What the guide covers

Ten factors, each with what to check before you appoint a surveyor and why it matters to your programme and budget:

1. Missing information – how a surveyor handles ceiling voids, risers, roof spaces and plant rooms, rather than recording them as “could not access”.
2. Control and accuracy – the number of control stations, whether levels are tied to OS Datum, and the accuracy band being worked to.
3. Professional Indemnity insurance – the limit carried, and whether outsourced or overseas drafting is covered by it.
4. Health and safety accreditation – recognised accreditation, project-specific RAMS, and safe access methods for voids and roofs.
5. Level of Detail (LOD) – a written definition of what is included and to what tolerance, with sample drawings.
6. Professional accreditation – membership of TSA, CICES or RICS, and how often the company is audited.
7. Quality assurance – whether a second person independently checks every drawing and model.
8. Project management – who coordinates access on occupied, secure or clinical sites, and what happens when a visit fails.
9. Customer service and reviews – whether support continues through design and tender, once the invoice is paid.
10. Financial stability – years in operation, permanent staff, and whether the company can still support the project in a year.

How do you compare two survey quotes?

Price and programme tell you very little, because both are easy to cut. Ask each surveyor for six things in writing: the number of control stations and the datum used; the accuracy band in millimetres; a written Level of Detail definition with sample drawings; their Professional Indemnity limit and whether drafting is done in-house; their health and safety accreditation; and their quality assurance process, specifically whether a second person checks every drawing. A provider who cannot answer those six questions in writing is the risk, whatever the price says.

What does a cheap survey actually cost?

The saving is rarely the saving. A gap in the data becomes an assumption in the design, and an assumption becomes a site query, a redesign fee or a contractor variation. A wrong floor level throws out drainage falls. A missing beam triggers structural redesign. A misaligned grid forces steel revisions. These are discovered after the design team has invested weeks, which is why a survey error is multiplied rather than absorbed.

About Spatial Dimensions

Spatial Dimensions was established in 2012 and provides measured building surveys, topographical surveys, underground utility surveys and 3D and BIM modelling across the UK. The company carries £10m Professional Indemnity insurance with no claims to date, completes all survey and drafting work in-house, operates an ISO 9001 certified quality management system, holds Once For All health and safety accreditation, and is a corporate member of The Survey Association. Offices in Sevenoaks, London and Nottingham.