Building Surveying, Property Consultancyand Party Wall specialists

www.cardoemartinburr.co.uk

Building Surveys

We undertake building surveys of all types of office,industrial, retail, residential and public buildingson behalf of occupational users and institutionalinvestors throughout the UK. Environmental auditsand services inspections are also arranged.

Recent Instructions include:

Building survey of several warehouse units for aninstitutional purchaser

Building survey of a Victorian terrace house for aresidential private client.

About Us

Cardoe Martin Burr Limited provide BuildingSurveying and Property Consultancy services tocorporate, institutional and individual clients.The practice is wholly owned by its Directorswho share the belief that excellence in serviceis the key to creating a successful business. Ourrole as Chartered Building Surveyors involves thecare of all types of property within the builtenvironment and our success as a practice is basedupon our ability to perform this role for a broadrange of property owners and occupiers.

The majority of our work is undertaken for clientsin London and the South East but we regularlyprovide building surveying services for institu-tional, pension fund and some private clientsthroughout the UK.

Cardoe Martin Burr is a Quality Assured companyand operates a company management system tothe requirements of ISO 9001:2008.

We are Chartered Building Surveyors and operatein accordance with the professional standardsrequired by The Royal Institution of CharteredSurveyors and hold £5 million professional indem-nity insurance cover for each and every claim.

Contact usCardoe Martin Burr Limited2nd Floor146 New Cavendish StreetLondon W1W 6YQ

Tel: 020 7563 8900Fax: 020 7563 8901enquiries@cardoemartinburr.co.uk

Consultancy

Project Management

We recognise that handling a construction projectrequires firm and positive management to achievesatisfactory completion of the works on time andwithin the client’s budget.

Recent instructions include:

Overseeing the clearance of a 3.5 acre site and therefurbishment of a building being retained as partof the proposals for a leading property investor.

Stripping out and refurbishment of a retail unitand upper parts prior to re-letting for a pensionfund client.

Development Monitoring

Cardoe Martin Burr act as the lenders surveyor forthe development of speculative and pre-letwarehouse and office schemes which involvesassessing the design and monitoring the worksfrom commencement through to completion.

Recent Instructions Include:

Development monitoring of new warehouse unitsfor a pension fund client.

Development monitoring of a new build pre-letwarehouse and laboratory facility on behalf of apension fund client.

Fire Insurance Valuations

Cardoe Martin Burr undertake insurance valuationsfor building reinstatement purposes on behalf ofcommercial and residential property owners andoccupiers.

The valuations are undertaken by our Building Surveyors in conjunction with our Consultant QuantitySurveyors and information is drawn from an extensivedatabase of client portfolios.

Recent Instructions Include:

Insurance valuation for reinstatement purposes ofa retail centre for an Investment Manager.

Insurance valuation for reinstatement purposes ofa hotel for an Investment Manager.

Dilapidations Advice

Liability to repair under the terms of a lease canvary significantly under current statute and caselaw. Currently numerous pension fund clients ben-efit from our watchful eye upon their tenantsrepairing strategies – or lack of them!

Recent Instructions include:

Overseeing dilapidations works for a tenant to min-imise their liability prior to lease expiry, after aschedule of dilapidations was served on them bytheir landlord. A successful handover to the land-lord was achieved prior to the termination of thelease enabling the client to achieve a substantialsaving on their damages claim.

Negotiation of a dilapidations claim on behalf of acommercial tenant wishing to exercise a break optionin their lease.

Preparation of a terminal schedule of dilapidationson behalf of a pension fund for service upon acommercial tenant.

Defect Diagnosis

This has proved an effective service to many clients.The early diagnosis of building defects can reducethe cost and complexity of repairs and minimisedisruption to building occupiers and staff.

Recent Instructions Include:

The eradication of an acute condensation issuewithin several flats that form part of a mixed usedevelopment.

The initial identification and organisation of remedialworks in relation to an outbreak of dry rot within aresidential dwelling.

Planned Maintenance

Efficient planning of a building’s maintenance canprolong the life of the fabric and finishes and min-imise repair costs. We have successfully prepareddetailed planned maintenance programs for various

buildings typically for periods ranging between5 and 30 years, with our costs prepared by ourChartered Quantity Surveyors.

