to look for. You cannot ask them, afterwards, to adopt it against their own eyes. Lenders ask what the building is. The accurate answer is the sentence the surveyor will stand behind. Do not improve it. If identification matters, agree a way to see the frame. Do not knock a hole before exchange.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- What frame, if any, did you see with your own eyes?
- Will you keep the brochure name out of the report if you did not confirm it?
- Which elevations are simply unknown?
What are the typical next steps?
- Give the lender the survey’s words, not the advert.
- If the frame must be identified, agree access. Do not invent the name.
- Do not treat a neighbour’s repair certificate as this house’s certificate.
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 “non-traditional” without a name mean the survey failed?
No. It means a name was not established. Ask what was seen, and what was not.
Can the estate agent correct the construction line?
They can pass papers to your solicitor. They cannot replace the inspection.