Seller-side surveys
The seller refused access to the loft on the day. What roof structure must you not treat as inspected?
You must not treat the roof structure in that loft as inspected. The seller refused access on the day, so the rafters, purlins, collars and any alteration up there were not seen. A home survey describes what was opened. A locked or refused hatch is a limit, not a quiet pass. The survey has not examined that roof structure, has not said the timbers are sound, and has not borrowed the seller's account of what is above the ceiling. Anything you were not allowed to see stays uninspected.
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?
Loft structure is where spreads, cuts and amateur alterations show themselves. None of that is available from the landing if the hatch stays shut. Refusal on the day is stronger than a forgotten ladder: the seller chose to keep the space closed. The report should say access was refused. It should not be rewritten later as if the surveyor had been up. Ceiling stains downstairs, if any, stay ceiling stains. They are not a substitute tour of the timbers.
Tell your solicitor access to the loft was refused, and do not describe the roof structure as checked when you speak to a lender. Ask the seller, through the solicitor, for a second visit if you still need that space opened. A seller-commissioned report with the same refusal would have the same hole in it. The missing inspection is the fact. Do not fill it with what the seller says is up there.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Did you record the loft as access refused, rather than as inspected?
- Which parts of the roof structure were you not able to see at all?
- Are any ceiling comments clearly separated from the unseen timbers?
What are the typical next steps?
- Do not treat the unseen loft roof structure as inspected.
- Tell the solicitor access was refused on the day.
- Ask for a further visit if that structure still has to be seen.
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 ceilings look even, can the loft timbers be treated as sound?
No. Even ceilings are a view of the rooms, not of the roof structure. The seller refused the loft, so the rafters and purlins were not inspected. A tidy ceiling does not stand in for a hatch that was not opened.
Does the seller's own description of a new roof count as the inspection?
No. A description is not access. The survey did not see the structure the seller is talking about. You must not treat that roof structure as inspected because someone who lives there says the work was recent. Recent work, described from the landing, is still an unseen roof.