New builds and warranties

Does a new-build survey test a shared heat network or district heating system?

No. Services are inspected visually, not safety-tested or performance-tested. A shared heat network or a district heating system was not proved by the visit. A radiator that felt warm, or cold, is not a test of the network, the meter or the operator’s equipment.

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?

New blocks often take heat from a central plant rather than from a boiler on the wall. The surveyor can see a radiator, a programmer, a meter cupboard and any leak that is already showing. They cannot measure the network, certify the heat interface unit, or say that the standing charge and the supply agreement are acceptable. Those agreements are papers. NHBC’s description of Buildmark does not turn the survey into a commissioning certificate, and a 10-year warranty is not a statement that every system was run for you on the day.

Ask the solicitor who operates the network and what the agreement says you will pay and who repairs the plant. Ask the builder for commissioning records if the plot is new. Do not invent a tariff, and do not treat a shiny cupboard as a test. If the survey says the heating was not operated, believe that limit. A warranty claim, if you later need one, is a separate step from this visual note.

What should you ask your surveyor?

What did you see of the heating, and what did you not test?
Was the system on, off, or simply not checked?
Are you leaving the supply agreement to the solicitor?

What are the typical next steps?

Ask for commissioning papers and the heat agreement.
Do not describe the survey as a test of the heat network.
Keep leaks in the flat separate from questions about who runs the plant.

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 new boiler warranty cover a district network?

Only if that warranty actually says so. Do not assume a domestic boiler warranty describes a block-wide network.

If one radiator was cold, has the network failed?

Not proved. It is a reason to ask. It is not a completed test.