No Drop Kerb - can lender refuse mortgage?

Slithery

Korra wrote: »

Have you looked at what the council requirements? One of the requirements with my council was that 1/4 of the driveway needs to be permeable surface amongst the minimum length and width requirements.

Yep. You do that by laying two rows of slabs where the tires go and using gravel for the rest

Korra

Slithery wrote: »

Yep. You do that by laying two rows of slabs where the tires go and using gravel for the rest

I was lucky to have sufficient space to park my car and also make a nice garden area so worked well for me which is in addition to the garage at the back that could be used for another car if required.:)

Cakeguts

Have the sellers applied for a dropped kerb? I would think that they have and it has been refused.

bouicca21

I’m pretty sure my council would refuse it, others might not, which is why I think getting an inspection would be a good idea.

raselmahbub

Thank you guys!
I will ask my solicitor tomorrow to go back to them and request for more information whether they have already applied for this or not in the past. If not, are they willing to go through the application process and get this inspected. I am happy to pay for the cost, I mentioned.

Lets see what happens...

oldwiring

I suggest reading this from coop insurance As I see it, the owner of the land needing crossing to access the property could prevent the OP getting there, even physically should he want.

The Coop certainly does not suggest it to be a matter of no consequence.

Xyzzy

I have no idea what conversations you've had with the solicitors or sellers, however the phrase that you have quoted from the solicitors has absolutely nothing to do with a dropped kerb. The right of way that they refer to is your right of way over the land (the pavement). Usually, within a title there will include a right of way over any pavement or land which you would need to cover to access your own property. Without this, theoretically, the owner of said land could refuse you access via their own land, thereby restricting you access to your own property. This is what the insurance covers; it will indemnify you should you lose access to your own property and thus be unable to see it (or the mortgagor sell it for that matter). This is not something covered by the surveyor; it is the role of the solicitor to ensure all positive and negative covenants relating to the land are reasonable, and notify the lender if not.

quantumlobster

I'm not an expert, but I reckon the combination of narrow access plus street lamp is probably fatal to a dropped-kerb application here.

wesleyad

If the problem is the kerb and not anything more as Xyzzy has brought up then I see 4 options.

1. You tell the seller you are pulling out if the don't pay the indemnity

2. You pay the indemnity

3. You approach the counciil who give permission for kerb to be dropped

4. You approach council who refuse permission

If 4 happens you could be at an impasse as very likely you would not be able to get an indemnity with that knowledge. So I'd be very careful going that route if you want this house sale to be easy

raselmahbub

Thanks @Xyzzy for the nice explanation.

I have asked the same to my solicitor, and he has come back to me with the following...

You have right of way by foot onto your land, however you would not be able to drive over the pavement as you have no vehicular right of way. When you apply to the local authority to drop the kerb, they will provide you with a list of their approved contractors to undertake the works. Once they provide this list it can be argued that they are giving you consent to pass over their land once the works have been completed.
Additionally, if you drive over the standard kerb and cause damage the penalties can be quite severe.
I can confirm that the sellers have not enquired about consent for the dropped kerb.

I think its now clear that the drop kerb is the main issue here and the vendor has never applied for it in the past.