Lack of Building regulations for removal of chimney breast done 20 years ago

checks123

Hello all, please need desperate help. We were very close to exchanging contracts when we realized the seller does not have building regs for chimney breast removal which has been done around 22-25 years ago. I o fcourse now understand that we could have taken an indemnity insurance and moved ahead but I have already contacted the council and shot myself in the leg.
We asked the seller to provide us with building regs. He has denied saying that the work is too old to get building regs.
Now obviously the council has on email that or property doesn't have building regs for the removal. All other documents are in place.

We can't apply for building regs until and unless we move in. The council has confirmed that it won't be a problem. But there might be additional work or cost involved if this wasn't done properly.The surveyor confirmed that the structure seems strong and supported and shouldnt be a problem. (But it wa the surveyor in the first place who suggested I speak with council ...grrrr)

We really like the house. What do you suggest we do?
1 What amount can we ask for a price reduction by?
2. Does the council send an enforcement notice for a property change done so long ago?
3. Does the council knowing that we dont have building regs affect us in any way?
4. Should we go ahead with the purchase?


Please help!!

Browntoa

negotiate a price to reflect possible work , best case its just a case of removing some plasterboard and plaster to expose the area

ssparks2003

Why not ask the seller to lodge a sum of money with the solicitor for a period of time, say 6 months to cover any required works and what ever is left over at the end of the period is returned to the seller

LandyAndy

Well it hasn't fallen down in 20+ years and I presume there are no signs of imminent collapse or your surveyor would have pointed them out so I don't think it would put me off, just a small sweetener required perhaps as suggested above.

eddddy

I guess the challenge is that your mortgage lender might require a valid indemnity policy, and you cannot get one.

It's a nonsense, because the indemnity policy covers you against enforcement by the council. And the council cannot take enforcement action after 20 years.

So it may be a case of whether you can persuade your mortgage lender to go ahead anyway.

(I guess some people might suggest that you take out an indemnity policy to keep the mortgage lender happy, and not say anything. You'll never need to claim on it.

But that may not work, if you've already told your solicitor that you approached the council.)

AnotherJoe

Why would you apply for building regs ? It's 20 years ago well past any need for that.
The indemnity policy would have been pointless since it would only have paid up if the council demanded enforcement which they can't since it's far too long ago for that. You might as well have set fire to a £50 note.

Is your lender refusing to proceed ? If not, I don't see what the issue is, you had a survey and it didn't show any signs it's about to fall down. If it's a big concern get a structural survey to assure you again but after 20 years odds are it's all good.

david1951

Your solicitor might be able to get a more bespoke (and expensive) indemnity policy if they ring up the insurance company and explain the situation.

I would ring your solicitor, tell them the situation (if they don't know already) and take their advice.

Are you sure the council know the exact address etc?

This is simply a case of satisfying your lender, so just do whatever you can to do this.

davidmcn

Looking for building regulations (or an indemnity policy) for works you know were done over 20 years ago is absurd. Have you seen the consents for the original construction of the house?! In Scotland our standard form of contract says you can ignore consents for work done over 20 years ago - different laws from England (where I'm guessing you are, though you don't say) but with similar effect, and we use the same lenders!

The question is whether the property is currently structurally sound, which isn't necessarily guaranteed by having paperwork from a quarter of a century ago. But if your surveyor hasn't raised any concerns I would just proceed.

Davesnave

davidmcn wrote: »

In Scotland our standard form of contract says you can ignore consents for work done over 20 years ago - different laws from England (where I'm guessing you are, though you don't say) .

She might be in Bexley:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=72666120

phoebe1989seb

david1951 wrote: »

Your solicitor might be able to get a more bespoke (and expensive) indemnity policy if they ring up the insurance company and explain the situation.

I would ring your solicitor, tell them the situation (if they don't know already) and take their advice.

Are you sure the council know the exact address etc?

This is simply a case of satisfying your lender, so just do whatever you can to do this.

We were quoted for one of these last time we sold - in our case for some timber dg windows that weren't covered by FENSA - as the work had been done within the previous twelve months.

The bespoke policy was £500 :eek:

In the end, despite insisting upon it, our buyers' solicitor and lender forgot about it and by the time they did remember we were able to get a cheaper policy (£100) as more than a year had elapsed since the windows were fitted.

Personally, I can't see the point in an indemnity for work carried out over twenty years ago, as if no issues have arisen the work sounds as though it's structurally sound - but guess it's down to your lender......

checks123

Thank you for your advice. We still don't know whether the lender will go ahead or not. Our mortgage advisors are different and our solicitors are different. The mortgage advisors haven't raised this as a concern and we have our mortgage offer already. Or solicitors do know that we have contacted the council with the exact address. But are there any chances that the council will actually enforce an action?