New builds and warranties
A snagging list notes decoration and a Level 3 notes the roof trusses. Why should those two lists not be treated as the same kind of inspection?
They should not be treated as the same kind of inspection because a snagging list that notes decoration is a finish list, and a Level 3 that notes the roof trusses is a home survey of structure. Paint, marks and small items of completion are not trusses. A Level 3 is not a decorator's punch list, and a snagging visit is not the detailed survey RICS describes for how a building is built. NHBC describes Buildmark as a 10-year warranty and insurance product. Neither list has opened a claim under it.
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 homes attract both kinds of paper, which is why they get swapped. Snagging walks the finishes and writes down what a buyer can see is incomplete or scruffy. A Level 3 can discuss the roof structure, repair options and the consequences of leaving a structural point. One person might do both on different instructions, but the lists are still not the same product. A tick against decoration does not inspect a truss. A paragraph on trusses does not paint the hallway.
Keep the two lists apart when you speak to the builder, the solicitor and any warranty contact. Use the snagging list for the decorative items it actually names. Use the Level 3 for the trusses. If Buildmark applies, a claim is a further step the survey has not taken and the snagging list has not taken either. Do not hand the builder the wrong list and expect the other job to be done.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Which comments are decoration on the snagging list, not structure?
- What did the Level 3 actually say about the roof trusses?
- Has either list opened a Buildmark claim?
What are the typical next steps?
- Keep the snagging list and the Level 3 as different inspections.
- Use each list only for the items it actually recorded.
- Do not treat either document as an opened warranty claim.
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 same person wrote both, are the lists the same?
No. The same author can still be doing two jobs. Decoration on a snagging list is not a Level 3 note on roof trusses. The kind of inspection follows the instruction, not the signature. Paint marks and trusses remain two different jobs.
Does a neat finish mean the trusses were included in the snagging?
No. A neat finish is what snagging is looking at. Trusses are structure. The Level 3 is the document that noted them. The decorative list did not become that inspection. A tidy room does not turn snagging into the truss inspection.