Is my solicitor right or should I push for more information?

Competsoph

Hi all,

I'm looking for the opinions of those more experienced than myself regarding my current situation.
I am purchasing a 1930s property and have sent several enquiries to my solicitor from the poorly-completed Property Information Form. After chasing her and multiple backwards and forwards, she has stated these as her conclusive answers however I am not sure about some of them and would like some advice. 
My main concerns are as follows:

1. The back boundary fence has been moved backwards over a decade ago to encompass, approx 8ft of, the land at the back of the house (leading up to a railway). The current vendor did not do this and all houses on the street did the same. No-one has ever disputed this boundary move. This extra land is not included on the title plan that she wants me to sign and the owner of this land is not registered on the LR or any other platform that she has been able to identify. My question was, what happens if the original owner comes along and wants it back?   Her response: 'The Seller has confirmed that the back garden has been used by them during their ownership and as a result they have agreed to provide a Statutory Declaration and Adverse Possession Indemnity Insurance Policy, this has been referred to your Lender to ensure they are happy to proceed.' My question is, is this enough to cover us should anyone try to claim this land? I've looked into adverse possession but can't say I fully understand. 
2. There has been a rear extension added to the house and 'The Seller has confirmed that the rear extension was undertaken some decades ago and therefore no documentation is held. The windows were replaced in 2004 and again no documentation is held'. I am aware that BR change regularly, my surveyor has assessed the extension (awaiting report) and after viewing I don't expect it to fall down any time soon. My question really was, will this affect us in the coming years/is this anything to worry about?
3. The property has had a recent new roof, completed to BR, in 2017. I have had no response to my question regarding any guarantee for this works? A local tradesman told me traditionally, new roofs have a lengthy guarantee however the vendor hasn't been able to provide me with anything of this nature. Is it correct that roofs should have guarantee and if so is there any way I can go about getting this in retrospect? 

As stated, these discussions have been ongoing and the responses from my solicitor have been hit and miss. I'm unsure if these are to be expected or whether I need to push for any further clarity on these issues. Thank you in advance for any input! *smiley*

davidmcn

1. Yes it is. The insurance covers the (remote) risk of a dispute with somebody coming out of the woodwork, or in a worst case scenario, the loss of value to your property (though I'm guessing the bottom 8 feet of your gardens aren't worth much anyway).

2. No, it's nothing to worry about.

3. A guarantee is nice to have, but nobody's going to magic one up for you after 3 years. The rest of the house doesn't come with guarantees either, so like everything else, you'll need to form your own opinion about its condition (with the help of your surveyor).

Competsoph

@davidmcn thank you for such a succinct response!