RAAC

A plank in a link roof is labelled possible RAAC and was not sampled. What must you not claim from that label alone?

You must not claim that the plank is confirmed as RAAC, that it has failed, or that it is sound. The label says possible RAAC, and the plank in the link roof was not sampled. A home survey has not investigated it. RAAC is a form of concrete panel that needs investigation, and a label is not that investigation. The report can record the wording and the fact nothing was taken from the plank. It has not identified the material.

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?

A link roof is the narrow roof between parts of a building, and a plank there may be seen only at an edge or under a lining. Possible is a caution, not a laboratory result. Sampling would be a separate instruction to someone engaged to investigate this form of concrete panel. Until that happens, the label must not be upgraded into a diagnosis or downgraded into a clearance. The survey leaves both the material and the condition of the hidden plank open.

Tell the solicitor the plank was labelled and not sampled, and ask whether any specialist report already exists for the link roof. A lender may want that investigation before it relies on the roof. The home survey does not open a sampling exercise and does not redefine the plank. If a specialist is instructed, keep that report separate and do not describe the original label as the result.

What should you ask your surveyor?

Where is the labelled plank in the link roof?
What access stopped any closer look or sample?
Which sentence stops the label short of identification?

What are the typical next steps?

Read the label as a prompt, not a result.
Ask whether a specialist report already exists.
Do not tell a lender the plank has been identified.

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 a dry soffit show the plank is sound?

No. A dry soffit is only the surface that could be seen. The plank was not sampled, and a stain-free lining does not identify the material or the bearing. RAAC is a form of concrete panel that needs investigation. The survey has not carried that out, so soundness stays unclaimed.

Can the seller remove the label and end the question?

Taking the label down would not sample the plank and would not identify it. The survey recorded a plank in the link roof marked as possible RAAC and recorded that it was not sampled. Any later investigation has to be of the panel, not of the sticker. The home survey has not confirmed or cleared the material.