Condition ratings
Fitted carpets were not lifted and the floors are marked not inspected. What floor defect has that limit not ruled out?
That limit has not ruled out a floor defect under the carpets. Fitted carpets were not lifted, and the floors are marked not inspected. NI means not inspected, not a pass. Rot, insect damage, a failed board, or a dip you cannot feel through a thick carpet can all sit under a covering the surveyor left in place. Rating 1, no repair currently needed, was not given, and you should not add it. The mark is the limit of the inspection. It has not cleared the floors.
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?
RICS home surveys do not promise that fitted coverings come up. Where they stay down, the floors section should say so, and NI is how that is marked rather than by pretending the boards were seen. A springy feel at the carpet is not a joist inspection. A solid feel is not a pass. The survey did not see the boards, the sleeper walls, or the underside, except where an edge or a loose section actually allowed it, and only the report can say if any such edge existed.
Ask the surveyor which floors, if any, were seen at the edges and which are wholly NI. If the purchase depends on the floors, arrange for carpets to be lifted and for a further look, rather than reading NI as rating 1. Tell the solicitor the floor structure was not inspected. Do not let a seller’s assurance about new carpets become a rating the survey withheld.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Which floors were marked NI because carpets were not lifted?
- Did you see any board at an edge, or was the covering complete?
- What defects under the carpet has NI deliberately not ruled out?
What are the typical next steps?
- Read floor NI as not inspected, not as a sound floor.
- Ask which edges, if any, were actually seen.
- Lift carpets for a further look if the floors are important to you.
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
If there is no bounce in the carpet, are the joists sound?
No bounce is a feeling through a carpet that was not lifted. The floors are marked NI, and NI means not inspected, not a pass. Joists under the covering were not seen, so they were not given rating 1. A firm tread has not ruled out decay or a poor board. The limit stands.
Does NI here also mean the floor was a rating 3 risk?
No. Rating 3 means serious and/or urgent repair, replacement or investigation, and the survey did not give that rating either. NI is not a disguised rating 3 and not a disguised rating 1. It means the floors under the fitted carpets were not inspected. Concern, if the surveyor has one, has to be written in words. Do not invent the number.