Chancel Liability
Discussion
Just had a letter from the solicitors I used last year to do the conveyancing on the house. It says that the CofE is trying to get the Chancel Liability extended past this year and I should pay £18 for a search to see if I'm in the area of a chancel and if so, they can arrange 250k of cover for £80 a year.
Anyone else bothered by this and going to do anything about it or is the solicitor trying to make some cash?
Anyone else bothered by this and going to do anything about it or is the solicitor trying to make some cash?
Muncher said:
I would be asking why they hadn't done this prior to purchase!
^^^^^^ this with knobs on! IMO major f
k up by your solicitor, I would be suggesting that they (your lawyer) pay for Chancel Liability Insurance rather than get sued by you in the event the Church exercises its powers.I can't advise about the renewal of the Chancel liability covenants as I have not come across that situation.
I always insure Chancel risk if it comes up in a search. A solicitor should ALWAYS include it in the searches and should always advise the client of the position if there is a liability.
Chancel Liability has cost people their homes and most of their assets!
I shall be having words in the morning. It hasn't even occurred to me that there was something amiss, more that I would need to get a policy or ignore the letter.
Apparently the liability is being scrapped in October but there are some clauses about existing work.
The good news is that it is a small church and a huge parish.
Apparently the liability is being scrapped in October but there are some clauses about existing work.
The good news is that it is a small church and a huge parish.
Chancel liability is all a bit of a ruse really all based on the scare story of one guy that refused to pay a small sum and then ended up losing his house through legal fees that left him bankrupt. You can do a check yourself online for about £15 and in all likelihood your house regardless of where it is will come under the chancel of some church somewhere (could even be miles away). Insurance is only available from one provider (hmm wonder who is propagating the scare story) and should be a lot less than £80 a year, more like about £150 for 25 years cover.
Personally, I think chancel checking and insurance is the latest snake oil money making scheme for conveyancing solicitors.
Personally, I think chancel checking and insurance is the latest snake oil money making scheme for conveyancing solicitors.
craigjm said:
Chancel liability is all a bit of a ruse really all based on the scare story of one guy that refused to pay a small sum and then ended up losing his house through legal fees that left him bankrupt. You can do a check yourself online for about £15 and in all likelihood your house regardless of where it is will come under the chancel of some church somewhere (could even be miles away). Insurance is only available from one provider (hmm wonder who is propagating the scare story) and should be a lot less than £80 a year, more like about £150 for 25 years cover.
Personally, I think chancel checking and insurance is the latest snake oil money making scheme for conveyancing solicitors.
It wasn't a small sum - it was a repair bill of 200k and it was the responsibility of the farmhouse owner alone to pay. Personally, I think chancel checking and insurance is the latest snake oil money making scheme for conveyancing solicitors.
ryanjohnstott said:
It wasn't a small sum - it was a repair bill of 200k and it was the responsibility of the farmhouse owner alone to pay.
OK but most people dont live in the middle of nowhere where they are the only house for miles. It would be interesting to challenge all this rubbish along the lines of religious discrimination. If I was of any other faith then there would be no way that I would pay a chancel repair and It would be interesting to see how the court would deal with it. At the end of the day if you look up how chancel liability has been invoked in the last 100 years you will see the risk is very low.craigjm said:
OK but most people dont live in the middle of nowhere where they are the only house for miles. It would be interesting to challenge all this rubbish along the lines of religious discrimination. If I was of any other faith then there would be no way that I would pay a chancel repair and It would be interesting to see how the court would deal with it. At the end of the day if you look up how chancel liability has been invoked in the last 100 years you will see the risk is very low.
This argument was tried by the farmhouse owners, it went all the way to the then Law Lords and it failed because the chuch is not a public body therefore the matter a private one between the church and the farmhouse owners.mattdaniels said:
What are the stats on it ?
Various reports over the years, I don't have the stats to hand, but my solicitors have cited various examples and the press have widely reported the worst. I seem to recall one couple facing a $400k bill when their house was worth about £200k.Many mortgage companies are wary of it without insurance. Insurance isn't usually massively expensive but does tend to cost more than regular DTI or RCI insurance (Defective Title and Restrictive Covenant)
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