defective title insurance meaning

This checklist This checklist highlights the principal issues to address when preparing contractual terms for business to business agreements on product safety and liability. See Practice Note: Product liability risk management for producers for guidance on controlling risk ahead of new supply arrangements, including carrying out appropriate due diligence on other relevant businesses in the supply chain. Identify all applicable laws (eg Sale of Goods Act 1979, Sale and Supply of Goods Act 1994, Consumer Protection Act 1987, General Product Safety Regulations 2005, SI 2005/1803, Consumer Rights Act 2015 and Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024), as well as any standards and codes of practice that govern the products. Take into account specific legislation for the manufacture, import and sale of particular goods such as fireworks, cosmetics, toys, pharmaceuticals and medical devices, personal protective equipment (PPE), gas appliances, food and animal feed, and automotive. See Practice Notes: Consumer protection for defective or dangerous products—legal bases, Product liability and defective products and General Product Safety Regulations...

Physical extent, boundaries, rights, etc Does the sale plan align with: the material set out in the title deeds, and the on-the-ground boundaries indicated by fences, walls, ditches, rivers, streams, etc, or as revealed by the seller in replies to enquiries? See Practice Note: Property boundaries for further guidance. Will a new boundary arise from the sale? Has it been clearly set out on site, and do the plans show its position accurately? Who must put it in place and/or look after it thereafter? Is indemnity insurance for defective title necessary? If so, who will arrange it and meet the cost? See: Defective title insurance—checklist for further guidance. Do mines and minerals form part of what is being sold? See Practice Note: Manorial rights for further guidance. Are sporting rights included in the transaction? See Practice Notes: Profits a prendre and Riparian owners and fishing rights for further...

Pre-completion Checklist for funder's solicitor Checklist for borrower's solicitor Title information Where the borrower’s solicitor is issuing a certificate or report on title, verify they have supplied a signed engrossment of it, with all plans and annexures, to be held to their order until completion day. Confirm the borrower’s solicitor has incepted any required defective title or chancel repair insurance and that the premium is paid before completion. The certificate/report on title must also set out the title insurance policy particulars. Obtain confirmation from the valuer that the valuation stands unchanged in light of the certificate/report. Deliver to the funder a signed, dated summary report covering the title position. Provide the funder with any construction, planning and/or environmental reports prepared as part of the transaction. Make sure all HM Land Registry forms are approved and, where the application will be sent off by the funder’s solicitor, that signed forms have been received. Ensure all third party notices are approved...

In this issue: Transferring property Commercial real estate finance Statutory compliance Property development Easements, rights and covenants Residential property Insurance Property taxes Additional property updates this week Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Trackers New Q&As Transferring property HMLR announces plans to share data on avoidable requisitions with customers HM Land Registry intends to provide firms with visibility of the proportion of their applications that include simple-to-avoid requisitions, such as mismatched names, missing documents, and witness information. These insights are scheduled for publication in Autumn 2025. Across firms, current levels vary, with between 0% and 24% of applications affected. In tandem, HMLR is refining its processes and systems to better support users: raising requisitions only where necessary and automatically validating certain details at the drafting stage. The goal is to achieve accurate registrations first time, without the need for extra clarification or additional supporting material. See: LNB...

In this issue: Forfeiture Contractual issues Repairing obligations and dilapidations Service charges Key developments and horizon scanning Property disputes in Scotland LexTalk®Property Disputes: a Lexis®Nexis community Additional Property disputes updates Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Trackers Latest Q&As Forfeiture Valuing a claim for wrongful forfeiture (Tanfield (as executor of the Estate of Paul Watkins) v Meadowbrook Montessori Ltd) In Tanfield (as executor of the Estate of Paul Watkins) v Meadowbrook Montessori Ltd [2024] EWHC 1759 (Ch), [2024] All ER (D) 77 (Jul), the court threw out a landlord’s winding-up petition for £167,593.41 presented against a company established to operate a school. It held there was a firmly arguable position that the majority of the petitioned sum was not rent arrears, but consideration payable for shares in the company. The judge further acknowledged a cross-claim with a genuine prospect of success, quantified at no less than £546,000 in...

