Restrictive Covenant Solicitors — England and Wales

FormLL connects you with specialist restrictive covenant solicitors in England and Wales. If a restrictive covenant is preventing a development, extension, change of use or sale of your property, call for a free assessment of your options.

What Is a Restrictive Covenant?

A restrictive covenant is a legally binding obligation attached to land in England and Wales that restricts what the registered owner can do with it. Unlike a personal obligation, a restrictive covenant runs with the land — it binds not just the person who made the promise but all future owners of the burdened property. Restrictive covenants are registered at HM Land Registry and are identified during property title investigations.

Common restrictive covenants affecting properties in England and Wales include restrictions on building additional structures, using the property for business purposes, subdividing or developing the land, and requirements to maintain the property in a particular condition.

Are Old Restrictive Covenants Still Enforceable?

The age of a restrictive covenant in England and Wales does not automatically make it unenforceable. A Victorian covenant may still bind a modern owner if the benefit has been properly transmitted to a current landowner who could enforce it. However many old restrictive covenants are in practice unenforceable because the benefiting land cannot be identified, the original beneficiary has sold without properly transmitting the benefit, or the covenant has been abandoned through long acquiescence. Whether a specific covenant is enforceable requires careful legal analysis. Call and a specialist will assess the realistic enforcement risk for your specific covenant.

Options for Dealing with a Restrictive Covenant

Deed of variation: Where the beneficiary of the restrictive covenant can be identified and is willing to negotiate, a deed of variation modifies or releases the covenant by agreement. This is the cleanest solution and provides certainty for future buyers and lenders.

Restrictive covenant indemnity insurance: Where the beneficiary cannot be identified or is unwilling to negotiate, indemnity insurance provides cover against the financial consequences of enforcement. Most lenders accept insurance for historic restrictive covenants with a low enforcement risk. Insurance is faster and cheaper than a deed of variation.

Upper Tribunal application: Under section 84 of the Law of Property Act 1925 the Upper Tribunal Lands Chamber can modify or discharge a restrictive covenant in England and Wales. Grounds include that the covenant is obsolete or impedes reasonable use of the land. Tribunal proceedings are expensive and slow and are generally a last resort.

Frequently Asked Questions