Party Wall etc. Act 1996

So why employ a party wall surveyor? The PartyWall etc. Act 1996 was a carefully written piece oflegislation. Can you do it all yourself?

Cardoe Martin Burr have a Neighbourly mattersdivision which deals solely with Party Wall matters.We are extremely experienced and have a dedi-cated team which ensures that we are efficient. Weare also selected as third surveyor for referrals indisputes and as expert witnesses. As CharteredBuilding Surveyors we also have an excellentknowledge of building pathology and defect analy-sis to aid in the party wall process.

You can do some of it yourself, but there are a lot ofpitfalls. You can serve notice by yourself, but onceyou have served notice and dissent occurs, sur-veyor(s) must be appointed, as you cannot act onyour own behalf, whether as building owner oradjoining owner.

The Act wasn’t written to cover every eventuality.This can lead to conflict between surveyors andhow it is interpreted. Some surveyors, not all, usethe differences in interpretation to create a situa-tion and difficulties that are unnecessary. Below isa flow chart showing the initial process:

Neighbourly Matters

So, starting at the very beginning, taking this fromthe stance of being the person who wants to under-take the work, you firstly need to decide whether ornot you are going to serve party wall notices – doyou know enough about the process? There arestatutory timescales to be followed and differenttypes of notice. Cardoe Martin Burr are very expe-rienced in the process and can take the headacheout of potentially getting it very wrong!

So there are 3 types of notice:

Party structure notice – this is for work to the partywall, party fence wall or party structure. It carries astatutory time-scale of two months.

3m/6m Notice – This is for excavation within thedistances specified. The 3m rule applies where foun-dations go lower than the adjoining owner’s propertyand the 6m rule is within 45degrees. So if the excava-tion is within 5m and 5.5m deep, the Act applies. Thiscarries a statutory notice period of one month.

Line of junction Notice – this applies when buildingon the line of junction, whether astride it or close toit, and if foundations project onto the adjoiningowners land. It is nearly impossible to serve a partywall notice unless you determine the location of theboundary, ie. is it a party wall, party fence wall orboundary wall? If you don’t get it right then thenotice is invalid or the award is meaningless, that iswhere Cardoe Martin Burr can advise you properly.This carries a statutory notice period of one month.

Whilst there are statutory notice periods, it isn’t assimple as that. Once notice has been served theadjoining owner has 14 days to respond. If they donothing that DOES NOT mean you can just get onwith the work. You have to give them a further 10days to respond. If they still do nothing you areobliged to appoint a surveyor to act on their behalf– it does not mean consent.

Whilst on the face of it, serving notice shouldn’t bethat complicated, the Act is open to interpretation,which is why we are here to advise as we have sig-nificant experience in the field.

Raising a wall upwards or along the boundary line –The boundary has already been built on whether itis going up to the sky or down the line of junctionon either the building owners side or the adjoiningowners side, so is notice needed under s1(5)?

Is notice required to put a mansard roof on top of ablock of flats? – This depends on who owns the roofspace and what the deeds say. If you do not own thespace you do not have the right to extend into it.

Definitions of ‘party structure’ – ‘a party wall andalso a floor partition or other structure separatingbuildings or parts of buildings approached solelyby separate staircases or separate entrances’.

Definition of adjoining owner – ‘adjoining owner’vs ‘adjoining occupier’, respectively mean any ownerand any occupier of land, buildings, storeys or roomsadjoining those of the building and for the purposesonly of section 6 within the distances specified inthat section’.

This argument could also be extended to founda-tions and enclosing walls – what if you, as aleaseholder, only own the ‘surfaces’?

How long is a letter of appointment valid for?We would say until an Award is in place. A noticecould expire but does that stop you from reservingnotice if you have already appointed a surveyor?You shouldn’t assume that the adjoining ownerwould appoint the same surveyor again.

Even if you have a property portfolio you shouldsign a letter of appointment for each of the proper-ties to avoid any confusion about ownership.Companies quite often have a portfolio of proper-ties that may be held in different names under a‘holding company’, and it is important that you getownership details correct otherwise the process isinvalidated. Likewise, if part way through the con-struction project you decide to sell the building, theprocess starts ‘de Nouvo’. So you should think care-fully about the issue of ownership if you are adeveloper.

