The Law Society recommends that Solicitors check whether a property is on or close to contaminated land (within the meaning of Part11A of the Environmental Protection Act 1990).
There are more than 500,000 homes in the UK close to current or former producers of toxic waste and more than 400,000 homes built on former landfill sites.
The report addresses a number of issues:-
Landfill sites past and present.
Sites authorised to carry out industrial processes, to store or use hazardous materials, or entered on the Local Authority register of Contaminated Land.
Potentially contaminative historical land use or in-filled land.
Current land uses - eg. petrol stations.
A buyer or their solicitor is likely to commission a Contamination Report because of the Law Society guidelines. Having the report in your HIP will reassure prospective buyers and avoid wasted time and money by preventing any nasty surprises later.
The report is backed by £1m professional indemnity cover for complete peace of mind.