Cracks in wall and around window frame

[jl421]

The house I've moved into has this crack in the bedroom wall and under the window frame. Is this something to be super concerned about? I have no clue about building works etc

Do you own or rent? If you own, did your surveyor comment?

Personally, I would probably fill it and monitor to see if it opens up again. Cracks are not unusual, but it does look quite big.

Own! It does look rather big doesn't it.
What would you fill it with? Regular poly filler or something?

I would be concerned about that. It looks like either the plaster or the wall itself has shifted. (Would need to look at the exterior wall to see if it’s cracked right through).
Can you check for leaks? As it might just be the plaster that has blown due to damp, in which sort out any damp issues, (leaky window/gutter etc) remove the damaged plaster and allow everything to dry, before replastering and decorating.

Are you in Ireland? Did you get a mica survey? 😳

If you're in the UK it's probably just plaster but take a look outside the house to see if there's a crack on the exterior wall in the same place (if so you may have structural issues).

Although I do also note that you said "the house I've moved into" not "the house I bought" so if it's not your house, don't get involved in any remedial work and definitely don't pay for anything!

I’ve got similar after a downstairs extension 10 years ago (cracks by upstairs bay window) We’ve had various people out to look at it who have all said different things so we’ve just basically ignored it for now and monitoring the outside (can’t see anything from the outside)z

It's very similar to a crack in my house that I'm staring at right now however yours looks a little wider.

We had a structural survey when we moved in, the engineer didn't seem concerned and our house has loads of cracks! He gave some advice about repairing it (something along the lines of pulling the plaster off and attaching steel rods) but said when we replaster it will probably still crack again a little. Our mortgage lender sent round a valuer to do a physical valuation and they didn't seem concerned either.

Did your surveyor mention it? If you're really concerned you could have an engineer look at it.

That looks pretty bad. Around the edges of the crack it looks smooth, which tells me someone has tried to patch it up and it's opened up again.

If you really want to know how bad it is, get a hammer and a chisel and smash the plaster off and see what's underneath.

Check the outside for cracks and signs of repairs, different consistency/colour to the mortar etc.

What did the survey say?

I can't see anything from the outside

I have cracks like this in my place and we do have subsidence which is being dealt with by the insurers. However, the surveyor said they were only plaster cracks so not serious. The subsidence was obvious in the outside wall with much larger cracks and the door frame has moved considerably which has led to several years of getting it adjusted regularly.

Your original post says you've just moved in, and you subsequently said you own, so my assumption is that you've just bought. Did you have a survey done, and if so, did the surveyor pick up on the crack?