Survey costs
A thatched roof may need a thatcher's own inspection. Is that inspection included because you paid for a Level 2?
No. Paying for a Level 2 does not include a thatcher's own inspection. The Level 2 fee pays for that home survey. A thatched roof may still need a thatcher to examine the thatch as a separate instruction with a separate fee. Level 2 is aimed at a conventional home of simple form. Mentioning the roof in the report is not the same as hiring the specialist. Do not invent the thatcher's price from the fact the covering was discussed.
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?
A Level 2 surveyor can describe what they could see of ridges, wire, flashings and the general coat of thatch, within a visual inspection. They are not, by that description, carrying out the trade inspection a thatcher would do before quoting for recoating, ridging or repairs. The consumer guidance does not bundle trade specialists into the Level 2 invoice. There is no national tariff that says the specialist comes free once the survey is paid. If you want the thatcher, appoint one, agree what they will look at, and pay them under their terms.
Do not assume a lender has a universal objection to thatch, and do not assume the opposite. Lending is the lender's handbook and this case, not a sentence in the survey fee. Equally, do not treat a Level 2 as having priced the next coat of thatch. Ask the thatcher for their own inspection terms if the survey has raised a concern you intend to act on. Keep that quote beside the report. The report remains a condition document. The thatcher's paper is the trade document. Neither one silently pays for the other.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- What did the Level 2 actually see of the thatch?
- Is a thatcher's inspection inside your fee?
- Which concerns should I pass to a thatcher in their own instruction?
What are the typical next steps?
- Appoint a thatcher separately if you want their inspection.
- Do not treat the Level 2 invoice as their bill.
- Keep their quote beside the report, not inside it.
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 Level 2 calls the thatch a risk, has the thatcher been paid?
No. A risk comment is not a specialist's fee. The thatcher is a further instruction.
Does a conventional-home product automatically cover every thatch trade question?
No. Level 2 is a home survey of simple conventional form. It is not a thatcher's report thrown in.