Following an inspection of the building, the Council may require specified works to be undertaken before the BIC is issued such as the repair of building defects. Also, applying for a BIC does not guarantee approval of any unauthorised building work and the Council may require the structure to be demolished.
With respect to a vendor selling a property, there is a warranty implied into every contract for the sale of land under the Conveyancing (Sale of Land) Regulation 2017 that:
” there is no matter in relation to any building or structure on the
land…that would justify the making of any upgrading or
demolition order or, if there is… a building certificate
has been issued in relation to the building or structure since the
matter arose”.
Therefore, it is critical that a vendor either disclose any such matters in the contract, noting it is difficult for a vendor to be aware of all such issues, or attach a BIC to the Contract otherwise the purchaser may be legally entitled to rescind the contract at any time up until settlement if the purchaser applies for a BIC and ascertains that the Council is justified in making an upgrading or demolition order.
From a practical viewpoint, if a vendor attaches a BIC to the contract, it will offer prospective purchasers a level of comfort which can only serve to increase the value of the property on the market.
With respect to a purchaser, if no BIC is attached to the Contract, it is in the purchaser’s best interests to apply for one after exchange of Contracts to determine if there are any issues concerning any building on the land or any encroachment onto Council land in which case the purchaser may have a statutory right to rescind the Contract.