Non-standard construction
A suspected Wimpey no-fines wall is dry-lined. What of the concrete has actually been seen?
Only the dry lining, unless a patch was already open. A suspected Wimpey no-fines wall that is plasterboarded hides the concrete itself. The surveyor can describe the lining, the openings and any crack that shows through the finish. They cannot describe density, reinforcement or damp inside concrete they did not expose. No-fines is not a cavity. A gap behind the board, if one exists, was not measured and is not itself a defect.
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?
No-fines concrete is a solid wall cast without the usual coarse stones. It is not two leaves with a cavity, and it is not repaired by the methods people use on a 1930s cavity. Dry lining on battens or dabs hides the concrete face, the original finish and any crack that does not telegraph through the board. The survey can see the board edges at sockets if covers were not removed. Standard inspection does not remove electrical fittings. What remains is a lined room, not a concrete sample.
Keep the word suspected if the concrete was not seen. A seller's memory or a street of similar houses is a clue, not a core. If you need the concrete described, someone has to expose it with permission. Do not instruct cavity-wall insulation as if a cavity had been found. An empty space behind plasterboard is a lining void. It is not proof of a failed wall, and it is not proof of a sound one.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Where, if anywhere, was bare no-fines concrete visible rather than plasterboard?
- Are you calling the wall suspected because the concrete itself was covered?
- Did you remove any socket or panel, or did the lining stay intact?
What are the typical next steps?
- Do not describe a cavity the survey did not find.
- Tell the lender the wall was dry-lined and the concrete was or was not seen, in the survey's words.
- If the concrete must be seen, agree an opening-up visit before exchange.
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
Is dry lining on no-fines a defect by itself?
No. It is a finish. The limit is that the concrete behind it was not examined. Say that, rather than condemning the board.
Can this wall be insulated like an empty 1930s cavity?
Not on this evidence. No-fines is solid concrete. An empty cavity was not identified, and an empty cavity is not itself a defect anyway.