And how to avoid them altogether!
Most domestic party wall matters are routine—rear extensions, loft steels, short trench-fill foundations. They shouldn’t turn into a legal saga or a four-figure shock. Yet owners still face chunky fees for simple work, slow surveyors billing for delay, and lightly qualified surveyors charging premium rates.
Here’s how to spot when fees stop being fair, what “reasonable” looks like under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, and how to keep costs sensible.
What “reasonable costs” really mean
Under the Act, surveyors can only charge reasonable fees—time that’s necessary and proportionate to: review notifiable drawings, liaise with the other side, agree protections and conditions, draft/serve the award, and do any inspections the award genuinely requires. Padding beyond that—general project management or endless email tennis—shouldn’t be pushed through as party wall cost.
Red flags your fees aren’t reasonable
Simple scope, complex invoice. Two loft beams or shallow foundations >3 m from your neighbour shouldn’t need dozens of billable hours.
Delay inflation. Time caused by avoidable slowness isn’t “reasonable.” Ask for a timetable and query charges tied to drift.
Day rate vs. credentials. If an unregulated, inexperienced surveyor bills like a seasoned RICS practitioner.
Duplicated work. In two-surveyor jobs, you shouldn’t pay twice for the same review.
Scope creep. Extra site visits or bolt-ons must tie directly to risk from notifiable works.
A fair benchmark
For typical domestic jobs (loft steels, rear/side extensions, routine adjacent excavation) total party wall professional fees often cluster around ~£1,500 across both sides. Figures go higher mainly for genuinely complex schemes—basements, piling, multi-owner sites, or unusual structural risk. Most projects aren’t like that. Treat £1,500 as a real-world yardstick and require justification for going far above it.
Practical ways to keep fees in check
- Get a scope-and-fee letter up front. Deliverables, rates, assumptions, and timelines.
- Fix what’s predictable. Notices, standard award drafting, and routine comms are great for fixed fees; reserve hourly for true unknowns.
- Set service standards. Target turnaround times stop delay becoming a profit centre.
- Insist on itemised invoices. Challenge padding early.
- Use the Act’s safeguards. Your surveyor can formally challenge the other side’s fees and, if needed, refer costs to the third surveyor for a binding call.
Skip the drama: our clear, low, published pricing
Dodge the chunky bills and creeping “extras.” We keep pricing simple, fast, and—we believe—among the lowest in the UK:
- Party Wall Notice service: £25 per adjoining ownership (multi-notice bundles discounted)
- Act administration as Agreed Surveyor (single surveyor): typically £300 fixed-fee (depends on complexity and number of notices/owners)
- Two-surveyor route (we act for the building owner): fixed-fee proposals from £325 for our side—plus we work to keep your neighbour’s surveyor’s hourly fees reasonable and contained
Why this matters: Transparent, fixed pricing aligns incentives—quick, correct, and proportionate—and avoids exactly the behaviours that inflate bills.
When to call it out (and what to say)
Push back when a simple job creeps toward complex-basement money, when slowness is billed, or when invoices lack detail. Send a short, factual note referencing scope, proportionality, and timelines, and ask for: (1) itemisation by task/time; (2) justification tied to risk; and (3) a revised cost-to-complete. If that doesn’t reset things, ask your surveyor to challenge costs within the award or escalate to the third surveyor.
Bottom line
Party wall procedure is meant to be procedural, not painful. Use £1,500 as a reality check for standard work, expect higher only with genuine complexity, and challenge anything bloated. Or skip the uncertainty: lock in fair, fixed pricing from the start and keep your project moving.
Ready to keep it simple (and affordable)?
Email team@simplesurvey.co.uk with your drawings and addresses. We’ll confirm whether the Act applies, draft notices, and give you a fixed path to the award—without the chunky fees.