Seller-side surveys

If you lock the loft on the day of the buyer’s survey, can you later say the loft passed?

No. If the surveyor could not get in, the loft should be not inspected. NI is not rating 1, and it is not a pass you can advertise. Give safe access if you want the space seen, because a locked hatch does not create a clean bill of health.

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 lock hatches because of storage, alarm sensors or a wobbly ladder. The reason does not change the mark. The Level 3 description allows a ladder to a hatch only where it is no more than three metres and it is safe. If access is unsafe, NI is still the honest result. You cannot fill that gap afterwards by saying the loft was fine when you last stored a suitcase. The buyer’s report describes the inspection they got, not the inspection you meant to allow.

If you can open the hatch safely before they arrive, do that, clear a safe route, and say so. Do not stand below a high hatch and insist they climb. Do not tell the next buyer the roof space was included. There is no RICS rating awarded by default when a door is locked. Other rooms you lock are the same: unseen means unseen. Papers about a loft conversion are still worth handing to the solicitor, and they are still not a substitute for the void being looked at.

What should you ask your surveyor?

If a space is locked, will you mark it NI rather than rating 1?
Was the hatch within the access you are willing to use?
What should the seller open before you arrive if they want it seen?

What are the typical next steps?

Unlock spaces you are willing to have inspected, where access is safe.
Do not describe NI as a satisfactory loft.
Give conversion papers to the solicitor anyway.

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

What if only part of the loft was boarded and seen?

The report should limit itself to what was walked. Do not stretch a view of the hatch across the whole roof.

Can you demand they come back for free because you have now found the key?

A return is a matter for the terms and a new appointment. Do not assume the first fee includes it.