Conveyancing Explained

July 11, 2008

The chancel is a part of a church which includes the altar, santuary and choir.

If the property you’re buying is situated within a parish with a medieval church, then you could find yourself required to pay towards the upkeep of the chancel area of the church.

In a case in 2000, two homeowners were asked for nearly 100,000 pounds as a contribution towards the upkeep of the local chancel area of their church and it was eventually found that they were liable to pay. A nasty shock, whether you’ve lived in a property for years or have just moved in!

Although this is a rare case, the liability still exists (although the Law Society is currently calling for the requirement to be abolished). As this is a relatively minor risk, most solicitors don’t offer this as search as standard and you’ll need to ask for advice if you want to be covered.

A chancel search can be undertaken at www.secure.clsl.co.uk/index/php. This will reveal whether the property is situated within a parish which continues to have a potential risk. If so, you can get insurance to cover you for the possibility of the church calling upon you to contribute in the future. The searches aren’t particularly expensive, they cost around 20.00 pounds for a basic area search.