Will renting land I have right of access over lose the right of access?

[DragonsQuest]

I have googled so much I think I have confused myself.l so would appreciate some advice and / or a point in the direction of a solicitor who can help. Sorry in advance if it's long.

I brought my current house from my parents when they divorced. This was in 2002. This is the first time the house has been registered with Land Registry. Prior to that I lived in it anyway and my parents owned it since the 70s. They purchased it from a divorcing couple, one of which was the child of the farmer who own all the rest of the land around the house.

In front of the house is a patch of land which has always been fenced off as part of the house. Its currently half driveway and half garden. I have always assumed its my land and have acted accordingly - including erecting sheds and greenhouses on it.

The other side of this strip of land is a small paddock which I rent off the farmer who owns all the other land. I have rented it for about 10 years. Its time for the lease renewal and the lease came through with the strip of land included. I queried this because as I said I thought it was mine and they sent through deeds which showed it wasn't and that I had a right of access over it instead. I checked with my parents and they said that was correct - my dad has a habit of encroaching on neighbouring land so he clearly just fenced it off a millenium ago and treated it as his own giving me the impression it was mine.

I've downloaded my own deeds and they don't actually mention or show this right of access nor do they show the land to be mine.

I obviously need to get my deeds corrected to show the access right, although adverse possession has been mentioned to me but I am not sure I have a claim if my parents acknowledge it wasn't theirs? Also it might be a can of worms not worth opening. Is it a conveyancing solicitor to correct the deeds or just the land registry?

I assume a right of access doesn't give me the right to use the land as I have been doing so does that mean I need to remove the sheds and garden?

However if I sign the lease which includes this strip I assume I then (from the duration of the lease) can exclusively use it as I see fit? But if the lease is then cancelled does that mean I've lost the right of access?

God I'm so confused! Hope it makes sense!

This is a tricky area. I'd suggest you ask on the Gardenlaw website.

You need proper legal advice.

The other place you may be able to get help is Land Registry www.gov.uk/government/organisations/land-registry

As you have been sent the deeds, which show the right of access, I would work with a solicitor to get this included in your house deeds. This is important regardless whether you lease the land or not.

if you lease the ‘right of access’ piece of land or don’t lease the land, you still have right of access, so that piece of land needs to be kept clear by the owner, so you have right of access (therefore they cannot block the access and if they did you would need an injunction to prevent this) but this does not appear to be an issue at the moment.

if you lease the land, typically a lease will state what you can or cannot do with the land, therefore on lease renewal you could include erection of 1 x greenhouse and 1x shed (however many currently exist), I would not include more as it may agrivate the land owner. if these buildings restrict your access over the land, I’m sure you would not raise an injunction against yourself (assuming that the right of access does not also apply to any other houses!/neighbours)😛

Final point, if right of access only applies to your property, and the access land has limited value to the owner, then I would seek to purchase that fenced off piece of land. An offer could be made by your solicitor, they would advise you on a fair price to offer and you could also renew the lease of the paddock at the same time as an incentive.

I’d get the deeds to show right of access and I’d ask for the rental to be updated to not include the strip

as for the shed etc ask ghr landowners. Seems they have no issue with it.

@WizdomE @Seemslikeaniceday what sort of solicitor for advice / rectify the issue? Is it a conveyancing one I need? Or something else?

@nokitchen thank you I have posted on gardenlaw as well .

Look for Real estate lawyer or Property lawyer. Be very clear on what you are seeking to achieve as an outcome, and then let them advise on the best time/cost effective approach that is likely to achieve the outcome you want. Once the best approach is agreed you may find it better to get an all inclusive price for the job vs. hrly rate. However if finances are tight you could break the job down into sections and execute over time.

Ultimately by resolving this issue you will either add value to you property or avoid problems later when you try to sell.

Yes a conveyancing solicitor