Age and type of house
Is a crown post, together with the collar, any evidence on a peg the conversion has cut, or only a note of what was visible?
It is only a note of what was visible. A crown post and a collar are roof timbers the surveyor could name. Together they are not evidence that the conversion has cut a peg. A peg is a small timber fixing, and a cut peg is a particular alteration. Unless the report describes a severed peg, the sentence is carpentry identification, not a finding that someone has cut the joint. The survey has not taken the joint apart, and it has not decided that the conversion weakened the roof.
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 crown post stands on a tie beam and rises toward the collar. Pegs often lock those joints, but they sit inside the timber. Seeing the post and the collar shows that the old arrangement is still there to be looked at. It does not show whether a peg is missing, sliced by a new ceiling, or still holding. A conversion can pass hatches and pipes through this frame. The visit recorded the members in view. It did not dismantle a joint to hunt for a cut peg.
If the wording does not describe a cut face on a peg, do not tell the solicitor that the conversion has severed one. Ask whether any photograph shows a cut fixing, and keep the crown post and collar as identification. A carpenter used to historic roofs can say whether a particular peg is cut, and what that does to the joint, only after looking. The survey has not made that judgement. Do not assume the conversion is harmless either. The note simply does not prove a cut peg.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Did you see a peg that had been cut, or only the crown post and the collar?
- Which joints were hidden by insulation or by a new ceiling?
- Was any empty peg hole written down, or is that outside this note?
What are the typical next steps?
- Read the sentence as carpentry seen, not as a proved cut peg.
- Ask whether any peg was actually described as cut.
- If a cut peg would change your view, have a historic-roof carpenter inspect that joint.
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 naming a crown post mean the roof was left untouched?
No. Naming a crown post and a collar records a roof form that was visible. It does not date every piece, and it does not say the conversion left every joint alone. The survey has not tested the pegs. Treat the sentence as identification of what could be seen, not as a history of later cuts.
Is the collar still tying the rafters?
Not from this note alone. The collar was seen with the crown post. Whether it still ties the rafters depends on the joints and the pegs, which were not tested. The survey has not decided the collar is redundant, and it has not decided it is fully effective. That question stays open.