Chancel Repair

TheGame7

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supermumno1

The above are indeed valid questions and no-one can answer them for sure. Consider however that there are about 5200 parishes in England and Wales that this law applies to. Multiply that by the number of homes within each and there are a HUGE number of people potentially affected, many of whom having not moved in recently will actually have no idea they may be liable. We questioned and questioned the risks. The law society is actively campaigning to get the law changed to abolish chancel repair liability and it would seem there is a fair chance that by the time 25years is up it will have been changed. The land registration act 2002 originally left out chancel liability because the government deemed a court of appeal decision against liability covered future claims. Sadly that was then overturned in the house of Lords later on and the addition to the 2002 act was put in to try and put a stop to it. They were unable to fully close it then and there, but attempted to start a time limited closure. Hopefully this will be considered further and acted upon in full in due course.

If this risk is so high why are the insurance policies so cheap? You can get a very basic policy for under £100 for 25 years cover. Compare that against your yearly car insurance cost and home insurance and you realise that these companies do not really consider this a serious risk. Our policy does cover us for devaluation of the house in the event of a claim also so if you pay a bit more there is minimal risk. The question is the 25 years thing but though people are claiming you can not insure then, no-one actually knows that. Hopefully it will not be necessary.

Also just think of what happens to the government if this law continues. Firstly they will have responsibility paying up any claims on land they own. Secondly if the prices of 100's of thousands of houses fall the revenue obtained from stamp duty will fall significantly too. Are they honestly going to allow themselves to be shot in the foot.

So, after lots of thinking very hard, we have decided to take the small risk and buy a house that is potentially liable. We are not generally risk takers in our lives and we had at one point thought that it would be a deal breaker for us until we sat back and looked at the likely chances and cover we could get. So long as the land registry don't register and entry when you move the risk is very small. If the church then register the interest later at least you will know your neighbours will all be registered too and then any claim would be shared out between many people. Though the liability is officially open ended think about the level of the claim too and the likely number of people who would share it. I think I worked out that for us a million pound repair would equate to about £650 a household in our area IF everyone was validly liable.

If you want more info then let me know. There are some websites that I have found very useful to look up more info.

danuk

Forgetting about the insurance cover, say they come knocking on your door, they would then come knocking on all doors in your area... divide the total number of houses by the money they want and it may not even need insurance to cover it....

small risk in my eyes get the 25 years insurance and you'll be fine......

Phaid

I also created a thread on this subject, with the main gist being that you can get an infinite policy to protect yourself from the coe. Although it does cost more, there was other pricing options which I have scans of if anyone wants them. I created it as no other thread mentions the extra policies, although I'm not sure why, they was attached to my report which I assume is just a standard report.
I love the house and will be taking this infinite policy out.
Since learning about this law my view of coe and religion in general has sunk even lower than I ever thought possible!

Regards,
Phaid.