Chancel Repair Liability

History

The obligation to repair the chancel (the East end of the church, usually containing the choir and the alter) can be traced back to before the accession of Richard I in 1189. Historically the Rector was responsible for repairing the Chancel, whilst the parishioners maintained the nave (the larger part of the church building where the lay people sit). By the 16th Century many monasteries had acquired rectorships, with all the property and liabilities that went with them.

Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries and took over all of their property. This property was then dispersed along with the attendant chancel repair liability. If the property of an individual rectory was sold to more than one person then there was also a division of the liability. These owners came to be known as “lay rectors”.

The liability affects some 5200 pre Reformation churches in England and Wales. The Church Commissioners indicated in 1983 that one third of all parish churches then existing may have such a benefit.  Due to the division of the land the liability does not necessarily affect only properties situated in close proximity to a church building.

Chancel repair liability is now a topical subject due to the recent House of Lords case of Aston Cantlow v Wallbank. The property owners were ordered to pay £186,986.00 plus VAT towards the repair of the Chancel and other legal costs.

How can you find out if your property is subject to such a liability?

There is no single central register that can be used to identify all chancel repair or other liabilities.  There may be entries in the title deeds to the property but the absence of such an entry is no guarantee that no liability exists. This will change in 2013 when all chancel repair liabilities affecting land registered at the Land Registry have to be recorded on the register of title.

If one is able to be sure of the parish boundaries (bearing in mind that they may have been altered over many years) then a search can be undertaken at the Record of Ascertainments but this is not conclusive as the records can be difficult to interpret.

All such searches and enquires are recorded allowing the Church to investigate fully any liability. This increases the risk of enforcement substantially.

What you should do

Our advice is to undertake an informal Chancel Check with our recommended search provider. This will reveal if the property is located within an area that could be at risk of a chancel repair liability. As the search is informal no record of it is officially noted by the Church Authorities.

Should this search reveal a potential risk we would want to discuss this with you in detail. Our advice may be to take out a defective title insurance policy. Should liability become an issue the policy (subject to compliance with the conditions) will cover the cost of any monies that may be levied by the church to repair the chancel, although unfortunately it will not provide cover for any loss in the value of the property due to the existence of the liability.

 If a search is not done and the property is later found to be subject to such a liability this may also affect your ability to sell your property.

If you intend to purchase a property with the benefit of a mortgage a Chancel Check search will be compulsory, as it will form part of our instructions from your lender.  Unfortunately the search will be at your cost.

If you do not require a mortgage we strongly advise that the Chancel Check search is undertaken in any event. 

This is a quickly developing area of law and is not straightforward and should be taken seriously as the ramifications for not doing so can be very expensive. Please therefore do call any member of our team listed below if you are concerned about this. They will be happy to discuss this with you.

Nicola Banks 01225 750019 nicolabanks@mogers.co.uk