Surveyor Missed a Problem With Your Property? What Negligence Claims Involve
Buying a property is usually the biggest financial commitment most people will ever make, and a large part…
Professional Negligence — Our Practice Areas
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Solicitor Negligence — missed limitation periods, negligent conveyancing, incorrect will drafting, failure to register land, and bad litigation advice. Claims against the solicitor's firm through their professional indemnity insurer.
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Accountant Negligence — negligent tax advice resulting in HMRC penalties, incorrect financial statements, audit failures, and flawed business valuations causing transaction losses.
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Surveyor Negligence — negligent property valuations, homebuyer or building surveys missing structural defects, and RICS-standard failures causing purchasers to overpay or miss material defects.
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Financial Adviser Negligence — unsuitable investment advice, negligent pension transfer recommendations, FCA suitability breaches, and loss-making advice. FOS complaints and civil claims against IFAs and wealth managers.
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Architect & Engineer Negligence — negligent building designs, structural calculations errors, CDM failures, planning advice errors, and defective specifications causing construction defects or planning refusals.
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Builder & Tradesperson Negligence — defective building work, breach of contract, failure to comply with building regulations, and negligent extensions, conversions, and renovations causing structural or cosmetic defects.
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Insurance Broker Negligence — failure to place adequate cover, failure to disclose material facts to the insurer, and incorrect advice on policy terms leaving clients uninsured when a claim is made.
The Three Elements of a Professional Negligence Claim
- 1Duty of care & breach — the Bolam standard — the professional must have owed you a duty of care (which arises from the retainer or appointment) and must have breached that duty by falling below the standard of a reasonably competent professional in the relevant field. An independent expert in the same profession assesses whether the conduct fell below that standard. Departure from published professional standards (RICS Red Book, SRA Code, FCA COBS, ICAEW technical guidance) is strong evidence of breach.
- 2Causation — SAAMCO and the "but for" test — the breach must have caused the loss. For most professional negligence claims, the "but for" test applies: but for the negligence, would the loss have occurred? The SAAMCO principle (South Australia Asset Management Corporation v York Montague Ltd [1997]) limits recovery to losses within the scope of the professional's duty — not all consequences of entering a transaction into which negligent advice led the claimant, but only losses caused by the specific information or advice being wrong. Causation and SAAMCO scope are the most complex aspects of professional negligence claims.
- 3Loss — financial and consequential damage — the claim recovers actual financial loss caused by the negligence: diminution in value of property, lost transaction profits, HMRC penalties and interest, investment losses, remedial works costs, and consequential financial damage. Non-financial loss (distress) is generally not recoverable in commercial professional negligence claims — unlike consumer contract claims.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Professional Negligence Pre-Action Protocol?
The Professional Negligence Pre-Action Protocol (PNPAP) applies to most professional negligence claims (except those covered by specific protocols, such as clinical negligence). It requires the claimant to send a detailed Preliminary Notice and, if the matter does not resolve, a fully particularised Letter of Claim including the basis of the allegations, the evidence relied upon, the expert's preliminary view, and the financial loss claimed. The defendant has 21 days to acknowledge and up to 3 months to investigate and respond. The Protocol encourages settlement before proceedings are issued and prevents satellite litigation about the conduct of the parties.
Do I need an independent expert to bring a professional negligence claim?
In practice, yes — the court will require expert evidence from an independent professional in the relevant field to establish that the defendant's conduct fell below the Bolam standard. For a solicitor negligence claim, an independent solicitor expert; for a surveyor claim, an independent RICS-registered surveyor; for an accountant claim, an independent chartered accountant. The expert's preliminary view is required before the Letter of Claim is sent under the Protocol. A specialist solicitor instructs and manages the expert and ensures their report covers both breach and causation.
The professional has professional indemnity insurance — does that make recovery easier?
Most regulated professionals are required to hold professional indemnity insurance: solicitors (SRA Minimum Terms — £2 million per claim minimum); surveyors (RICS minimum terms); financial advisers (FCA requirement); architects (ARB requirement). This means claims are typically defended (and paid) by an insurer rather than the individual professional, making recovery more reliable than suing an individual with no assets. However, it also means the insurer will instruct specialist professional negligence solicitors to defend the claim — claimants need equivalent specialist representation.
What is the SAAMCO principle and how does it limit my claim?
The SAAMCO principle (from South Australia Asset Management Corporation v York Montague Ltd [1997]) limits a professional's liability to losses within the scope of their duty. A surveyor who negligently overvalues a property is only liable for the consequences of the overvaluation — the extent of the overstatement — not all the losses arising from the lender's decision to lend on the property. SAAMCO has been refined by subsequent cases, most recently in Manchester Building Society v Grant Thornton [2021] (Supreme Court), which confirmed that the scope of duty analysis depends on the purpose of the advice: information providers (limited liability) versus advisers (broader liability). A specialist solicitor analyses the SAAMCO position in every professional negligence claim.
Can I claim against a professional if I also contributed to my own loss?
Yes — contributory negligence under the Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945 may reduce your damages by your percentage of fault, but it does not defeat the claim entirely. Common contributory negligence arguments in professional negligence include: failing to provide the professional with accurate information; ignoring advice actually given; and proceeding with a transaction despite warnings. A specialist solicitor assesses the likely contributory negligence finding and advises on its impact on quantum before the claim is brought.