That is different if you are an adjoining owner. Ihave known some adjoining owners consent to anotice or appoint an agreed surveyor and then theysell the property, and the new owner, once an awardis served, is left with the decisions made by some-one else.

So whether you’re a building owner or adjoiningowner, you need to know who can sign a letter ofappointment or acknowledge a notice:

Who can sign for;

Companies – a Director

Executors – a trustee of the estate or a solicitor

Guardians – only those named

Charities – only those individuals named

Trust funds – normally a solicitor

And finally – the mad woman who dies and leavesher property to the cat…..

Minor bureaucratic errors – this can be as simple asbusiness partners putting the property in individu-als names rather than a company name becausethe bank won’t lend them money, but because ofthe name change, notices have to be reserved or anAward becomes invalid. What if a Guernsey BasedTrust is dissolved but the land registry details are

not updated and the property then becomes in theownership of another company, spelt marginallydifferently and now based in the States?

So what happens if you serve notice and then youdecide not to proceed with the works? The noticescan expire without any work having been under-taken by surveyors. However, if you do decide notto go ahead and surveyors are appointed, then youshould be aware that surveyors will have incurredfees for which you would be liable. You cannotwithdraw a notice, unless it is invalid, in which caseit is void anyway. So if a notice is valid then survey-ors can still award fees.

Who do you serve notice on? I find it is always morepersonal to do your homework using a land registrysearch so that you can address the notice and theletter accordingly. If you address it to the owneroccupier, then you should really be fixing it to thedoor and taking a photograph of service rather thanrelying on the post. Sometimes, land registry infor-mation can become out of date and no-one bothersto update it. However, when that happens and youhave served notice based on this information, thenyou have done so at the last known address andthus the notice is valid.

So those are the basics and the pitfalls, but it ismuch more complex than that. There is a lot of caselaw now for which surveyors use the precedent.

What if an adjoining owner consents to a noticeand then damage is caused? Onigbanjo vs Pearsonupheld that the Adjoining Owner is still protectedby the Act. If owners can agree repairs then there isno dispute. If they can’t, then both parties shouldappoint surveyors to act, and if necessary, theAdjoining Owner should serve notice on the Build-ing Owner to put right damage.

What happens if your work does cause damage –can your builder put the damage right? That verymuch depends on the adjoining owner and howwell you have got on during the project. The adjoiningowner could obtain quotations for the repair work orcould accept compensation in lieu.

How often is damage caused? In my experience,relative to the volume of party wall projects, dam-age is fairly rare. How much damage caused variesand depends on the proposed works, how carefullythe works were considered, and the method state-ments that were provided. Whilst I wouldn’t expectto see a method statement for a concrete padstoneand inserting a beam into the party wall, that canonly be completed successfully and without dam-age if either beam is spliced, or the ‘slot’ in theparty wall is long enough. You do not have the rightto go into the party wall more than half its thickness– if you do, damage is inevitable.

Sometimes damage is caused by accident and notby negligence. Vibration can also cause damage.With larger basement schemes it is becoming morepopular for works to be monitored so that triggerlevels can be established and work stopped if theyare reached, what are acceptable levels? Buildingsmove quite often due to fluctuations in tempera-ture and weather conditions.

Can compensation be paid for necessary inconven-ience? The act requires that an adjoining ownershould not be inconvenienced unnecessarily andsurveyors should be able to ensure that this isavoided. However, in some situations inconven-ience cannot be avoided due to noise, loss ofamenity or loss of rent in extreme situations. Anadjoining owner should not expect to be paid com-pensation just because they are living next to abuilding site – sometimes it is unavoidable.

Security for expenses – under the Act the adjoiningowner is entitled to request this prior to works com-mencing. Surveyors determine the amount to beheld and how it is to be held. Some surveyors haveclient’s accounts and are happy to hold the funds,otherwise the money is held by the building ownerssolicitor in either a client account or in escrow.

