COST OF REPAIRS NOT RECOVERABLE FROM SURVEYOR

Smith v Peter North & Partners (a firm) [2001] EWCA Civ 1553, [2002] PNLR 12

The Court of Appeal in Smith v Peter North & Partners (a firm) [2001] EWCA Civ 1553, [2002] PNLR 12 held that the claimants, who alleged that they had purchased an equestrian centre in reliance upon a survey which had been negligently prepared by the defendants, were not entitled to recover from the defendants the cost of carrying out the repairs necessary to bring the property up to the required standard. The Court of Appeal affirmed that the prima facie measure of recovery in these cases is the difference between the price paid for the property by the claimants and its actual value at the time of purchase and that, in the present case, there was nothing to displace that prima facie measure. On the facts the difference in value was zero so that the claimants were not entitled to recover any damages from the defendants under this particular head.