New builds and warranties
A boundary fence is missing on a new plot. Is that fence one of the specific parts NHBC describes for the insurance years after year two?
Not automatically. A missing boundary fence on a new plot is a gap you can see. NHBC's later insurance years, the eight after the builder period, cover damage from defects in specific parts only, not every snag and not every missing item. Nothing on this page promotes a fence into that list. Read the policy wording, and do not ask the survey to reclassify the fence as a structural part.
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?
The first two years are different from the later eight, and the distinction is the whole point of the question. While the builder is liable, and NHBC guarantees that obligation, a missing fence is something to raise with the builder against the specification. After that opening period, Buildmark's insurance is not a second snagging list. It responds, on NHBC's description, to damage from defects in specific parts only. This page does not name those parts beyond that phrase, does not state a minimum claim, and does not say which day the ten years began. A fence that was never put up is a missing item. It is not, by that fact alone, insured damage to a specific part.
Look at the plot specification and the boundary plan with the solicitor, and tell the builder while the early route is still open if it is. The survey can record that the fence line is bare. Recording a gap is not a decision that years three to ten will pay for panels, posts and gates. If the warranty is not NHBC, do not use this split at all. Another provider is not Buildmark. Either way, the condition comment stays a comment about what was not there.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Did you record the missing fence as absent, rather than as an insured part?
- Are you leaving the list of specific parts to the policy wording?
- Is the early builder route the one to use while it is still open?
What are the typical next steps?
- Tell the builder about the missing fence against the specification.
- Read the policy before you call the fence a later-years insurance part.
- Do not ask the surveyor to reclassify the gap as structure.
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 fence is named in the brochure, does year five pay for it?
Not automatically. A brochure line is not NHBC's list of specific parts, and a missing fence is not automatically insured damage.
Does a rating on the boundary make the fence a structural part?
No. A rating describes what was seen or missing. It does not edit the policy.