Charlton needed to win all eight of their remaining matches to have a realistic chance of survival, so it was somewhat surprising that manager Phil Parkinson decided to play with Tresor Kandol as a lone striker.
In a poor game of few chances seventh-placed Preston's hopes of getting into a play-off position could be scuppered by their poor away form.
They have the best home record in the division but have managed only three victories on their travels and created very few chances in a game that neither side looked capable of winning.
Stephen Elliott did fire across the face of goal for Preston early on while Charlton youngster Jonjo Shelvey headed over the bar and then had an effort saved.
In the last 15 minutes Charlton reverted to a 4-4-2 formation and almost scored with the best chance of the game when Preston goalkeeper Andy Lonergan did brilliantly to tip over Kandol's close-range header from Shelvey's corner.
Apart from a Jon Parkin header, Preston produced very little as an attacking force and they could have been punished in stoppage time when Billy Jones almost headed into his own net but was relieved to see the ball fly behind the far corner.
Charlton will now need to prepare for what looks like life in a lower division as games run out. They have won only two of their 29 league games and can have few complaints if they are relegated, while Preston will need to dramatically improve their away form if they are to stand any chance of promotion.