Chancel Repair Liability

The idea that by owning land you have a liability for the costs of the repair of part of the local church roof is strange, but that is what chancel repair liability is. It has been described as "anachronistic, even capricious" and "one of the more arcane and unsatisfactory areas of property law".¹ It is not easy to explain the liability, particularly since a landowner may be unaware of it despite the due diligence done when acquiring the land. From 13 October 2013 (thanks to the Land Registration Act 2002), the risk of the liability arising without a land owner's knowledge will decrease, but the liability and the fact that it attaches to the land will continue.

This client alert covers (very briefly) how this capricious liability arose and how the law is changing.