New builds and warranties
A new window is not sealed to the reveal and daylight shows at the jamb. What weather joint is open, and what paint snag has not closed it?
The weather joint between the new window and the reveal is open, and a paint snag has not closed it. Daylight at the jamb means the gap between frame and wall runs through to the outside. The seal that should keep weather out of that joint is missing or incomplete. Paint on the frame or the reveal is a different item. Colour on a list does not fill a gap you can see through. The survey has recorded the open joint. NHBC describes Buildmark as a 10-year warranty and insurance product. This survey does not open 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?
The joint at a reveal is a weather joint: the line where the frame meets the opening, finished so wind and rain do not blow past the jamb. Daylight on that line means the finish is open. It can wet the reveal and the plaster inside. A paint snag is a scratch or a thin coat on a surface that is already there. Paint has no body that closes a gap. The survey kept the two apart. The open joint is the weather defect.
Tell the solicitor daylight shows at the jamb and the weather joint is open, and keep any paint item off that point. NHBC describes Buildmark as a 10-year warranty and insurance product. The home survey does not open a claim and does not decide that this joint is accepted under the cover. Ask what the developer and the warranty route can do. Do not sign the joint off because the frame has been painted. The daylight is still the finding.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- At which jamb does daylight show between the window and the reveal?
- Did you record an open weather joint rather than a paint snag?
- Has paint been left out of any remedy for that gap?
What are the typical next steps?
- Treat the open jamb as a weather joint, not a paint snag.
- Tell the solicitor daylight shows at the reveal.
- Do not expect the survey to open 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 glass is clean, is the window installation finished?
Clean glass says nothing about the joint at the reveal. Daylight at the jamb means that weather joint is open, and a paint snag has not closed it. The survey recorded the gap, not a finished installation. NHBC describes Buildmark as a warranty and insurance product. This visit has not opened a claim or called the window complete.
Is missing sealant just another decorating line on a snagging list?
Not in this report. Daylight at the jamb is a path for weather, not a thin coat of colour. The survey has not classed the open joint as paint. A decorating line does not close it. Sealant, if it is applied later, would be a weather finish. The report has not pretended the paint list already did that job.