Hidden Castles and Illegal Extensions: Lessons in Planning Law

Obtaining planning permission can be a slow and expensive process, and even when granted, permissions can be plagued by numerous conditions. However, ignoring the need to comply with planning legislation could cost you significant sums of money to rectify, affect a future sale of a property, or even send you to prison.

Although the examples below relate to residential properties, the principles also apply to commercial property.

Getting the right permission…

Anyone carrying out ‘development’ will need to get planning permission for their project. For the purposes of planning permission, ‘development’ includes much more than large scale building projects, and can include smaller alterations, changing the use of a property and demolishing a building. Planning permission also often comes with conditions attached, which must be complied with in order for the building to be allowed to remain. Properties which are a Listed Building, or are within a Conservation Area may also need other consents, and most building work will also require Building Regulations Approval.

…and the consequences of going ahead without it

After difficulties getting the necessary planning permissions, Mr Fidler decided to build a £1,000,000 mock Tudor Castle in the Surrey greenbelt without getting any of the right permissions.

Originally constructed in 2000, Mr Fidler attempted to get round restrictive planning constraints in the area by hiding his newly constructed castle from the local planning office behind a gigantic wall of hay bales and trailers. Mr Fidler removed the wall four years after constructing the castle, hoping to exploit a rule that enforcement action must be taken by the local planning office within four years of substantial completion of unauthorised building works.

Unsurprisingly, the local planning authority subsequently discovered the castle had been built without planning permission and served an Enforcement Notice ordering its demolition in 2007. Mr Fidler appealed the decision citing the four year limit. However, the court decided that because Mr Fidler had intentionally hidden the castle from the local authority, this time limit would not prevent the planning office from taking action.

Determined not to demolish his dream home, Mr Fidler appealed the decision again. He attempted to suggest that his castle could not be demolished as it was providing a vital habitat for bats and was protected under EU legislation. However, this appeal also proved fruitless. In the most recent Court ruling, Mr Fidler was given a suspended sentence for failing to comply with planning legislation, and a threat of imprisonment if he did not demolish the castle within two months.

Buyers beware

Even if the current owner of a property has managed to escape any problems caused by their lack of compliance with planning requirements, a future owner could still be at risk. If a local authority discovers a breach of planning legislation, they can take action against the current owner, whether or not they were the ones who were responsible for the breach.

Mr and Mrs Pires had exactly this problem when they purchased a newly extended thatched house in Gloucestershire. Their lawyer carried out the usual searches and discovered that the previous owner had been granted planning permission for an extension to the property and the sale went ahead. However, the local planning office had granted planning permission for the property to be extended from 1991 square feet to 3121 square feet. The property actually measured nearly 5000 square feet when complete, a fact missed by the lawyer acting for Mr and Mrs Pires.

As a result, Mr and Mrs Pires soon found themselves on the receiving end of an enforcement notice, ordering them to remedy the breach by demolishing almost a third of their new home!

Avoiding the pitfalls

If you are considering carrying out development at a property, ensure you have all the relevant permissions and consents from the local authority, before any work is done.

When purchasing a property, thorough investigations should be carried out of planning records in conjunction with an inspection of the property itself to make sure the relevant permissions were granted, and that the previous owners complied with them. Where previous works do not comply with the permissions granted, or seem to be without any permission at all, buyers should ensure than the situation is dealt with before purchasing the property. Sellers can sometimes get retrospective consent, may be able to carry out alterations to make a development compliant with the permission, or could obtain an indemnity insurance policy which would pay for the cost of any remedial works if required by the local authority.

Leathes Prior have experienced commercial and residential property teams that deal with a wide range of property transactions and will ensure that the planning history of a property is fully investigated before you commit to a purchase. If you do find yourself involved in a planning dispute, we also have a dedicated Property Disputes Team who will be able to offer you expert advice and assistance. For help with any of the topics covered in this article, please call us on 01603 610911.

Note: The content of this article is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Specific legal advice should be taken in any particular circumstance.