Seller-side surveys
The seller left a wardrobe against the wall the surveyor wanted to see. What of that wall must the report mark as not inspected?
The report must mark as not inspected the part of the wall the wardrobe still covered. The surveyor wanted to see that wall, and the seller left furniture against it, so the hidden plaster, the skirting behind the wardrobe, and any damp staining on that face were not available. What could be seen beside the wardrobe is not the concealed strip. A limitation has to be written against the covered part. The survey has not cleared that hidden face, and it has not turned a blocked view into a dry result.
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?
Furniture is a normal limit on a survey, and a seller who leaves a wardrobe in place decides, in practice, what cannot be seen. The surveyor records the limit rather than guessing at plaster behind chipboard. Damp, if it is the reason the wall mattered, is often patchy. A clean edge beside a wardrobe does not describe the centre of the same wall. The honest sentence is that the concealed part was not inspected. Anything stronger would invent a look that did not happen.
As seller, move the wardrobe if you still can and if the buyer is to have that face included, and tell your solicitor what was moved and when. As buyer, do not treat silence about the hidden plaster as a pass. Ask for the limitation in plain words, and if the wall still matters, ask for a further look once the furniture is gone. The report cannot be rewritten after the visit to pretend the covered part was seen.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Which part of the wall did the wardrobe prevent you from seeing?
- Will that covered part be marked not inspected, rather than left blank?
- What of the wall beside the wardrobe, if anything, could you actually see?
What are the typical next steps?
- Mark the wall hidden by the wardrobe as not inspected.
- Do not read a clean edge beside it as a dry result for the hidden face.
- If the face still matters, arrange a further look once the wardrobe is moved.
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 wardrobe is moved next week, does today's report become an inspection of that wall?
No. Moving it later may allow a new look. It does not change the visit that already happened while the wardrobe was there. Today's report must still mark the covered part as not inspected. A later visit is a later visit, not a silent edit.
Can a clean skirting beside the wardrobe clear the hidden plaster?
No. The skirting you can see is only the skirting you can see. Plaster behind the wardrobe was not inspected, and a clean length beside the side panel does not clear it. The report should say so. A limitation is not a pass for the face that stayed hidden.