Restriction Preventing Property Sale

eshroom

I purchased a repossession 3 years ago. I am told by my current solicitors that there is a restriction placed on the property by Bank of Scotland relating to a clause in a document not held by the land registry. The restriction was placed on the property the day I completed the purchase.

• I don't bank with Bank of Scotland nor is my mortgage with them
• My solicitors have no insight into what the restriction is due to missing document in land registry
• I presume Bank of Scotland were the bank I bought the property from
• My original purchase solicitors were bought by Countrywide and have one person working 2 days per week on old files, who I ahve been waiting 4 weeks from a response from. They tell me there is no one else but him that can help

I have tried calling BoS, but no one I have spoken to know the right department/person to put me through to.

This is all incredibly frustrating and currently making it impossible for me to complete on my sale. Does anyone have any insight into how I can get BoS to lift this restriction, given current circumstances, or at least tell me what it is about?

lonestar1

Ask countrywide for their complaints procedure and follow it

cte1111

I've found that actually writing to companies is often the best way to get a non-standard issue dealt with. I think your best bet is to put in complaints with both BOS and Countrywide.

Here are the details to complain to BOS:
https://www.bankofscotland.co.uk/contactus/complain/
Make it clear what you are hoping for them to do, e.g. remove the restriction. When we had paid off a mortgage on our house, the building society hadn't removed their charge. I only found this out years later. I wrote to them and after a month or two they wrote back confirming that they had removed the charge. This case does look very odd, given that the charge was placed on the day you bought it. The complaints department often are able to get hold of the right people though, rather than a call handler who will struggle to know what to do.

Here's the complaints procedure for Countrywide:
https://www.cwpl.co.uk/Guides-Forms/PDF_Complaints_procedure_for_Clients.pdf

eshroom

Thanks for the responses. This is the restriction my solicitor just sent me, it seems to me the restriction has expired, but my solicitor says the restriction needs to be lifted before sale regardless:

3 (24.09.2012) RESTRICTION: Until 30 December 2012 no disposition of the registered estate ( other than a charge by the proprietor of the registered estate is to be registered without a certificate signed by Bank of Scotland of The Nound, Edinburgh EH1 1YZ that the provisions of clause 12.2 of the TRansfer dated 30 August 2012 made between (1) Bank of Scotland and (2)Alexis **** ****** have been complied with.

Land_Registry

eshroom - the removal of a restriction that is limited in time can be automatic where the relevant period has expired. The automatic cancellation could occur as and when an application was submitted after that date referred to. In theory therefore the registration of the purchase could trigger the automatic cancellation of the restriction.

Whether that is in fact the case here is likely to depend on the wording of the Transfer referred to in the restriction itself. I assume your solicitor has read it and taken the view that it needs to be lifted although you don't mention who by, you or the restrictioner?

I would assume that the Transfer placed certain conditions on Alexis around the purchase but it's the wording of the Transfer that is likely to tell you whether you can apply for it's removal simply because the time has passed or whether you do indeed need to get the restrictioner to withdraw it - in my experience I suspect it is the former but something to confirm with your solicitor.

I appreciate you have mentioned that we don't have a copy of the Transfer and I assume that has been checked and confirmed in some way?
When you completed the purchase was the provision not explained to you by the conveyancer?

eshroom

Yes, my solicitor checked and there is no copy of the transfer at the Land Registry. Unfortunately, my conveyancer at the time of purchase made no mention of any restriction.

My solicitor has taken the view that the restrictioner must lift the restriction, but is checking herself with the Land Registry given the time limit.

In the absence of the Transfer, would an automatic cancellation therefore not be possible?

Land_Registry

eshroom - the Transfer may not be the key here as cancellation can still occur on application as we would contact the restrictioner to advise that we intend to remove it.

I would expect them to be aware of the conditions imposed in the Transfer which then gave rise to the restriction and thus be able to make a case for refusing it's removal. They may produce a copy as well.

Note - your solicitor may not have mentioned the restriction but I would perhaps have expected them to mention the clauses in the Transfer in some way as they are the key here.

As cte1111 posts writing to the name and address in the restriction may be the better option. That is who we would write to for example

eshroom

Thanks again for the quick response. I have managed to speak to HBOS who were very swift in investigating and concluded that the restriction was left on the property in error and would be removed within 3-5 working days.

They said that once they request the restriction be lifted to the Land Registry, it will disappear with immediate effect and be visible straight away.

Thanks cte1111 for providing the link to the complaints process. I was very impressed with the speed with which they dealt with this. They even offered me compensation, which I neither expected nor asked for.

Land_Registry

Nothing lodged as yet - only caveat I would add is their assertion that it would 'disappear with immediate effect and be visible straight away'

Hopefully it will be but we won't really know until they submit the application