New builds and warranties
A movement joint in the new brickwork has been pointed across so it cannot move. What is that joint for, and what crack has the pointing not prevented yet?
The joint is there to let the new brickwork move, and the crack it has not prevented is one that has not formed yet. Pointing across a movement joint fills the gap that was meant to open and close. The survey has recorded that the joint can no longer move. It has not reported a crack caused by that filling, because the note is the blocked joint, not a fracture already mapped on the wall. Locking the gap stores the problem for later movement. NHBC describes Buildmark as a 10-year warranty and insurance product. The survey has not opened a claim.
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?
Long runs of new brick are given movement joints so shrinkage and temperature change do not tear the wall at random. The joint should stay soft, often with a sealant, not ordinary pointing. Pointing across it makes the wall continuous again. Later movement then has to crack brick or mortar somewhere, or crack the filled joint. The survey saw the pointing. It did not predict where a crack will show, and it did not cut the mortar out.
Tell the developer the movement joint has been pointed solid and needs to be reinstated so it can move. Ask the solicitor which warranty applies to a filled joint in new brickwork. NHBC describes Buildmark as a 10-year warranty and insurance product. The survey does not open a claim. Do not wait for a crack and then call the crack the only defect. The defect already recorded is the joint that cannot do its job.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Where has the movement joint been pointed across?
- What is that joint for, in the note you made?
- Has a crack from the filled joint not been recorded yet?
What are the typical next steps?
- Treat the filled joint as unable to move, not as a crack already mapped.
- Tell the developer the movement joint needs to work again.
- Do not call the survey a warranty claim.
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 brick courses are still straight, has the joint survived?
Straight courses show that nothing has cracked out of line yet. They do not show a working movement joint. The survey saw the joint pointed across so it cannot move. Alignment today has not prevented a later crack, and it has not opened the mortar. The note remains the filled joint. The survey has not opened a warranty claim.
Should every joint on the estate be raked out?
Not from this note. The finding is one movement joint in this brickwork, pointed across. The survey has not inspected every joint on the estate, and it has not said they are all filled. Reinstating the joint that was seen is the point. Clearing joints elsewhere is not what the report described, and no claim has been opened.