Land owned by a company which doesnt exist

[Freedum]

Hi all,

I live in a privately owned cul de sac which includes a private drive way / ROW for residents to access their properties. The cul de sac also has an area of land which is understood to be communal where we have shared maintenance costs for the communal land and the ROW.

The company which built the development no longer exists and it doesnt show up on google either. Is there anyway to buy this land or change the ownership to someone living now that the company no longer exists?

[echat11]

Hi FREEDUM

You need to carry out quite a few checks, although the company might not exist, how did it end it's existence? Are there creditors etc? The Land Registry is your first port of call.

Here is quite a bit of info (note it's dated 2003):

https://www.gov.uk/government/public...3-october-2003

[Freedum]

Thanks, its strange because it was one plot where houses have now been built and then divided into sub plots, however the communal land to get into the homes does not have a land registry number.

I have asked the conveyancer to take a look and he has concluded that the main title says the land is no longer part of this title but there is 0 reference to where the land went. On the map search tool the conveyancer used there is LA numbers for everything but this land.

Does anyone have any thoughts how i can find out the owner without an LA number?

[echat11]

Contact the planning department at your local council, give them the known facts.

[R0b]

Have you actually asked your conveyance what options are available? Surely it would be a worrying sign if you're having to get some help outside your conveyance when he or she does this for a living...

I would suggest you ask your conveyancer if they have done an index map search and if they don't know what that is then I highly recommend you find a new conveyancer.

If it turns out the land is unregistered then you have a bit of a problem in proving ownership as it relies on physical documents of title deeds which may or may not have been destroyed over time.

[Freedum]

Have you actually asked your conveyance what options are available? Surely it would be a worrying sign if you're having to get some help outside your conveyance when he or she does this for a living...

I would suggest you ask your conveyancer if they have done an index map search and if they don't know what that is then I highly recommend you find a new conveyancer.

If it turns out the land is unregistered then you have a bit of a problem in proving ownership as it relies on physical documents of title deeds which may or may not have been destroyed over time.

Hi Rob,

That's actually what he has done, an Index search. I saw the map with every bit of land having an LA number, just the area joining my house which doesnt. The main title deed also mentions this bit taken out before the sub plots were done, but it seems it was never registered again.

The company which did the build has long gone.

[R0b]

The fact there is no title number attached to the parcel of land suggests it is unregistered land. If an index search was done then HMLR would have confirmed if the land is not registered, so what does HMLR say about that?

[des8]

You state the company "has long gone"
Do you know if when it was dissolved there were any creditors who took all assets?
if not it is possible that this land is bona vacantia and owned unwittingly by the crown as per the Companies Act 2006.

[Freedum]

The fact there is no title number attached to the parcel of land suggests it is unregistered land. If an index search was done then HMLR would have confirmed if the land is not registered, so what does HMLR say about that?

Hi there,

They say as you have said, there is no registration for it, the main title says this land was taken out but that's all the information I have to go off.

des8 - if its bona vacantia, then they definitely do not know about it because there is no land registry number for it.

Does anyone here know what I can do to get ownership of this strip of land which isn't registered and the company who owned it doesn't exist anymore.

[R0b]

The only other way I can think of is by adverse possession. In a nutshell, you have to satisfy or otherwise show that following criteria have been fulfilled:

1. You have 'factual' possession of the land. What this means is that there should be a physical degree of control over the land by yourself. For example, fencing around the parcel of land and making it an extension of your garden.

2. There is an intention for you to take possession of the land.

3. The land is taken without the owner's consent.

4. You have satisfied all of the above for a continuous period of 12 years.

Following on from the above, you can then make an application to the Land Registry for adverse possession together with supporting evidence. However, if I recall, there are two nuances you should be mindful of.

(i) There is normally a limitation period of 12 years from the time adverse possession starts to run where an owner can assert their rights by bringing legal proceedings. Where the land is owned by the Crown, the limitation period is extended to 30 years.

(ii) When considering an adverse possession application, the LR may contact anyone who has an interest in the land. If they figure out the land is owned by the Crown, then they will notify them of the application so they are on notice you are seeking to take possession. Given that the land is unregistered the person(s) reviewing an application might not be bright enough to consider the Crown as an interested party but if they did a little detective work, it might become apparent and so your adverse possession could be at risk. If the Crown does take an interest then you can offer to pay for that parcel of land but I would expect the Crown to ask for the market value. However, if the strip of land is nominal or not much value, they could very well give it away for nothing or at a much reduced price.

[des8]

Can we put your query into some sort of context:
Are you interested in this piece of land for yourself, or are you asking on behalf of your community?
How long have the community been using this land?

[Freedum]

Can we put your query into some sort of context:
Are you interested in this piece of land for yourself, or are you asking on behalf of your community?
How long have the community been using this land?

The land has been used as a right of way for almost 50 years.

There is one resident who parks on this land which is used as a right of way by 7 houses. The consequence of this parking is felt by myself as he parks outside my house. My thought was if i could acquire the land for a nominal fee without him knowing, i can then stop him from parking outside my house.

[des8]

Well even if you did obtain ownership of the land you would not be able to block off the right of way which has been created by continual use.
Does the parking of the car block in any way the right of way? If it does you might be able to make him park elsewhere.

Have you asked him if he could park elsewhere, e.g. outside his own house?
If he declines to be neighbourly could you try parking your car outside his house, or parking your own car where he habitually parks his