What are Chancel Searches and why are they important?

Find out whether you will be liable for the upkeep of the local church’s chancel. Yes, really!

Are they mandatory?

This sounds unusual but yes, it is a necessary search for some properties. It may sound crazy, but many unlucky homeowners have been caught out by this issue. One such unlucky couple lost their 18-year legal battle against the church in 2009. In the end, they had to sell their house in order to pay the £230,000 repair bill for St John the Baptist church in Warwickshire.

It is estimated that around half a million properties in England and Wales could be affected, even if the liability is not mentioned in the title. It doesn’t just apply to old properties because it actually applies to the land a property sits on, so whatever you are buying, you may still be liable.

During the middle ages, property owners rather than monasteries, became responsible for repairing churches. This ancient medieval law still exists and means about 5,200 pre-reformation Church of England and Church of Wales parishes can demand money from owners of particular properties on former monastery land to fund repairs. Whether they know it or not, these homeowners are called lay rectors, and are liable for keeping the chancel (the space around the altar at the east end of the building) windproof and watertight.

Whether you need this search or not depends very much on the area in which you are buying, and your solicitor will advise on this. They will have picked up information from the seller’s solicitors or from reading previous legal paperwork associated with the property.

WARNING: Some people think that this was abolished in October 2013. It wasn’t. What changed was that the church was unable to register their interest on the title of any further properties after this date. From that date on they had to register their interest with the land registry and therefore any properties or pieces of land listed since then will be on Land Registry documents. The church’s rights on any properties registered up to 31st October 2013 still stand.

Chancel search
Chancel search

When are they ordered?

These searches are in the list of searches that should be ordered as soon as you appoint your conveyancing solicitor: as a minimum this includes Land Registry and Local Searches, Water and Drainage Searches, an Environmental Search, a Flood Risk Report and any specifically required searches based on geography, such as Radon Gas, Mining or China Clay searches.

One of the first things your conveyancer will do is ask you for money ‘on account’ in order to pay for these searches.

What do they tell you?

Depending on the search product ordered, a chancel search, otherwise known as a chancel repair liability check, will tell you whether:

  • You are buying in an area where the church has exorcised this right
  • You are buying a piece of land or a property on a piece of land that makes you definitively liable for a contribution to the upkeep of the local parish church.

This information is not revealed by any other form of search.

Are there different types?

Yes, two, one more detailed and more expensive than the other:

Chancel check

Shows whether the property and piece of land is located within the boundary of a parish that could charge for repairs of the chancel.

Full chancel check search

Reveals the definitive obligations of the land to the church.

There is also a third option:

Chancel repair insurance

A policy purchase that protects against having to pay the church.

What do they cost?

Costs vary depending on the type of search ordered but are usually in the region of £20.

If the results of a Full chancel check search reveal a financial obligation you should purchase an insurance. Your solicitor can advise you of the cost of the policy required for your property, they depend upon:

  • level of cover required
  • amount of land involved (from less than 1 acre to 10 acres)
  • whether the policy is for 25 years, 35 years or in perpetuity.

How long do they last?

When acting on a conveyance, your solicitor has to follow The UK Finance Mortgage Lender’s Handbook, it says that searches must be no more than 6 months old on completion.

If you are thinking of buying or selling your home, you may find some of these services useful: