We now accept search indemnity insurance for purchases as well as remortgages

Solicitors can place the policy on risk at completion in lieu of local authority and or other searches, considerably speeding up the conveyancing process to completion.

Local authority searches normally are a critical part of the property transaction. They give information on the land on which the property being mortgaged is built and the immediate surrounding area/location. Without these searches, the owner could be liable for future costs and legal challenges on matters, for example, such as public rights of way, planning permission and building control works including extensions, and in extreme cases could mean that the value of the property is affected negatively.

Recently, local authorities have struggled to deliver the results of local authority searches due to the very high demand for local authority searches, driven by both staffing issues caused by Covid-19 lockdown and the flood of purchases being transacted prior to the stamp duty reduced rates deadline of March 31^st 2021. Some have been taking more than 40 days to produce the search results, which means the process of buying a property has become very lengthy for many buyers.

Additionally, during the Covid-19 period only, in relation to purchase transactions where local and other searches have reached their 6-month maturity, we will also accept search expiry insurance.