Planning permission certificate not issued for an extension work in kitchen(Part P)

helpmeplz81

I am a first time buyer and we have progressed with the purchase of a property but it recently came up with a planning permission issue. An extension work had been done by the current vendor in 2005 for which they didn't manage to get the Part P certificate sorted by the builder/electrician, as a result of which council did not issue the completion certificate. However now the vendor have contacted the council and council/building control have issued a letter stating that they are "most unlikely to insigate enforcment action in this instance". This has been shared with us(solicitor/bank). Now my mortgage lender is yet to come back whether they will be Okay to lend me for this property under the circumstance.

However I would like to seek your opinion please if bank is happy to lend me money for this property should I proceed with this buy or pull out?

I have consulted my solicitor and he has left it to me and I am confused.
Will I have a problem selling this property in future say 7-10 years down the line?

Can anything be done to get things sorted properly? I have already spoken to electrician who had done a EICR on this property and Part P can't be issue now, also getting an indemnity policy is not an option any more as vendor has contacted the coucil already.

Please please advise to take the right decision.

casperlarue

You need to concentrate on whether the electrical work was done to the standards in force when the extension was built, ie 8 years ago. The regs will have changed since then so retrospective approval isn't possible.

I would have a full electrical survey done, concentrating on the kitchen extension and ask specifically if the electrics are safe to use. I would assume as the current vendors have been using them for the last 8 years with no problems (?) that the insallation was done to the regs in force at the time.

fluffpot

yes I agree with the above post - get an electrical installation condition report (EICR) done - which is a full test of all the electrics - this will tell you if they are safe and comply - this is about all you can do as you can't get an installation cert now

HTH

helpmeplz81

Thanks again all, as said before I have got the EICR done already but nothing major has come up with regard to the extension, though the result is Unsatisfactory and some C2 are reported recommending some upgrades to recent changes in regulations.

What my main worry is being a first time buyer is this going to be a risky investment..

ValHaller

helpmeplz81 wrote: »

Thanks again all, as said before I have got the EICR done already but nothing major has come up with regard to the extension, though the result is Unsatisfactory and some C2 are reported recommending some upgrades to recent changes in regulations.

What my main worry is being a first time buyer is this going to be a risky investment..

At worst, the extension will have to be rewired. That is the limit of your risk - which in the scheme of things is not big.

Your issue is not Planning Permission, It is Building Regs approval. There is no obligation to upgrade anything to comply with current standards - unless it never complied with the regs at the time it was installed, in which case, what to do is perhaps not so clear.

I suggest you post the recommendations on the DIY forum, where you will get good advice on how you could deal with the electrical issues.