Roofs and flat roofs
Sprockets at the eaves hide the rafter feet from inside the loft. What can the survey not say about decay in those feet?
Because sprockets at the eaves hide the rafter feet, the survey cannot say whether those feet are decayed. A sprocket is the short timber that eases the pitch over the end of the rafter. What was not seen is the foot itself: the end grain, the bearing on the wall plate, and any softness where the roof meets the gutter. The visit records the obstruction. It does not declare the feet sound, and it does not declare them rotten. Hidden timber stays undescribed.
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?
From the loft a rafter can look clean along the slope and still be soft in the last inches the sprocket covers. Felt, a tilting fillet or insulation packed into the eaves can deepen that blind spot. The surveyor is telling you the feet were outside the view. A clear upper length is not a clear foot. Do not promote the unseen end into rot, and do not cross it off because the timber higher up looked fair.
If the eaves also show staining, a failed gutter or a soft soffit, use that as a reason to open the detail with the seller's agreement, not as rot already found. Opening means lifting a tile or taking a soffit board off, which this visual survey has not done. A quotation that says the feet are decayed goes beyond the report. A quotation that says they are fine does exactly the same.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- How completely did the sprockets hide the rafter feet from inside the loft?
- Did you see staining or a wet eaves beside that hidden length, or only the sprockets?
- What would have to be opened before those feet could be described?
What are the typical next steps?
- Write that the rafter feet were not seen, not that they are sound or rotten.
- Do not accept a price that assumes decay in the hidden feet.
- If the eaves must be opened, agree that access with the seller before anyone starts.
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 hidden rafter foot count as a rotten one?
No. Hidden is not rotten. The sprockets stopped the survey seeing the feet, so the report cannot call those ends decayed or sound.
Can the visible length of rafter stand in for the foot?
No. The length in the loft is not the end behind the sprocket. The foot stays unseen until the eaves detail is actually opened.