A flood map, a seller’s account and an inspection note answer different questions. A map may identify a risk in the area. The seller may describe what they remember. The surveyor can record what was visible on the day. A useful Level 2 report explains how those pieces fit together without turning any one of them into proof that the property has, or has never, flooded.
When outsourcing the first draft, give the writer the results you have reviewed and the conclusions you want carried through. A link alone leaves too much room for interpretation: the writer needs to know what was searched, what the source covers and what the result means for this instruction.
Use locality research to inform the survey
Appendix C of the RICS Home Survey Standard gives examples of environmental matters that may be relevant to the locality, including flooding, radon and former mining. It cautions that data quality varies and that its examples are neither exhaustive nor prescriptive. RICS’ standards page, checked on 3 November 2026, still directs members to use the first edition until the second takes effect.
Record the result and its reach
- Source and date: name the provider and dataset, and record when it was checked.
- Search location: identify whether the lookup used a postcode, mapped point, site boundary or specific address.
- Result and coverage: keep the source’s category and identify what it covers. If a layer was not checked or no result was returned, record that explicitly.
- Property evidence: separately record what the surveyor observed and any attributed history.
- Surveyor’s instruction: specify the significance, any further enquiry and where the advice belongs in the report.
Use the same structure for radon or mining results. Preserve the exact search wording and extent: an area designation is not a measurement inside the dwelling, and an area search should not be rewritten as a finding that a mine feature is present beneath the house.
Worked example: a surface water result in Wales
In a fictional handover, the surveyor supplies a map extract showing surface water risk near the access to a house. The inspection notes record no visible signs of recent flooding in the accessible rooms. The seller says they are unaware of previous flooding. The surveyor wants the buyer to ask their legal adviser to check the recorded history and to establish whether suitable insurance is available before committing to purchase.
Natural Resources Wales explains that its mapping shows risk to an area and cannot tell users whether an individual property will flood. The draft should therefore state where the mapped risk appears, attribute the seller’s account and explain the surveyor’s recommended checks. It should not say “the property floods” or “there is no flood risk”. For properties elsewhere in the UK, use the relevant authority’s source and read its own limitations.
Review the wording across the report
Compare the location section, risk summary and any legal enquiry. They should agree on the type of risk, the area covered and the action recommended. If a source changes, or a search result is missing or conflicts with the notes, use the drafting query log to settle the wording with the inspecting surveyor before issue.
Hand over the drafting with the evidence intact
The Survey Edit provides outsourced Level 2 report drafting support from your inspection notes, photographs, template and instructions. Include the environmental results you have reviewed and the advice you want reflected. The inspecting surveyor interprets the evidence, reviews and amends the draft, approves the advice and issues the report. Enquire about drafting support for your next Level 2 report.
You inspect. We write.