Cases - Eley v King & Chasemore

Record details

Name

Eley v King & Chasemore

Date

[1989]

Citation

1 EGLR 181

Keywords

Negligence in valuations and surveys

Summary

The defendants, who had carried out a building survey for the claimant house purchasers, were sued for negligence in failing to discover defects in the roof of the property. Having inspected the roof and found no sign of water penetration, the defendants decided to limit their external inspection of the roof to what could be seen from the ground, rather than obtaining and using a long ladder to reach the roof itself. The Court of Appeal agreed with the trial judge that, in these circumstances, the defendants' decision had not been negligent.

The defendants also drew attention to a tall fir tree close to the house and the attendant risk of subsidence, and advised the client to obtain insurance against ground movement. The Court of Appeal held that the surveyor had not been negligent in failing to investigate further, nor in failing to advise his client against purchasing the property. On the contrary, the surveyor had fulfilled his duty to the purchaser by giving him perfectly sound advice.