Covenant Approval
If you are carrying out any alterations to your property, check your deeds to see if you need covenant approval from us.
What are covenants?
Covenants are restrictions that are imposed on the use of land or property by a former owner. If land or property is subject to any covenants, these will be shown within the deeds of the property. The existence of any covenants should be brought to the attention of a purchaser by their Solicitor when the land / property is sold.
Restrictive covenants run with the land and as such the responsibility for complying with the covenants is passed from one new owner to another. Examples of restrictive covenants are those which prohibit the carrying out of alterations or additions without consent.
Why are covenants imposed?
The use of covenants is good Estate Management practice and is common place in respect of large land owners. Covenants are imposed on all property and land sales carried out by the Council. If your property, or the land on which it stands, was ever owned by us, it will be subject to covenants.
Even if your property was not owned by us, it could still be subject to covenants. This may have been imposed by someone else so it is always advisable to examine your deeds.
Benefits of getting covenant approval
It is the duty of all land / property owners to know what covenants exist on their property and obtain all necessary consents. A failure to obtain covenant approval could result in legal action against the owner. A higher retrospective fee will also be payable. It can also cause delays when selling your property. This is because the Solicitor acting on behalf of the purchaser will not allow the sale to go through without the necessary covenant consent being in place. If the sale went through without the covenant consent, the new owner would then be liable for obtaining the approval. So it is very important people are aware of the restrictions that relate to their property and make sure covenant approval is obtained.
I have Planning Permission and Building Regulation approval, do I still need covenant approval?
Covenant approval is entirely separate from Planning Permission and Building Regulation approval and even if you have obtained these approvals you will still need covenant approval.
To apply for covenant approval, please download the Land or Property Covenant Consideration Application Form and submit in paper format.
What is the difference between Covenant Approval and a Deed of Variation?
Covenant approvals are approvals under a particular covenant. A Deed of Variation is required where a covenant needs to be changed. For example, where a covenant states that an area of land must be used as garden land and an individual wants to create a hardstanding, the covenant needs to be changed to permit the proposed use.
Variation of covenants can involve further consideration fees, to compensate for any damage or loss of value to Council's retained land. Variations are looked at individually and you will need to contact Property Services for specific details.
To apply for a covenant variation for consideration, please download the Land or Property Covenant / Deed of Variation Consideration Application Form and submit in paper format.
Our Consideration Fees
The fees charged for considering the application are reviewed annually and are non refundable. With effect from 1 April 2008 our fees for this service are:
- Standard fees for new applications of proposed work :- £79.90
- Retrospective fees for alterations already made :- £108.10
- Copy of covenant approval certificates previously issued :- £27.61
- Site Inspection Fee :- £148.00
How to pay
We accept debit and credit card payments or by cheque made payable to Borough of Poole.
Please refer to the Covenant Approval application form for further details.
Responding to you
Telephone Enquiries
- We aim to acknowledge your call within 20 seconds (10 rings).
- To ensure we provide you with accurate information, we may need to refer to our legal files. We may need to take your details and call you back.
Email / Web Response
- We aim to acknowledge your email request within one working day and provide you with a response within 14 calendar days.
Written Responses
We aim to:
- Reply within 14 calendar days.
- Reply to an enquiry using the community language / script within which it was received.
- Produce the reply and supporting documents in an appropriate format where necessary in Braille or large print.
- Reply in plain jargon-free language.
- Include a subject / heading, a "signature" with the name, job title and service area of the person responding.
- Provide a contact number and email address.
If a reply requires detailed research or translation, we aim to:
- Acknowledge the enquiry within 7 calendar days and keep you informed of when you can expect a full response.
- Send a detailed response within 28 calendar days.
If this is not possible, we will:
- Agree a date with the customer by when they can expect a response.
- We will aim to keep you fully informed about your enquiry.
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