Condition ratings
The report says its photographs are illustrative. Why is one picture of a crack not a schedule of every crack?
Because an illustrative photograph is an example, not an inventory. The report uses one picture to show the sort of crack it is discussing. It does not claim the camera recorded every crack, every length or every room. A schedule would list places and extents so each one could be watched or repaired. One image cannot do that, and the word illustrative says not to pretend it has. Ratings elsewhere still carry their RICS meanings for the items they are attached to. They do not turn a sample photo into a complete crack map.
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?
Surveys photograph what helps the reader. They do not produce a measured list of every crack unless that was the instruction, and calling the pictures illustrative is the warning. Other cracks may exist on the same wall, on another face, or in a room the photograph never claimed to cover. Some may be worse than the example and some milder. The text may say cracking was seen in named places. The single frame does not replace that text and does not complete it.
If you need every crack listed, ask the surveyor to clarify the locations in writing, or instruct an engineer to schedule them if the report recommends that. Do not send a builder one photo as though it were the full list. Your solicitor should read illustrative as a limit on the pictures, not as doubt that the crack in the photo is real. A lender should not be told the house has only the cracks that were photographed. The wording sets the scope, not the number of images.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Which paragraph is the crack photograph meant to illustrate?
- Does the text mention cracking in places the photo does not show?
- Has the report asked for a schedule or for monitoring, rather than supplied one?
What are the typical next steps?
- Read illustrative photographs as examples, not as a full schedule of cracks.
- Use the written locations, and ask the surveyor if those locations are unclear.
- Do not price repairs from one image as though no other crack existed.
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 a crack was not photographed, was it judged unimportant?
Not necessarily. Illustrative means examples were chosen, not that cracks without a picture were cleared. The text governs what was found. A crack can be described with no image of its own. Do not ignore it because there is no photo, and do not assume the pictured crack is the only one that matters.
Does a rating 3 on one pictured crack apply to every crack?
No. A rating belongs to the defect the surveyor attached it to. Rating 3 means that item needs repair, replacement or investigation and is serious, urgent, or both. It does not spread to every crack, and an illustrative photo does not carry it onto cracks the picture never claimed. Read each rating with its own text.