News Analysis: Construction law—a look at 2025 so far and ahead to the end of the year In June 2025, we released News Analysis: Construction law—a look at 2025 so far and ahead to the end of the year, where we examined the principal construction law trends that had arisen since January. In this subsequent piece, we reflect on the headlines, milestones and shifts from the closing months of 2025, and flag what we anticipate for 2026. The latter part of 2025 remained energetic. Planning and regulatory reform stayed centre stage as the government pressed on with the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, together with broader plans to cut delays and accelerate delivery of housing and infrastructure schemes. Concurrent developments in building safety, product oversight and standard form contracts contributed to a period of swift change. The courts likewise issued a sequence of judgments addressing fundamental contractual doctrines, spanning contract formation and variation, conditions precedent, collateral warranties, and the assessment of damages both in contract and under the Defective Premises...

PI & Clinical negligence horizon scanner—July 2025 [Archived] ARCHIVED: This Practice Note is archived and is not maintained. It summarises the principal legal developments relevant to personal injury and clinical negligence practitioners as at July 2025. For developments predating this horizon scanner, see PI and Clinical Negligence horizon scanning and key cases—overview. Key PI and clinical negligence developments The personal injury discount rate—a review In late 2024, the Lord Chancellor, Shabana Mahmood MP, revealed the outcome of her five‑month review of the discount rate, initiated in July 2024. One month after the new +0.5% discount rate took effect, Thea Wilson (barrister at 12 King’s Bench Walk) assesses its impact on cases, the responses from claimant and defendant representatives, and the consequences of the change for legal practitioners. See News Analysis: The personal injury discount rate—a review. MoJ announces reduction in CFO’s interest rates The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has announced lower interest rates for the Courts Funds Office’s (CFO) special and basic accounts...

This Practice Note outlines the principal considerations when preparing contracts for schemes falling within the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA 2022), and in particular the regime for ‘higher-risk’ buildings. It addresses a range of matters including the lengthened time limits for pursuing claims under the Defective Premises Act 1972 (DPA 1972), the extra regulatory oversight introduced for the pre-construction and construction phases and at completion, and the obligations imposed on ‘dutyholders’ under both BSA 2022 and related secondary legislation, as well as more generally under the Building Regulations 2010, as amended. Drafting points to consider where the employer is a member of the Responsible Actors Scheme are also covered. For a fuller summary of BSA 2022, see Practice Note: Building Safety Act 2022—key provisions and issues, and for guidance on which categories of buildings fall within the ‘Higher-Risk building’ regime, see Practice Note: Building Safety Act 2022—what is a higher-risk building? Limitation Periods BSA 2022 lengthened the window for commencing claims under DPA 1972, s 1(1), and under...

Independent contractors At times, premises may remain hazardous owing to defective construction, maintenance, or repair undertaken (or still in progress) by independent contractors. In other cases, such contractors are brought in to fix a risk yet do not succeed. The issue then arises: is the occupier responsible for injury suffered by a visitor as a result? As a general rule, unless the agreement under which the occupier has engaged the services states otherwise, the occupier will not be liable, under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 (OLA 1957), for negligence committed by independent contractors operating on the premises. Note that the pertinent rule, OLA 1957, s 2(4)(b), is confined to construction, maintenance, or repair works. The occupier bears the burden of showing that an independent contractor was in fact instructed. In other words, the occupier must demonstrate that the contractor was retained to act...

Dear [ insert name ], [ insert details of property and lender’s reference ] At this point in your matter, we consider it prudent and in your best interests for [ insert name of borrower ] (the ‘Borrower’) to obtain [ insert type of insurance—eg defective title ] in respect of [ insert description of the property ] (the ‘Property’). You will benefit from this cover because [ describe how lender benefits—eg under the standard terms, as co-insured etc. ]. This is something we have already discussed, and you have confirmed that the Borrower will arrange the insurance accordingly. The Borrower will purchase the policy from [ state name of insurance provider ] [ and you have authorised us to disclose relevant personal data and information to them for this purpose ]. [ Name of firm acting for lender ] will not be involved in arranging the policy. [ Name of firm ] act on behalf of the Borrower (the ‘Borrower’s Solicitors’). Any statements in this correspondence that refer...