Further to recent changes in the Law, we at Dunn and Baker wanted to highlight some recent changes to Planning and Building Regulations to spread awareness to our current and prospective clients.
Below are some of the key changes that might affect your property transactions:
Changes to Planning Enforcement – The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023
The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act of 2023 introduces a number of amendments to the Town and Country Planning Act of 1990. Most of these provisions have come into force as of the 25th of April 2024, so we wanted to make our clients aware of the key changes as set out below:
- Planning enforcement – Which previously had a limitation of 4 years for enforcement action, has been extended to 10 years from the date of the unauthorised development. *Please note this change only affects England, not Wales.*
- Temporary stop notices – They were previously expired after 28 days, but have been extended to cover 56 days.
- New power to issue Enforcement Warning Notices – Which can be issued where unauthorised development took place, requiring a submission for retrospective planning application.
- Increase in maximum fines – Fines for non-compliance with a planning enforcement notice have increased to a maximum level 3 fine (£1,000 at time of writing). Persistent failure carries a further penalty for each day the breach continues.
- Future regulations regarding discretion not to enforce – The Secretary of State has been given powers to make future regulations regarding circumstances in which enforcement will not be pursued.
Changes to Building Regulations Enforcement following the Building Safety Act of 2022
The Building Safety Act (and secondary regulations under the act) includes changes to the building regulations regime, which have been in force since 01 October 2023. *Please note these changes apply to England only, not Wales.*
With regard to enforcement for all buildings:
- New power to issue stop notices – Such a notice can only be issued in circumstances where works contravene building regulations, could potentially cause a risk of serious harm or are in contravention of a compliance notice.
- Works must stop entirely until remedial action has been taken. The breach must have occurred after 01 October 2023 for this power to be available. Failure to comply is a criminal offence with a maximum penalty of an unlimited fine or 2 years in prison.
- Extended time limit for enforcement notices – Previously an enforcement notice had to be served within 12 months of completion of the works that were in breach.
- Since 01 October 2023 this limit has been extended to 10 years. It is currently unclear whether the 10-year limit for enforcement applies to breaches that occurred before 01 October 2023.
With regard to new builds and building works
- Building Control Approval for New Builds – Automatically lapses for any works not commended within 3 years. A new definition of commencement was also defined to replace previous guidance.
- Notification of commencement of works – Notice must be given to the relevant building control body 2 days before works start, and a second notice must be given no more than 5 days after the new definition of “commencement” has been satisfied.
- Power to require reasonable tests – The building control authorities have been given a broader power to require a person to carry out reasonable tests (at that person’s costs) to ascertain whether works comply with current building regulations.
How this might affect you:
- If you are buying a property, you should keep in mind that Planning and Building Regulations breaches are now both enforceable for 10 years after the breach. This means if you purchase a property within 10 years of an outstanding breach you could become liable as the new owner. Your solicitor acting for you should ensure these questions are asked and seek to limit any liability there may be to you for the works. This would likely be through either requesting retrospective consent, or an indemnity insurance policy.
- If you are selling a property, it is likely you will get questions about any changes to your property, and whether you had planning permission and/or building regulations approval. If you are unable to provide these and the changes were made within the last 10 years, your buyers are likely to ask for either retrospective consent, which can be costly, or an indemnity insurance policy. We can provide you with advice on these during the course of the transaction.
You can contact us for a FREE initial consultation with one of our legal experts.
Exeter 01392 285000
Cullompton 01884 33818