It’s unfortunate that Kaye vs Lawrence came alongand put a ‘a cat amongst the pigeons’ and turned onits head what most surveyors believe – you can’t

have security for expenses for causing damagebecause you have no right under the Act to causedamage. Security in my view can only be used forthe likelihood of non completion of the notifiableworks. There is a rare occasion when an ornate gar-den could be destroyed by the proposed works, ora party fence wall demolished and not rebuilt, or abasement excavation started and not completed.

What does it mean when a surveyor says they aregoing to go ‘ex parte’?Why would they want to, it’svery lonely! It should be very rare that a situationarises where you have to threaten another surveyorwith s10(6) or (7) and to actually then have to makean award. I find that normally an issue works itselfout as most surveyors wouldn’t like it if you proceedex parte – it doesn’t show them in a very good light.But if a surveyor finds themselves in that position,then there is normally a good reason why they areneglecting or refusing to Act. Before they do so, theymust establish what the issues are that need to beremedied to avoid them proceeding down a courseof action. Refusing to sign an award because feesare not agreed is one of the common grounds. Thiscan be pre-empted by putting in a clause coveringwhat is a reasonable fee, and then to suggest that ifthey want any additional fee that they ask the 3rdsurveyor. This normally brings the desired responseof an award being signed, and I am yet to have anadjoining owner’s surveyor refer a matter of fees tothe third surveyor. After all, neither the adjoiningowner or the building owner are going to want topay the third surveyor’s fees to see what he thinks– the only one to benefit would be the surveyor.

Another tricky decision – do you really want toappoint an ‘agreed’ surveyor? Is the matter goingto be straightforward or are you putting a surveyorin the middle of neighbours’ with an underlyingconflict? As Party wall surveyors, we are required toact in the best interests of the wall.

To raise a party wall full width or not – think of thelater implications. It’s not just the unsightly appear-ance, but what happens when the adjoining ownerwants to do the same in the future – a horribledetail between two junctions that can’t be weath-

ered properly. This doesn’t just affect mansard roofconstructions, but single storey extensions builtup to the line of junction rather than a party wall. Assoon as you see this situation you know there wasdisagreement between neighbours.

When should you consider serving notice unders2(2)? – it should really be of structural consequence.Does your neighbour really need to know that youwant to fix some shelves or a picture to the wall?

Finally, who is the third surveyor and what do theydo? When two surveyors are appointed, it is their first duty to select a third surveyor. The thirdsurveyor in essence adjudicates when the two surveyors can’t agree. Sometimes that is alsobecause their respective owners don’t like what isbeing proposed. They are very rarely on technicalmatters for interpreting the Act. Articles written bya couple of the renowned third surveyors show thatthese relate to fees, extent of repair, whether anotice is valid, security for expenses etc etc etc.

So you can issue your own party wall notices butafter that you have to appoint a surveyor to act onyour behalf. Cardoe Martin Burr are here to help.

There are many unscrupulous building ownerswho get away with not serving party wallnotices. Well why not? It can be an expensive

process and it can delay works starting. But what ifthe adjoining owner takes offence and obtains aninjunction? What happens then? You panic. Can youserve notices retrospectively? Do you really need aparty wall award? What happens when you come tosell the property?

So, for a simple side extension or loft extension,why bother serving notices at all? It can’t be thatdifficult to cut a hole into the party wall for a pad-stone or excavate a trench and fill it with concrete.Who is going to notice if you undertake the workunder the cover of darkness? Well, people do noticeand then you are in trouble. Why not change thedesign so that the work isn’t notifiable under theAct? Sometimes that is possible, but if you are goingto do that then at least write to the neighbours andadvise them that the work you are doing isn’t noti-

fiable and give the reasons. If an adjoining ownerunderstands that the excavation won’t go lowerthan the bottom of their foundations or that youhave put a post in to support a ridge beam, theymay still take advice but it won’t stop your work.

A vast number of people don’t know what is cov-ered by the Act. Do you need to serve notice forputting up shelves, chasing into the wall for electriccables, drilling into the party wall for structuralfixings or the removal of a chimneybreast, forexample? If in doubt there are guidance notes onthe Pyramus & Thisbe Club website, if you areunsure, we always advise that you ask.

