Is Indemnity Insurance Enough?

AL5410650

Hi

I am purchasing a house and it turns out that the driveway is not registered to the current owner, it is unregistered. My solicitor says that we should get them to apply for a possesory title backed up by indemnity insurance. Now the complicated part..... the people selling the house have seperated and are selling so they can go there seperate ways. The woman who is dealing with most of this is keen to get the sale done as she has now moved out and wants her share of the cash from the sale but the man is still living there and not in any rush to move. The lady has been doing most of the dealings with the solicitors on there side of things and has said that if they apply for a posessory title that her ex-husband will refuse to sell because he will find out that the land for the driveway and the land next door is all unregistered (they previously believed it was registered to somebody but her solicitor has found out it isn't). He will then want to stay there and try and claim all the land to build on. Anyway... do i need them to apply for this or should i be OK wth just Indemnity Insurance for the driveway (i'm not concernd about the other land to the side of the house at this point). They have lived there and been using the driveway for 15 years approx. If they do only get Indemnity Insurance for this, can i then apply for a Posessory Title? My solicitor has said that he thinks Indemnity Policies have clauses in them to stop this. I am also a little concerned that maybe i would not be able to apply for Posessory Title because maybe the timings will start again from zero (not the 15 years that they have lived there and the time the driveway has been there) as i am a new occupant of the property.

Thanks in advance for any responses

AL5410650

theartfullodger

Go to another solicitor and see what they say: This sounds like a right f***ing mess and I'd be very nervous if it were me...

Cheers!

Lodger

Richard_Webster

Do other people use this driveway? Doe sit look as if it is part of the front garden of the house?

Normally if you have exclusive use of the land in question then a possessory title should be applied for. This is then supported by an indemnity insurance. Although 12 years use as of right is generally sufficient to obtain a possessory title there are some technical reasons why it can be used - these are not very likely in most cases, but because they exist the Land Registry makes you wait another 12 years before they will upgrade to absolute. The insurance covers this gap, but I am not sure that for title you can simply have insurance.

If it is merely access to the property that is the issue then lack of access indemnity insurance can usually obtained but that does not give title and if the access is shared with others it will generally not be possible to obtain a possessory title at all.

The facts illustrate the dangers of buying from a divorcing couple and I always tell buyer clients to be very wary if they find out that a divorce is involved as some kind of argument between the couple can slow things down or bring them to a complete stop.

AL5410650

Hi

Nobody else uses this driveway but i think one of the other properties next door do have access down the driveway that isn't ever used. The driveway looks like it is part of the property and there are clear bounderies around te property.

If i do only get the couple to get indemnity insurance on the driveway, can i then apply for posessory title or would i have to live there for 12 years (and then wait another 12 years for absoloute)? I'm assuming that because the driveway has been there for over 12 years already i should be able to apply for possesory title and it doesn't matter that i have just moved in. I just want to make sure before it all goes ahead.

Thanks for the advice

AL5410650

Richard_Webster

You could get the lady to do a statutory declaration as to the adverse possession over a 12 year period. She and her husband would still have to transfer such title as they have in the extra land so that you can then apply for a possessory title on the back of their adverse possession.

If she doesn't do a a statutory declaration then unless you can get someone else with knowledge of the situation to do the declaration you will have to wait 12 years and then another 12 for absolute.

If others use the land then this may be sufficient to prevent the adverse possession being proved.