HOW TO HIRE · TRADES & CONSTRUCTION

How to hire a structural engineer in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

No statutory register controls structural engineers; building control checks the design. The checks, the questions and the paperwork to keep.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a structural engineer in five steps

  1. Say what you needBeam calculations, a crack survey, foundations for an extension, or a full structural survey.
  2. Ask about qualificationsChartered status and experience with homes like yours.
  3. Ask about insuranceProfessional indemnity cover for the design.
  4. Agree the deliverablesCalculations, drawings, a report — and whether building control will accept them.
  5. Keep the calculationsWith the building control approval and the deeds.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

No statutory register controls who may practise as a structural engineer in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland; what the law checks is the design, which building control assesses when the structural engineer's calculations are submitted for building regulations approval. A structural engineer should carry professional indemnity insurance, which covers loss caused by a design error, as well as public liability.

Get a clear answer on approval for the structural engineer's calculations, and the reference number if there is one. Ask for the insurer and cover limit before you commission the structural engineer's calculations. gov.uk →

Building regulations approval

Structural alterations, such as removing a load-bearing wall, are building work that needs building regulations approval; building control reviews the structural engineer's calculations as part of it. If the structural engineer's calculations is approved on full plans in England, expect building control's completion certificate within about 8 weeks of the finish, as long as it complies.

Get the building control reference for the structural engineer's calculations before anything starts. gov.uk →

Building warrant (Scotland)

In Scotland the owner is responsible for having a building warrant where the structural engineer's calculations needs one, even when a builder does the work, and without it the council can fine you and order the work removed. In Northern Ireland, you tell the council's building control before the structural engineer's calculations starts.

Ask to see the Scottish warrant, or the Northern Ireland building control reference, before the structural engineer's calculations starts. mygov.scot →

Party wall notice

In England and Wales, the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 requires notice to neighbours before work on or close to a shared wall or boundary — common with the structural engineer's calculations — and that agreement sits apart from building regulations approval; Scotland's rules differ.

Ask who will serve the party wall notices for the structural engineer's calculations, and how long before work starts. gov.uk →

VAT

Expect 20% VAT, the standard rate, on a structural engineer's calculations and drawings: a business above the £90,000 registration threshold is required to charge it and to show it separately from the labour and materials.

Ask for the VAT number, and look for VAT as its own line on the engineering fee. gov.uk →

“Are you chartered, and with which institution?”

A good answer: A clear answer with a membership you can check; experience with domestic work matters as much.

“Will building control accept your calculations?”

A good answer: Yes, prepared for submission, and the structural engineer answers building control's queries.

“Do you need to visit, and what will you open up?”

A good answer: A site visit for anything beyond a simple beam, and any opening-up agreed with you.

“What will the structural engineer's report include?”

A good answer: For a survey: the cause of the problem, the evidence and the recommended fix, in plain words.

“Will the structural engineer specify temporary support?”

A good answer: For a beam or underpinning, how the structure is propped during the work.

“How long until I get the calculations?”

A good answer: A date, so the builder and building control can plan.

Getting the quote right

  • The deliverables — calculations, drawings, report
  • Site visits included
  • Answering building control queries included
  • Fixed fee or hourly rate stated
  • Who actually attends — the engineer who signs the calculations, employed or subcontracted — and the business's VAT number, with VAT at 20% shown as its own line

Walk away if

  • Sizes a beam by phone without seeing the wall
  • No professional indemnity insurance
  • Calculations building control will not accept
  • A crack report with no cause identified
  • No written fee
LOW
£300
TYPICAL
£600
HIGH
£1,500

What a structural engineer costs: £300–£1,500 per job

Structural engineers price per job: beam calculations are the small end, while crack investigations, structural surveys and designs for an extension cost more. Structural Engineer price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Structural engineers near you, with the badges that matter shown

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Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. BriefWhat the structural engineer is asked to design or investigate.
  2. Site visitInspection, measurements and any opening-up.
  3. Calculations or reportThe design or findings prepared.
  4. Building controlCalculations submitted and queries answered.
  5. Site supportAdvice to the builder during the work if agreed.

