The best advice for appointing a Party Wall Surveyor is to choose your surveyor very carefully. 

There are many Party Wall Surveyors covering Manchester and Cheshire so you should do some basic research before deciding on who you will eventually appoint in the event of a party wall dispute. 
 
Many people do not know that once you appoint a surveyor under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 you cannot rescind the surveyors appointment no matter what reason you have to do so. In other words you have to continue with the same surveyor until the dispute is resolved. This is simply to prevent owners holding up the party wall process by constantly changing surveyors. 
 
If you are the building owner, your surveyor should be able to provide you with either a fixed cost if your work is straight forward or at least give you an indication of costs. We can provide provisional costs for the work if you are the building owner or if we are acting as agreed surveyor and the work is simple in nature. 
 
You also want your Party Wall Surveyor to be contactable when you need to contact him or her. Many people complain of the lack of personal service or communication when dealing with a large company of surveyors. All these points should factor in your final decision. 
We are extremely grateful to Richard for his reassuring and down to earth approach to every aspect of our dispute, He clearly has an encyclopaedic knowledge of his subject and couldn’t have been more helpful in successfully resolving our problem. 
Susan Bentham- Piling & party fence wall, Hyde- June 2023 

About Richard G Johnson 

Richard G Johnson is a Member of the Faculty of Party Wall Surveyors and has been an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Building since qualifying in 1995 having been in the industry for nearly 40 years. Furthermore, he has a Diploma in English Law after completing the first 2 years of the LLb (Hons) law degree. Richard is also a member of the Pyramus & Thisbie Society which seeks to advance knowledge of party wall legislation and procedure and to promote best professional practice in its application. 
As the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 is a piece of government legislation and it makes sense that a party wall surveyor should have some legal training. Along with legal training there is also a need to have a good knowledge of building. 
 
By deciding to use us you can be assured that your party wall matters will be dealt with professionally and without fuss. Coupled with this you are not going to pay the earth or unknown amounts for the work undertaken. Wherever possible, fixed fees will be arranged. 
When you need to speak to someone about your party wall matters you will always be talking directly to our surveyor rather than a secretary whether it is early morning or late at night and even weekends in most cases. We work nationwide and in and around London and we are particularly experienced in basement developments and have numerous ongoing basement party wall appointments at this time. 

To safeguard your property or for advice about serving notice call now: 

Richard G Johnson MPTS MFPWS ACIOB Dip Eng Law (Open) on 07740 257414 or 0333 577 3050