Cost of home-buyers’ immunity certificates to triple in price
IMMUNITY certificates for home-buyers are set to triple in price later this month.
The certificates provide people looking to purchase a property with the reassurance that action will not be taken against them for a known or suspected breach of planning control by a previous owner.
Development & Planning Authority president Victoria Oliver said: ‘This is a safety net for buyers which was introduced mainly in response to concerns raised by the industry.’
The price of a document last rose in 2016, when it went up from £50 to £70.
But from 27 March they will cost £250.
‘The previous cost for an immunity certificate significantly underestimated the cost to the Planning Service to produce this document, meaning that much of this cost was effectively covered by the taxpayer, rather than the applicant,’ Deputy Oliver said.
‘Having consulted with the industry and reviewed the internal costs for the technical work required to produce an immunity certificate, we have increased the cost to £250. This more accurately reflects the cost of the work undertaken when producing this document and ensures that applicants cover this cost rather than the taxpayer.’
She confirmed that this had been a standalone review and there were no other proposed increases to fees for other planning documents.
