Chancel Check
If a property is near a church, or is on land formerly owned by some of the older universities, there may be an obligation to contribute towards repairs to the chancel of the local parish church.
This was laid down in the Chancel Repairs Act 1932. Such liability is enforceable in the County Court, and can apply to properties falling within a Church of England parish which has a vicar or had a vicarage and has a church dating from the medieval period or earlier.
Chancel Searches are a relatively new phenomenon, following a high profile 2003 court case relating to chancel repair obligations. In brief the case was as follows:
Aston Cantlow v Wallbanks Case (2003)
Mr & Mrs Wallbank inherited a farm holding in 1986 which was within the historical parish boundary's. When they inherited the property they also inherited the Chancel repair liabilities by succession. In 1990 the Church (Chancel) was in need of repairs, and in 1994 the Parochial Church Council requested the the Wallbanks pay for the cost of repairs.
The Wallbanks chose to dispute their liability, and ultimately lost their case being ordered to pay somewhere in the region of £200,000 towards repairs (the cost increasing significantly in the 9 years the case took to get to the House of Lords! As well as a hefty bill for legal expenses incurred by the Church, around £250,000!
Thankfully, the Government have intervened and a Transitional Provisions Order was made which came into effect on the 13th October 2003. This order effectively means that ALL chancel repair obligations will cease on the 13th October 2013 unless a the chancel of any Church has noted their interest in any particular property or land with the land registry before this date.
Unfortunately this legislation means that the likelihood of a claim and liability being noted with the inland revenue as Churches will look to either protect their interests or 'cash' in now on any liabilities.
Searches can simply be ordered on line by clicking on the 'Order Searches' tab. We will confirm your order immediately and let you know when the search is being undertaken within 1 hour of your instruction. Progress can be seen by logging on to the system, calling us or by requesting automatic e mail updates.
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