Electricity wayleave on inherited property

jsh99

Hi

Has anyone re negotiated a very old electricity wayleave?  

I tried this on the house buying frum without any luck so thought maybe someone else on here might have had to do this on inheriting a house.

It was my mother's house and she passed last October and it is now my brothers.  As I have LPA I need to do my best for him and the payment is very low (<£20 a year).

I have a copy of the agreement and it was signed in 1955.  There seems to be no end date or any clause for re negotiations. 

It says ' I/WE the undersigned (hereinafter called "the Grantor") being Owner(s) and Occupier(s) of the premises described in the First Schedule hereto (hereinafter called "the said premises") for myself/ourselves and all or any other person or persons owners for the time being of the said premises HEREBY CONSENT AND AGREE to the placing laying erecting and also to the maintaining repairing and replacing by the SOUTH EASTERN ELECTRICITY BOARD (hereinafter called "the Board") of the works described in the Second Schedule hereto across the said premises and also to the entry by the Board from time to time upon the said premises by their servants agents contractors and work people for the purposes of inspecting maintaining repairing and replacing or removing the works or any of them SUBJECT NEVERTHELESS to the terms conditions and stipulations specified in the Third Schedule hereto and to payment by the Board on the Slst. day of December in each year of a sum calculated in accordance with the Fourth Schedule hereto. '


thanks.

jsh99

Best to add the fourth schedule here 

The FOURTH SCHEDULE hereinbefore referred to. For each pole-leg strut or stay situate in orchard or hop garden.. 6/- per annum, *For each pole-leg strut or stay situate in arable land.... 4/- per annum. For each pole-leg strut or stay situate in mowing grass or pasture 2/- per annum For each pole-leg strut or stay situate in any other class of land.. 1/- per annum. For any length of overhead electric line if no pole-leg strut or stay on the said premises 1/- per annum For each 100 yards or part thereof route length of underground electric line ..1/-per annum.

Watty1

So I wrote a long reply which has now vanished. Argh!   I'm in the South East. First you need to establish weather it Still is South East Power or UK Networks (depends what the lines actually are).   Yours says South East so I would start with them.

I have recently renegotiated mine (because I now am the sole owner and I did not want a cheque) which was complex but in a nutshell.  

You contact them and explain you need a new contract because the signatory is dead (yes they really are open ended agreements but the new ones do have the option for you to terminate.  To talk to you / email you they will require the land registry documents (you download these, there is a small fee to pay) and send them off, if you are not named you need proof of why you are negotiating.

They will not do anything without proof the old contract is to be voided and proof that you are the right person to talk to.

As an example, on arable land

Single Pole with 1 stay = £44.28

Substation = £50.00

UG Cable = £1.15 per 50m

Single Pole = £34.65

Those are with UK Power because mine all feed into a power substation.  

Be interested to hear how you get on.

  

AP3

I have a pole and a stay on my property. My understanding is that the wayleave is between the electricity supplier and the owner. If there's a new owner, you can ask for a new wayleave from them.

In my case I contacted them, and they offered a one-off sum of around £300, or peanuts per year. I took the lump sum.

I didn't have to provide any evidence or anything like that, they just sent me a cheque.

jsh99

Thanks both.

I've already had to contact them as I found a cheque in my mother's name that had not been cashed - over six months old.  I emailed and supplied probate and death cert. 

The account is now swapped to my brother and paid direct to bank.

I was curious and so asked for the contract - copied above.

So I may contact them and ask for a renewal and see what I get.   It's UK Power Networks on the cheque and paperwork.

Watty1

OK, so if you need a contact at UK power networks dm me.  You will get that contract re-done easily and might even get back payments to the estate.