Please note we no longer provide this product but can still help you in a number of ways if you contact us.
Many of the clients who have used us as their Spanish lawyers for the purchase of their property in Spain in recent years know about title deeds insurance, but for those of you who don´t we can arrange this very useful protection cover for you through the large insurance company Caser, who speak and produce documentation in English.
Title deeds insurance is a 20 year legal protection relating to your property in Spain that can be purchased for a one-off premium of 293.93 euros.
The insurance covers fraud (including document forgery), fraudulent transactions relating to your property, border disputes, demolition orders, compulsory purchase, legal claims against your property, community disputes and other types of financial and legal problems that could arise in 20 years of owning a property.
Set out below is a list of some scenarios for which coverage is included in the rare, but possible, event that they could affect your property
• Fraud and Forgery
Current technology makes it easy to forge all types of documents such as National Identification Cards, Deeds and Powers of Attorney. A fraudster could use these documents to fake your identity and apply for a mortgage loan or sell your house to a third party for a derisory price and take off with the funds.
• Buying from a Fraudulent Owner
You discover that the person from whom you bought your property was not the real owner and was acting with forged or revoked powers.
• Unpaid Taxes, Quotas or Unsettled Community Expenses
You discover you have been paying too much in community fees because at the time of purchase the property was assigned the wrong coefficient. Or for example, there is an attempt to make you pay an incorrect quota or community expenses and taxes for a period prior to your purchase.
• Boundary Issues
Even when some time has gone by, there are cases in which it is discovered that part of a property does not belong to the person who has bought it. For example: a terrace turns out to be common property, which has been fraudulently added to the plot by the previous owners.
• Third Party Rights: Easements
During the 20 year policy term, a right of way or unregistered charge in favour of a third party is discovered that affects the property.
• Hidden Legal Defects
You may find a mistake or discrepancy in the title deeds that makes it impossible or difficult to sell your property.
• Purchase from an Incapable Seller
You discover that the person from whom you bought the property lacked the necessary legal capacity to sell.
• Hidden Valid Lease
You have bought a house that has, previous to your purchase, been leased to a third party. The lease is valid until it expires, regardless of who holds title to the property.
• Bankruptcy of the Seller
A judge rules that your property is subject to the previous owner’s bankruptcy (preferential rights of the creditors).
• Defective Size
If the property is bought ‘off plan’ and following physical completion it is found to be more than 10% smaller than for what it was contracted.
• Community Disputes
Over the course of the 20 years, you may discover agreements passed by the Community of Property Owners prior to your ownership that could limit your rights over the property.
• Marital Problems
The person from whom you bought your property has sold it without spousal consent and that threatens your title to the property.
• Legal Claims Against Your Property
During the policy term, a third party makes a claim for part of your property through the courts.
• Unknown Heirs
Property owners or unknown heirs from the past appear to claim their property.
Without Title Deeds Insurance, you would have to remedy the situation yourself, costing you time and probably legal expenses.
The cover provides peace of mind that should the unexpected occur, the policy will be there to restore your title or indemnify you for losses if that cannot happen, and your property will be covered for financial losses incurred up to the purchase price agreed in the title deed with a maximum limit of indemnity of 360,000 €. Should a claim be made, there are no deductions as the policy provides cover for costs, solicitor’s fees and expenses in defending title relating to the covered risk.
There is a one off inexpensive fee of only 293.93€.
For more information, please contact us.