New builds and warranties
The new-build fence does not follow the boundary on the plan in the pack. Can the survey redraw the boundary?
No, the survey cannot redraw the boundary where the new-build fence does not follow the plan in the pack. The surveyor can say the fence on the ground and the line on that plan do not agree, if both were looked at. Redrawing the boundary is a title act. It is not a sentence in a home survey. NHBC describes Buildmark as 10-year cover where that policy applies. That description does not move a legal line. The solicitor and the title documents deal with the boundary. The survey does not.
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?
New plots are sold off plans, and fences sometimes follow a later peg rather than the drawing in the pack. Noticing the mismatch is useful. Correcting it on a photocopy is not. The home survey does not edit HM Land Registry and does not substitute a site walk for the plan. If the fence is also a defect in itself, that condition is a separate note from the line it stands on.
Give the solicitor the plan from the pack and the survey note, and ask them what the title shows before anyone moves a post. Do not ask the builder to treat the survey as a redrawn plan, and do not ask NHBC to do it either. A warranty, if you have one, is not a boundary award. Check the plot number so you are not comparing a neighbour's fence with your drawing. The survey has reported a mismatch. It has not redrawn the boundary.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Did you compare the fence you saw with the plan, without moving the line?
- Is the mismatch a report, not a new boundary?
- Which papers should the solicitor use for the title, rather than the survey?
What are the typical next steps?
- Show the solicitor the plan and the fence note together.
- Do not treat the survey as a redrawn boundary.
- Keep the fence's condition separate from the line on the plan.
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 developer agrees the fence is wrong, has the survey redrawn the line?
No. The developer's agreement is theirs alone. The survey still cannot redraw the boundary. The title documents are what the solicitor uses.
Does a 10-year warranty description move the fence?
No. NHBC describes Buildmark as 10-year cover where that policy applies. It does not redraw a boundary, and the survey cannot redraw one either.