Age and type of house
What did the visit record about rust on a chassis, about behind the skirting of a park home, and about the written agreement, which rust does not rewrite?
The visit recorded rust only where the chassis could be seen, and it recorded that skirting hides the rest of a park home frame. It did not read the written agreement, and rust does not rewrite that agreement. The survey has not decided how far the corrosion goes, and it has not set the pitch fee. GOV.UK treats a park home as a special case when buying. The survey of the unit does not replace the written agreement. Hidden steel and the site terms both stay outside this note.
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?
Skirting is a skirt of panels around the base, not a promise that the chassis behind it was examined. The surveyor may see an edge, a corner or a patch of scale, and should say if that is all. Rust at one point does not map the frame, the couplings or the supports. It also says nothing about pitch fees or site rules. Those live in the written agreement. Putting corrosion and the agreement in one conversation mixes a metal note with a document the visit did not read.
Ask the solicitor for the written agreement and the site rules, and keep them apart from the rust note. If the chassis matters, arrange a look that can see past the skirting. Do not tell a lender the frame was passed. The survey of the unit still does not set the pitch fee. GOV.UK treats the purchase as a special case, so the legal papers have to be read for what they actually say.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Where was rust visible, and where did the skirting block the chassis?
- Did the report stay with the unit and leave the written agreement unread?
- What access would be needed before the hidden steel could be described?
What are the typical next steps?
- Read the rust note as a limited view of the chassis.
- Get the written agreement through your solicitor.
- Arrange a better view of the steel if the frame must be described.
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
Does scale on one corner mean the whole chassis has failed?
Scale on one corner is the patch the surveyor could see. It is not a map of the frame behind the skirting, and the visit did not test the steel. Hidden parts stay undescribed. This report has not condemned the whole chassis and has not cleared it.
Can the site owner change the pitch fee because rust was noted?
The survey does not set the pitch fee and does not change the written agreement. A metal note is not a review of site charges. Pitch fees and site terms belong in the agreement your solicitor reads. Keep that discussion off the paragraph that only records what could be seen of the chassis.