Recent cases of identity fraud have highlighted the need for landowners to update their contact addresses at the LR.

The LR will use the contact address in the proprietorship register if it needs to contact the landowner. It will not check whether the owner has moved (or if a company has changed its registered address).

It is important to remember that there are prescribed procedures that apply for correcting mistakes if a document is to be registered at LR. This contrasts with unregistered conveyancing, where a deed of rectification or a deed of variation will be used. As far as LR procedures are concerned, much will depend upon the timing:

The number of leases reported to HMRC for SDLT purposes is considerably higher than the number reported to the LR for registration.

The LR’s controversial new policy of ‘early completion’ came into force on 3 August.

The new policy applies whenever an application for discharge of an existing charge of whole is made together with other applications (eg to register a transfer and a new caution) but without evidence of the discharge of the existing charge. In that situation, the LR will reject the application for discharge – but complete the other applications. The end result will be that the old (existing) charge will remain registered.

As we have previously noted, the LR will introduce a fundamentally important change of practice on 3 August, when it enforces ‘early completion’.

The ‘early completion’ procedures will apply to all applications received on or after 3 August.

The LR will introduce a fundamentally important change of practice on 3 August, when it enforces ‘early completion’.

All LR fees will increase on 6 July. Apparently, this is the first increase in scale and fixed fees since 1993 (fees for information services were increased in 2006).