Condition ratings
Someone has stuck a traffic-light dot on the PDF beside a condition rating. Why is the dot not a new scale?
Because the dot is not a new scale. The report already uses condition ratings, and a sticker someone has pressed beside a number does not add a colour code, a grade or a meaning the surveyor did not write. People call the existing ratings a traffic-light summary. That habit does not let a blob of ink become part of the report. Read the number and the paragraph. Ignore the sticker. It does not regrade the element, and it does not create a rating the page did not contain.
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?
Stickers appear when someone wants the report to look simpler than it is. A green dot on a rating 2, or a red dot on a rating 1, is their opinion about the opinion. It is not a revision. The surveyor has not adopted it by leaving it on a printed copy, and a digital blob is no more official. If the paragraph and the dot disagree, the paragraph wins. The scale is the one in the report, not a craft sticker.
If you truly cannot tell what the number means, ask the surveyor to explain that rating in words, and keep the explanation. Do not invent an intermediate colour because the sticker sat between two lines. Condition ratings are the ratings given. Not inspected, where it appears, is not a colour either. Peel the dot off the decision. When you write to the solicitor or the agent, quote the rating and the sentence, never the sticker.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- What does the written rating mean, ignoring any mark added later?
- If a sticker and a paragraph disagree, which text is yours?
- Has anyone revised the report, or is the dot unofficial?
What are the typical next steps?
- Disregard the traffic-light sticker as a scale.
- Quote the condition rating and the paragraph that goes with it.
- Ask the surveyor if you need the number explained, not a new colour.
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 surveyor uses red and amber in conversation, is the sticker official?
No. A spoken comparison is not a new scale, and a sticker on the PDF is not one either. The rating in the report is the rating.
Can you average the sticker colour with the number?
No. There is nothing to average. The sticker is not a rating. Use the number the surveyor gave and the words under it.