Adverse possession claim rejected - any advice?

niccafc

We have a piece of land next to us, owned by the building contractors who built the houses on our road. Our house is the last house on the street, adjoining fields. We have had full access to the land and used it for the last 34 years. At the end of last year, the land was put up for auction without our knowledge. We applied for an adverse possession as we had maintained the land for the last 34 years (although being fully aware it wasnt owned by us). It has just been rejected by land registry due to an objection by the building company on the grounds that the deeds have allowed us rights to pass and repass over the land. Can anyone give further advice on how we can now proceed with this (we tried to buy it ourselves 12 years ago and they wouldnt sell, but now asking a ridiculous amount of money for a small piece of land). The adjoining fields are owned by a family in our village who disagree with building and would never sell to the builders.

Miss_Samantha

This is really the sort of thing you want a knowledgeable lawyer to advise on and represent you about.

Especially when dealing with company which is definitely using a lawyer to deal with these issues.

G_M

I'm not surprised your claim failed.

The land is registered. The registered owner was aware you were using it (I guess, since you discussed buying it from them). The registered owner objected to the claim. And as you say, the deeds give you a right of access.

There is no automatic right to take over land just because you've used it for 12 + years.

But for a more definitive answer and advice on whether to appeal, seek expert advice.

Has the auction taken place? If yes and it failed to sell, or if not yet, then make another offer as the owner clearly now wants to sell.

glasgowdan

Again, I'm no expert but believe your claim to someone else's property is very cheeky and should fail. Are you, in fact, just trying to make sure nobody builds a house there?

Miss_Samantha

My understanding is that it does not really matters whether the landlord is registered. However, if you have right of access then you are not usually in an 'adverse' situation and that may be enough for your claim to fail.

As said, it is worthwhile to consult a professional before making a claim.

moneyistooshorttomention

You had permission to use the land. That is what the fact of you having the "right to pass and repass" down in your deeds means - it's a form of giving permission.

To try and claim someone's land with "adverse possession" means that you would have been using the land without permission.

It's the fact that you were given permission that has caused your claim to fail.

That's the end of the story. You lost.

Hoploz

All you can do is try to buy it. If it fails to sell at a high price then offer what you're willing to pay, but the likelihood is, it'll be worth more to someone else who plans to use it in a different way to the way you want to continue doing.
.... Which begs the question, what are you willing to pay, to stop someone else using the land in a way you won't want?

G_M

Slight differences between registered an unregistered land - hence my noting that.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/adverse-possession-of-1-unregistered-land-and-2-registered-land/practice-guide-5-adverse-possession-of-1-unregistered-and-2-registered-land-where-a-right-to-be-registered-was-acquired-before-13-october-2003

You must show that:

• the squatter has factual possession of the land
• the squatter has the necessary intention to possess the land
• the squatter’s possession is without the owner’s consent
• all of the above have been true of the squatter and any predecessors through whom the squatter claims for at least 12 years prior to the date of the application (see The limitation period)

steampowered

I think you are on to a loser I'm afraid. Although seek specialist advice if you are unsure.

As you had the right to use the land, your possession was not "adverse".

Furthermore, where land is registered, the owner of the land has the right to object to your application - as they had the right to do in your case. If the owner objects, you would only become entitled to the land if you are able to meet the very narrow conditions in paragraph 5 of this piece of legislation, such as a genuine mistake as to the location of a boundary - see http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2002/9/schedule/6.

If the above conditions were not met, you could still get the land through adverse possession if you applied again after another 2 years if the owner had taken no action to remove you in the interim, but of course you would still fail as your possession was not "adverse".

steampowered

Adverse possession in the case of unregistered land vs registered land is different.

In the case of unregistered land, the person in possession of the land can get it after 12 years if they meet the conditions listed in G_M's post.

In the case of registered land, the owner gets a notice from the land registry and can object. If the owner objects, the adverse possession claim will fail automatically, subject to a few very narrow exceptions. In practice the owner would always object, so it is much more difficult to get land by adverse possession than it used to be ...

getmore4less

DO you also have to show no one else had use of the land?

That would need it fencing off from any public access.