Survey costs
A builder's provisional sum sits in an email next to the survey. Has the surveyor certified that sum?
No. The surveyor has not certified that provisional sum. A provisional sum is the builder's own allowance for work they have not fully measured. An email placed next to the survey does not insert the email into the report, and it does not make the surveyor the signer of the builder's figure. The ratings describe condition. They are not a certificate that a contractor's allowance is right, complete, or safe to deduct.
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?
Provisional sums exist because the builder cannot yet see the extent. That uncertainty may be exactly why the survey refused to name a cost. Treating the allowance as certified skips the reason it is provisional. Ask the builder what is included, what would turn the sum into a fixed quote, and what happens if opening-up shows more work. Those answers belong in the builder's correspondence. If you want the surveyor to glance at them, agree that as a separate question. Even then, a glance is not a certificate and not a warranty of the builder's price.
There is no national tariff which says a provisional sum beside a PDF becomes official. Do not tell the seller the survey has agreed the allowance. Do not tell a lender the figure is the surveyor's. If you use it in negotiation, say plainly that it is the builder's provisional allowance, uncertified, and that the final bill may move. The honest use of the survey is to show why the work is uncertain. The dishonest use is to staple a stranger's number to the rating and call the staple a signature.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Have you certified any contractor figure in this report?
- What opening-up would have to happen before a fixed price made sense?
- If I forward the builder's email, will you be commenting, or not instructed to?
What are the typical next steps?
- Label the provisional sum as the builder's, uncertified.
- Ask the builder what the allowance excludes.
- Do not describe the email as part of the survey.
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 surveyor replies that the sum looks plausible, is it certified?
No. A cautious remark is not a certificate. The figure remains the builder's unless a separate written instruction says otherwise.
Can a provisional sum be deducted as if it were a fixed quote?
Only if you and the seller agree to treat it that way. The survey has not converted it into a fixed, certified cost.