How to choose a party wall surveyor

What should I look out for when appointing a party wall surveyor near me?

The Party Wall etc. Section 20 of the Act 1996 defines a surveyor as anyone appointed or selected to decide disputes by the procedures laid out in the Act. There’s no mention here that the ‘surveyor’ must be a fully trained and regulatedated professional, nor does it say who to pick for the job.

The Act doesn’t specify that a Party Wall Surveyor needs any qualifications. So how do you select a surveyor, whether you are a building owner proposing a work or an adjoining owner living next door to a developer? It would help if you chose a surveyor capable of protecting your building’s rights and integrity before, during, and after any proposed work.

You are applying the Party Wall Act, etc. Party Wall Surveyors need to know the Party Wall Act 1996 and building construction, dispute resolution, and building design. If your surveyor has a broad skill set, you can rest assured that your interests are protected.

We’ve identified the ingredients required for your chosen Party Wall Surveyor’s expertise, knowledge, and experience. But, of course, you have to manage the process as a building owner.

Your surveyor will have to deal with many people throughout the process, including other surveyors, architects, structural engineers, contractors, and checking consultants.

It’s essential to have a surveyor who understands the design concept and the detail the building owner needs to provide. Then, a surveyor can move a building owner’s project with the slightest delay and cost.

In the party wall process, dealing with other professionals with a construction background with experience in planning and executing a wide range of projects is a great advantage. Therefore, we believe you are a construction professional and a party wall surveyor second to evolve as an expert on party walls.

There’s also personality, which no governing body, university, or professional association can teach you, but comes with experience working with other professionals on many projects over time.

As the Party Wall Surveyor will be dealing with several other people during the process, strong communication skills and the ability to work effectively with other people are imperative to a successful and cost-effective process.

The works are notifiable under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 will often carry a significant structural risk to the adjoining structures and the rights of those adjoining owners during the works.

A qualified Party Wall Surveyor’s job is to apply the legislation to mitigate and reduce risks to adjoining structures while still allowing the building owner to carry out the notifiable works.

It’s also essential to take adjoining owners’ rights into account. Before work starts, it’s common for the Party Wall Surveyor to recommend and administer changes to drawings.

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