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The slab doesn't need to protrude past the face of the bricks. It's common practice to form an edge thickening with a toe that ensures the brickwork begins below ground level and the concrete slab isn't visible. It's not essential though and does require a lot more work which adds a lot of cost...

Could you chase in lead flashing and lap it down over the lower wall? Or is that not possible because of the access issues?

RSJ is a colloquial term used by builders to describe pretty much any UB or UC section. But the term is wrong, exactly as Tony says a few replies ago. You’d expect the steel supplier to know better, but maybe they use the term, RSJ, as it’s what your average builder knows and understands UC and...

I'm wondering if the actual problem is that the pad stone wasn't cast / installed level? It might be that the beam was never bearing onto the pad stone properly. It probably wouldn't be an issue if the pad is made from C35 concrete, as the bearing area probably won't be any where near the...

IMHO, even if the cracking does somehow indicate structural movement, it seems unlikely that the movement is related to any downwards movement on the neighbour’s side, or the party wall. This type of movement would most likely lead to cracking from the opposite corners of the window to what you...

Well, maybe, but as the concrete is 150 to 200mm thick, it would easily span half a metre assuming it's tensile and shear strength are around 10% of its compressive strength (and that's assuming a weak C8/10 mix), so I wouldn't be too worried.

Also , it's common to get cracks such as this in render and if not visible internally that indicates that the crack is only in the render and not in the masonry itself. It's unlikely that the foundations of a two storey Victorian terrace would be overloaded with the addition of another storey in...

Non load bearing walls don't need a foundation. It's not uncommon to see non load bearing block walls built off double joists (or even floorboards spanning between joists) in older properties.

Are the smooth blocks the new ones? I reckon they were what was left over from another job - shouldn't be that hard to get hold of standard concrete blocks...

If roof spread is an issue, look at how the rafters are tied into the ceiling joists, and consider putting a couple of purlins in (or replacing the existing ones) to take the lateral load off the wall.

Definitely quite a young tree - if younger than the extension get rid of it if possible. Hope you get on well with your neighbours ;)

No reason for the tree to not be 1m away from the extension, but the foundations would need to be designed to accommodate the tree. If the tree was planted after the extension was built this is more of an issue, but then there is no issue of resulting heave should the tree be removed, as the...

Underpinning is a last resort. It's highly unlikely to be necessary. The insurance company will do all they can to avoid paying out to have it done, and it's not what you want either, even if they pay, due to the future issues with selling and remortgaging. The crack at the moment is minor...

Also, how tall is the tree? Is it mature? If you have clay soils and the extension predates the tree, your best bet is to ask your neighbour to remove it, regardless of whether the cracking is indicative of subsidence. Otherwise the risk is always there.

Is the crack larger at the top than the bottom? If it is it indicates rotation of the foundation. If not, it's probably just shrinkage at the joint. At the moment the crack looks minor and the insurance company at best will arrange for an engineer to report on the cracking. However, you will...

They should employ a structural engineer to test, monitor, and report on the findings as I suggested above. How long has the tree been there? Does the extension predate the tree? If so there’s a good chance the foundations aren’t deep enough for the influence of the tree roots. If it turns out...

Yeah, that's why the nearby boreholes give more info, but a site specific trial pit or borehole is the only way to be sure... I fallen foul of it myself on a job where local geology indicated chalk but there was several metres of clay above it...

Looks like you have an extension toothed into an existing structure. Also looks like the crack is slightly wider at the top than at the bottom. There is a possibility that it could indicate rotational movement of the extension foundations. Have you noticed the crack change in size recently...

There are two versions - https://geologyviewer.bgs.ac.uk/?_ga=2.75874581.1440108471.1660212257-802806948.1660212257 Click top left and it opens up a side panel where you can choose superficial, bedrock, or combined. Not that much superficial around though, assuming you are indeed in Brizzle...

Mudstone can be shrinkable yes - are there trees nearby? What does it say about superficial deposits? Any nearby borehole info? If the bank just does a drive-by valuation you might be OK - just has to be worth more than the money they're lending you...