Structural calculations
The engineer's sums showing a beam or foundation is strong enough.
Load-bearing wall
A wall that carries weight from above.
Steel beam (RSJ)
A steel section that carries the load when a wall is removed.
Padstone
A block that spreads a beam's load into the wall.
Subsidence
Downward movement of the ground under a building.
Professional indemnity
Insurance against loss caused by a design error.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep the calculations and drawingsWith the building control approval and completion certificate, for when you sell.
Check the builder followed themThe beam size, padstones and props as specified.
Keep the reportA crack or subsidence report, for your insurer or a buyer.
Rate the workOnly booked jobs can be reviewed on Locufy, so yours carries weight; if the structural engineer's calculations falls short, use the make-it-right step first and the provider is asked to fix it before the review is published.

STEP 1Give the engineer a written chance to fix itMost problems with the structural engineer's calculations are settled at this stage: say what is wrong, attach photos and set a fair deadline. If the structural engineer's calculations fell below reasonable care and skill, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 entitles you to have it redone or to pay less.
STEP 2Use Locufy's make-it-right stepRate the structural engineer's calculations under four stars and you are asked whether to send it to the provider first; we follow it through. Then the review goes up.
STEP 3Unapproved or dangerous workAn approval that was needed for the structural engineer's calculations and never obtained is taken up by the council: building control in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, or in Scotland the building standards service, which holds the owner responsible for the warrant. For a dispute about the structural engineer's calculations with the trader, Trading Standards is reached through the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on 0808 223 1133 in England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 800 9060, or Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 in Northern Ireland.
STEP 4Money still in disputeIf the structural engineer's calculations is still not settled, you can claim without a solicitor: the small claims track takes claims up to £10,000 in England and Wales, simple procedure up to £5,000 in Scotland, and the small claims court up to £5,000 in Northern Ireland.

Hiring a structural engineer: questions people ask

No statutory register controls the title; check chartered membership, experience and professional indemnity insurance. Building control checks the design.

Removing a load-bearing wall is structural work that needs approval; building control will want the structural engineer's calculations.

£300–£1,500 a job, typically around £600. Simple beam calculations sit at the low end; surveys and full designs cost more. See the Structural Engineer price guide for the detail, then search your postcode above to compare structural engineers nearby.

For cracks that may be structural, a structural engineer can investigate the cause and specify a fix.

In England and Wales, work on or near a shared wall needs notice to neighbours under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996.

The builder installs it to the structural engineer's design; building control inspects.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in trades & construction

How to hire: ArchitectHow to hire: BuilderHow to hire: UnderpinningHow to hire: House ExtensionHow to hire: Steel Fabrication & WeldingHow to hire: Concrete & Foundations SpecialistHow to hire: Loft ConversionHow to hire: Basement ConversionAll 701 hiring guides →

Structural engineers near you

Structural engineers in LondonStructural engineers in ManchesterStructural engineers in BirminghamStructural engineers in GlasgowStructural engineers in BelfastAll structural engineers on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. gov.uk — building regulations approval (England)
  2. gov.uk — building regulations: how to apply
  3. mygov.scot — if a builder is doing the work for you
  4. nidirect — how to apply for Building Regulations approval
  5. gov.uk — party walls and building work
  6. Party Wall etc. Act 1996
  7. Architects Act 1997, section 20 — use of the title 'architect'
  8. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  9. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 54 — what you can ask for when a service falls short
  10. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 30 — the 14-day cancellation period
  11. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 28 — contracts the cancellation right does not cover
  12. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 36 — services started within the cancellation period
  13. Civil Procedure Rules Part 26 — the small claims track limit (England and Wales)
  14. Scottish Courts and Tribunals — making a claim under simple procedure
  15. nidirect — the small claims process (Northern Ireland)
  16. VAT rates — VAT rates for goods and services: standard rate 20% on most goods and services
  17. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register