Another important consideration is the quality ofinformation you provide, short cutting this will notsave you time. You can’t serve notice for works forexcavation next to your neighbour’s house withouthaving a plan and section drawing showing thedepth of excavation, as it won’t be valid.

Sara Burr of Pyramus & Thisbe Club highlights some ofthe common temptations and misconceptions inexercising the rights of The Party Wall etc Act 1996…

Towing the Party line

What is the difference between a party fence walland a fence? There is a general misunderstandingthat they are the same and that title deeds showownership. Party fence walls and fences are not thesame. Putting a simple fence up does not requireparty wall notices to be served. Constructing a PartyFence Wall, i.e. a solid wall rather than a fence, how-ever, does require notice and you do not have theright to construct a wall astride the boundary whereone did not exist before.

Claiming ignorance is no defence, as many localauthorities state on the planning decision noticesthat there is a requirement to comply with thelegislation. Not serving notices can not only beexpensive, but can delay works or even preventthem from continuing.

It is advisable to always make sure you leaveenough time to serve the notices and deal with theprocedures before starting the work. There are

statutory time scales for the different notices. Workto the party wall has a notice period of 2 monthsand excavation notices is 1 month. It isn’t as simpleas that though. More complicated schemes can takelonger to agree – if you are undertaking basementworks to a domestic property then you could belooking at 6 months or more. You don’t have to waituntil you have planning permission to be able toserve notice – you can serve notices as soon as youhave exchanged contracts if you are purchasing theproperty. You should also be aware that notices areonly valid for a year, if matters aren’t concludedduring that period, new notices must be served.

Can you serve notices yourself? The simple answeris yes. The Deputy Prime Minister’s office hastemplates, but there can be pitfalls that can invali-date the process. It is also worth noting that justbecause someone doesn’t respond to a notice, itdoesn’t mean that the works can just go ahead, aslack of response is a deemed ‘dispute’. There aretimescales and subsequent letters that need tobe sent.

However if an adjoining owner ‘dissents’ to a notice,that means they want their interests to be lookedafter by means of a surveyors award. Whilst sometake that as meaning they don’t want you to goahead with the works, it is quite often used as a toolto frustrate the process. Surveyors deal with resolv-ing the issues to protect the adjoining owners’interests. Once an adjoining owner dissents to anotice, you have to appoint a surveyor to act onyour behalf – you can’t act for yourself.

The Pyramus & Thisbe Club has been established for 40 years

this year, and has now acquired the status of Learned Society.

There are members across the country – a surveyor local to you

can be found on our website.

Sara Burr BSc(hons) MRICSMember National and London Committees of the Pyramus & Thisbe ClubTel: 028 4063 2083info@partywalls.org.ukwww.partywalls.org.uk

The Projects division of Cardoe Martin Burr specialise in administering works to residentialmansions blocks, estates and large developmentsand providing all other building surveying manage-ment services. We have overseen complex renovationand refurbishment projects upon vacant and occupiedbuildings, including schemes requiring sensitivehandling of occupiers requirements. Recent assign-ments include listed and character buildings,prestige and mixed use developments.

External projects

Recent instructions include:

Repairs and restoration to Grade II listed centralLondon residence

Projects

External repairs and decorations to a prestigiouswest London mansion block

Internal Projects

Cardoe Martin Burr endeavour to build strongworking relationships with Property Managers,Client Representatives, Resident Organisations,Landlords, and Occupiers to ensure that ourschemes are prepared and managed as efficientlyas possible. We understand the balance that mustbe achieved between successful completion ofthe project to agreed costs and standards, whilstminimizing disruption to building occupiers.

Recent instructions include:

Internal repairs and redecorations to a prestigiousWest End residential block

Comprehensive refurbishment scheme to landmarkChelsea mansion block

Licence for alterations

Under the terms of most residential and commercialleases, the Lessee (tenant) is required to obtain theLandlords approval prior to undertaking significantalterations to the building. Cardoe Martin Burrprovides specialist advice to Landlords and Tenantsupon such matters to allow consents to be issuedand we check the works in progress and at completion.

Recent instructions include:

Structural alterations to a West London block in aconservation area

Advising the landlord and their solicitors on proposedalterations to a flat internal gas supply

www.cardoemartinburr.co.uk