You can sell a house without a FENSA certificate or other missing paperwork, but your buyer’s solicitor will usually ask about it, and the usual fixes are to track down a copy, get retrospective approval from the council, or offer the buyer an indemnity insurance policy. Which route suits you depends on what is missing, how old the work is, and how much time you have.
This guide describes the system in England and Wales, with a short note on Scotland.
Which certificates will a buyer’s solicitor ask for?
In England and Wales, your solicitor will ask you to complete the Law Society’s Property Information Form (TA6). In the 6th edition, the key questions are:
- Question 5.1 and 5.2: replacement windows, roof windows, roof lights and glazed doors installed since 1 April 2002, extensions, conservatories, loft and garage conversions, removed walls or chimney breasts, insulation and other building work, with copies of planning permissions, building regulations approvals, completion certificates or competent person certificates
- Question 5.4: any breaches of planning conditions, unfinished work, or work without the necessary consents
- Question 11.2 and 11.3: certificates for electrical installation work, and any Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR)
- Question 11.4: compliance certificates for installing or altering the heating system, and the latest service record
GOV.UK’s guide to selling a home suggests gathering these before you market the house, including FENSA or CERTASS certificates for windows, gas checks by a Gas Safe registered engineer, and a NICEIC or NAPIT certificate or report for electrical work. Our guide to documents you need to sell has the full list.
What is a competent person scheme?
GOV.UK explains that competent person schemes let registered tradespeople certify that their own work meets building regulations, instead of you applying to the council for approval. The installer should give you a certificate within 8 weeks of finishing, and GOV.UK says it will also show up in solicitors’ searches when you come to sell.
The schemes you are most likely to come across are:
| Work | Schemes |
|---|---|
| Replacement windows and doors | FENSA, CERTASS |
| Gas appliances, including boilers | Gas Safe Register |
| Electrical work | NICEIC (run by Certsure), NAPIT |
These appear on GOV.UK’s list of authorised schemes, alongside others such as APHC, HETAS and OFTEC. GOV.UK also points to the Competent Persons Register and the Electrical Competent Person Register for finding a registered installer.
If you have lost a certificate, start with the installer or the scheme. Councils also keep records: West Lindsey District Council, for example, says it can confirm whether building regulations consent was needed and obtained for particular works.
What if the boiler or gas work has no certificate?
Gas Safe Register explains that when a registered business installs a notifiable gas appliance such as a boiler in England and Wales, it must notify the council within 30 days, and a Building Regulations Compliance Certificate is sent to you.
If yours was never notified, contact the engineer and ask them to do it. If the business no longer exists, Gas Safe Register says you will need another registered business to check, commission and notify the installation in its name.
A separate point often causes confusion. The legal duty to have gas appliances checked every year applies to landlords, according to HSE. For homeowners, HSE strongly advises an annual service by a Gas Safe registered engineer, but a buyer’s solicitor will ask for compliance certificates and service records rather than an annual landlord-style certificate.
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How does regularisation work?
If building work needed approval and never got it, GOV.UK says you can apply to your council’s building control for regularisation: retrospective approval for work already carried out. It is only available for work completed after 11 November 1985, and the council may require you to make alterations before it issues a regularisation certificate.
West Lindsey District Council’s guidance shows how this can work in practice. The council assesses whether remedial work is needed, judged against the building regulations that applied at the time, and gives you the chance to carry it out. Where the work was approved but never signed off, the owner can instead ask building control for a final inspection and a completion certificate. The council also notes that some solicitors make getting these certificates a condition of the sale.
Regularisation deals with the problem itself, but it takes time, and it may cost money if the council asks for alterations.
What if planning permission is missing?
Planning permission is separate from building regulations. If work that needed permission went ahead without it, the key question is whether the council can still take enforcement action.
In England, GOV.UK guidance sets these time limits:
| Breach | Time limit for enforcement |
|---|---|
| Building works substantially completed before 25 April 2024 | 4 years |
| Building works substantially completed on or after 25 April 2024 | 10 years |
| Change of use to a single house, before 25 April 2024 | 4 years |
| Change of use to a single house, on or after 25 April 2024 | 10 years |
| Any other breach, such as breaching a planning condition | 10 years |
Once the time limit has passed, you can apply to the council for a lawful development certificate for an existing use or development. Anyone can apply. GOV.UK says the council should not refuse a certificate just because it has no evidence of its own, provided your evidence is precise and unambiguous enough to justify it on the balance of probability. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own rules, so check with your council or solicitor.
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When does indemnity insurance help?
GOV.UK describes indemnity insurance as insurance used in conveyancing to cover a legal defect with a property that can’t be quickly resolved, or at all. For missing building regulations sign-off, West Lindsey District Council notes that some insurers offer cover against the cost of complying with an enforcement notice or court order. It also points out that liability for defective work passes to the buyer when a property is sold, which is why buyers take these gaps seriously.
A policy can be quicker to arrange than regularisation, but it doesn’t fix the work or prove it is safe. Whether it is acceptable is up to the buyer and their lender. Policies also come with conditions, so let your solicitor arrange one and explain the terms before you take any other step, such as contacting the council.
What about Scotland?
In Scotland, alterations may need a building warrant from the council, and mygov.scot says that if you needed one and didn’t get it, the council can fine you or order you to remove the work. The sale process also differs, so speak to your solicitor early about any gaps in your paperwork.
How do cash buyers deal with missing paperwork?
Cash buyers still instruct solicitors, who will raise the same questions. The difference is that there is no lender to satisfy, so a buyer can decide for themselves whether an indemnity policy or a price adjustment is enough.
Where paperwork is missing, offers usually reflect the risk and the cost of putting things right, and a quick sale generally means accepting less than full market value. If the gaps are minor and you have time to fix them, an estate agent sale may achieve more.
If you would rather not spend months chasing certificates, some of the vetted cash buyers on our panel buy homes with problems like this. You can get offers for my home and tell buyers what is missing from the start. It is free, with no obligation to accept. Our guide to how quick house sales work explains the process.
Common questions
Can I sell my house without a FENSA certificate?
Yes. The TA6 form asks about replacement windows, roof windows, roof lights and glazed doors installed since 1 April 2002, and asks for certificates if you have them. If yours is missing, ask the installer or the scheme, or check council records. If no record exists, the usual options are regularisation or an indemnity policy.
Do I need a gas safety certificate to sell my house?
There is no annual gas safety certificate requirement for owner-occupiers. HSE's legal duty to have gas appliances checked every year applies to landlords, while homeowners are strongly advised to have them serviced annually. Buyers' solicitors will still ask for the compliance certificate for any boiler installation and for service records.
What is a regularisation certificate?
It is retrospective building regulations approval for work carried out without consent. In England and Wales you apply to your council's building control, and GOV.UK says it is only available for work completed after 11 November 1985. The council may ask you to make alterations before it agrees the work complies.
How long can the council take action over building work without planning permission?
In England, the time limit for building works is 4 years if they were substantially completed before 25 April 2024, and 10 years if completed on or after that date. Most other breaches, such as breaching a planning condition, have a 10 year limit. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own rules.
Related guides
- Documents you need to sell a house A checklist of the paperwork for a sale, and where to find it.
- Selling a house with title problems Unregistered land, lost deeds, covenants, missing consents and boundary disputes.
- Selling a house with an annexe Planning conditions, council tax banding and discounts, building regulations and lender criteria.
- How a quick house sale works, step by step Every step of a quick sale, from first enquiry to completion day.