Subsidence, settlement and heave
Do monitoring pins, together with paint over the crack, count as evidence on readings this survey did not take, or only as a note of what was visible?
Pins plus paint are not readings. Monitoring pins and paint over a crack show that someone marked the crack and later decorated. They are not the readings this survey did not take. No width change, no dates and no direction of movement were measured on this visit. Paint can hide the edges, so the crack's present shape is partly concealed. The report records pins and paint. It has not decided that movement has stopped, continued or never been real.
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?
Pins or discs are fixed so a later gauge can compare distances. Without the log, the pins are metal on a wall. Paint over the crack may mean the owner thought it was quiet, or may mean the crack was covered for sale. Neither motive is evidence. Fresh paint can also bridge a live crack and tear again, but this visit did not return to see that. The survey has not adopted anyone else's monitoring and has not started its own.
Ask the solicitor for any monitoring sheets, structural engineer's letters and insurance correspondence that belong to the pins. If none arrive, the pins stay unexplained hardware. A specialist can start a new monitoring period if you need a trend. Tell the lender this inspection took no readings and that paint is not a closure letter. Do not treat a tidy painted crack as proof the wall has finished moving.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Were the pins only seen, with no readings taken on this visit?
- Does paint over the crack hide the edges rather than close the movement?
- Are any historic monitoring logs absent from the survey itself?
What are the typical next steps?
- Treat pins and paint as visible notes, not as readings.
- Ask the solicitor for any monitoring log or engineer's letter.
- Tell the lender this visit measured no crack movement.
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
Can old pins be reused without their log?
Not by this survey. Pins only mean something against dated measurements, and those measurements were not taken and were not supplied as part of the inspection. A specialist could set a new baseline. Until then the pins are a note that monitoring may have been started by someone else, not a result you can quote.
Does decorating over a crack count as a repair?
No. Paint covers the line. It does not stitch masonry, underpin a foundation or record whether the crack is still opening. The survey saw paint and did not take readings. Ask the solicitor if a builder's invoice or a guarantee exists for actual structural work. Decoration on its own is not that paper.