New builds and warranties
A cavity closer is missing at one new window reveal and the snagging list is about scuffed paint. Why do those notes not belong on one list?
They do not belong on one list because a missing cavity closer and scuffed paint are different kinds of note. The closer is the piece that should shut the cavity at the window reveal. Its absence is a building detail the survey recorded at one opening. Scuffed paint is a finish item on a snagging list. Putting the closer on the paint list invites someone to treat a cavity detail as a decoration mark. NHBC describes Buildmark as a 10-year warranty and insurance product. The survey has not opened a claim, and the snagging list has not become one either.
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?
A cavity closer shuts the open edge of the cavity at a reveal, limiting a cold edge and a moisture path at that jamb. Missing at one new window, it is local to that opening, not a comment on every window. A snagging list collects finish items, and scuffed paint belongs there. A closer does not. The survey saw the gap at the reveal. It did not repaint anything, and it did not file a warranty claim.
Write to the developer about the missing closer as a construction item at that reveal, separate from the scuffed paint. Ask the solicitor how the warranty policy sits against a missing closer, and which policy it is. Buildmark is what NHBC describes as a 10-year warranty and insurance product. This survey does not open the claim. Leave the paint on the snagging list if you want it dealt with as a finish. Do not let that list swallow the reveal.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Which window reveal is missing the cavity closer?
- Have you kept that note off the scuffed-paint snagging list?
- Was the closer absent, rather than hidden behind a finish you could see past?
What are the typical next steps?
- Keep the missing closer off the paint snagging list.
- Tell the developer in writing about that reveal.
- Ask which warranty applies, without treating the survey as a claim.
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 the glass is clean, is the closer present?
No. Clean glass is the pane, not the cavity at the jamb. The survey recorded a missing closer at one new reveal. A clear view through the window does not put that piece back. Scuffed paint elsewhere is still a different list. The survey has not opened a warranty claim, and a tidy pane does not close the gap.
Should the whole house be resnagged because one closer is missing?
Not from this note alone. The missing closer is one reveal. The survey has not said every opening lacks a closer, and it has not opened a warranty claim. Scuffed paint stays a finish item. Deal with the reveal that was recorded. Do not inflate one gap into a whole-house resnag unless a later inspection finds more.