Survey types
There are four main reasons for us wanting to do a survey of your home:
- To prepare for improvement or major repair work to your home.
- To gather information about the condition of the building(s) and major fittings and fixtures to help us make long-term maintenance and improvement plans.
- To assess signs of structural movement in the building(s).
- If you have applied to buy your home from the council and are progressing your application to stage two.
Energy Efficiency (or "EPC") surveys are also often carried out when a tenancy is about to end or has already ended.
Electrical testing is also carried out on a 10 year cycle and this will normally be done by an electrical contractor rather than a surveyor.
Ask for identification! Stay safe
All surveyors from the council carry ID cards and any company working for us is required to carry a company photo-ID.
Was the visit arranged with you?
Surveyors should normally arrange an appointment with you before calling at your home, giving you their name and the company they work for (if it is not a council surveyor) when they make the appointment.
What if I'm still not sure?
If a surveyor is not able to show you their ID card and you are unsure about them, our advice is, DO NOT LET THEM INTO YOUR HOME.
If a surveyor telephones you or calls at your home, saying that they are working for the council and need to survey your home but you are not sure about letting them in or agreeing to make an appointment, we suggest that you:-
- DON'T LET THEM IN or
- DON'T AGREE TO AN APPOINTMENT
- ask the caller for their name and company and a telephone number so you can call them back if you need to
- contact our property services team (see the contact us panel at the top right of the page) and ask us about the call, giving the details about the person and their company
- the property services team will advise you whether the person or company who has contacted you is known to us and doing something we have asked them to or not (we may need to investigate it and call you back)
- only call the person back to agree an appointment if the property services team has said they are working for us
- DON'T CALL THEM BACK AT ALL if we say they are not working for us, even to say you do not want an appointment