Leasehold

The budget includes a lift contract and the survey did not ride the lift as a test. What maintenance contract is an accounts line, not a condition rating?

The lift contract in the budget is an accounts line, not a condition rating of the lift. The survey did not ride the lift as a test, so it has not graded the machine, the doors or the shaft. A figure against a maintenance contract shows that the service charge budget expects a contract. It does not show that the lift is reliable, recently repaired, or in any particular condition. The survey has not turned that line into a judgement of the lift. The solicitor reads the accounts. The home survey does not convert a contract entry into a mechanical 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?

Service charge budgets list what the landlord expects to spend, including contracts. The lift line tells you a contractor is, or is meant to be, engaged. It can be a standing contract whether the lift runs smoothly or not. Riding it once as a passenger would still not be a thorough examination, and the survey did not even do that as a test. The gear, the guides and the safety devices were not inspected. An accounts line cannot stand in for that inspection.

Ask the solicitor to read the lift contract, the budget and any examination paperwork, and to keep those accounts apart from this report. GOV.UK explains leaseholder rights around service charges. That is the legal reading. Do not tell a lender the lift was surveyed because the budget names a contract. The survey did not ride it as a test and has not given it a condition rating. The contract remains a line in the accounts.

What should you ask your surveyor?

Did you leave the lift unridden as a test?
Is the lift contract only a line in the service charge budget?
Have you avoided giving the lift a condition rating from that line?

What are the typical next steps?

Treat the lift contract as an accounts line.
Ask the solicitor to read the contract and the lift papers.
Do not describe the lift as condition-rated by 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 lift arrives when the button is pressed, has it been tested?

Arriving when called would be a single journey, and the survey did not ride the lift as a test. It is not a condition rating and it is not an examination of the machinery. The budget line remains a contract in the accounts. One trip would not read that contract or grade the lift. The report has not treated a journey as a test.

Does a heavy lift line in the budget mean the lift is in poor condition?

No. The survey did not use the accounts figure as a condition rating, and it did not test the lift. A contract can be costly for a sound machine or a troublesome one. The solicitor can read the figure in the budget. The survey has not interpreted it as wear, age or failure.