David Bellis Consulting Surveyors Services

David Bellis Consulting Surveyors offer a full range of property related coal mining search and surveying Services to individual members of the public, solicitors, engineers and conveyancing professionals. Details of our Services are listed below:-

Please go to the CoalSearchPlus+ web site, just follow the link, if you wish to order standard residential or commercial property coal mining search reports. We offer monthly account facilities to users ordering over 25 coal mining search reports per month. Volume related discounts are also available for bulk users. Contact David Bellis Consulting Surveyors to discuss these options.

All David Bellis reports and Services are backed by £1.5million of professional indemnity insurance cover. All David Bellis reports and Services are provided according to our general Terms and Conditions, available on request. By placing an order with David Bellis Consulting Surveyors you accept the terms and conditions.

1. Independent Residential Property Coal Mining Search Reports – standard fee £20 inc vat

If you are buying a property or area of land within a part of the country that is affected by past, present or future coal mining you should obtain a coal mining search report. Your solicitor or conveyancer should advise when a coal mining search report is necessary. This search should be made available before the exchange of contracts or any binding obligation is entered into.

You can check if your property is in an affected area by entering the name of the village, town or city into our online checking facility. This facility can be accessed from our homepage. It should be noted that CoalSearchPlus+ will not indemnify the result of this service unless either a full report or a ‘no coal mining certificate’ is ordered. If a ‘no coal mining’ certificate is ordered CoalSearchPlus+ surveyors will check the property against geological information to confirm that there are no records that suggest the possibility of coal mining affecting the property.

A residential coal mining search report will answer questions necessary for a property conveyance to proceede. The Law Society requires these questions to be answered for transactions involving residential property in coal mining affected areas. A residential property coalmining search report should be purchased for single unit residential property, either existing or currently being built, i.e. having already been the subject in full or in part of a previous development site search. Examples of property for which a residential coal mining search is applicable are a house, flat or bungalow (including any associated garage or parking space), a single plot on a multi-plot development site, a farmhouse or similar converted property (but excluding any associated outbuildings and/or land). A residential property coal mining search report will assume that no development will take place unless the order/request states otherwise.
Detail of the information provided in a CoalSearchPlus+ residential coal mining search report are given below:-

• Information concerning past and current coal mining including the number of seams worked within an area surrounding the property that could affect the stability of the property. Coal seams affecting a property are those within the likely area of influence of the property and are deemed to be those within a distance 0.7 times the depth of the workings from the property, taking onto account the inclination of the seams. The depth of the workings, the cross sectional area of the workings and whether the workings are adjacent to (beside but not underneath) or subjacent to (directly below) a property is also given
• The likelihood of any future workings is stated. It should always be remembered that where coal exists it could be worked at some future date however CoalSearchPlus+ will give an indication of how likely it is that future workings will be undertaken.
• The geology of the ground upon which the property is situated will be investigated and stated.
  If the property is situated within 200m of a currently working open cast coal mining site the report will state this.
• If the property is situated directly upon a previously worked opencast coal mining site this will also be stated although it is highly likely that such a site may now be fully landscaped and remediated.
  
• If the property is situated within 800m of a proposed open cast coal mining site the report will state this.
  
• The existence of any coal mining waste tips or associated lagoons in the vicinity of the property will be stated.
  
• If a coal mining mine shaft or adit is located within 20m of the boundary of a property and its associated land this will be stated on the report. Additionally a plan will be enclosed showing the location of the mine entry in relation to the property.
  
• Comment will be made on the likely existence of ancient unrecorded workings and whether these are likely to cause future land instability.
  
• Comment will be made regarding any notices that have been issued relating to withdrawl of support (i.e. mining that will take place in the future below the property).
  
• Any past coal related subsidence claims related to the property will be stated.
  
• A conclusion will be given including an opinion on the level of risk coal mining poses to the property.

2. Independent Commercial Property Coal Mining Search Reports – standard fee £45 inc vat

Commercial property coal mining search reports include all of the elements provided within the residential coal mining search report plus other information necessary to answer additional questions relevant to commercial property transactions. The Law Society requires these questions to be answered for transactions involving commercial property in coal mining affected areas.
Commercial property coal mining search reports should be purchased for non-domestic properties or properties where development is intended. Examples of situations where commercial property coal mining search reports are applicable are non-residential, commercial or development sites including multiple residential property requests (such as a pair of semi-detached houses or row of terraced houses), vacant land, public houses, shops, businesses, commercial property, industrial estates, rural estates, pipelines, roads and similar linear structures up to 500m in extent, any sized development site from a single plot up to 25 hectares in extent, farmhouses and associated outbuildings and land. For areas of land above 25 hectares additional fees will be applicable, please contact CoalSearchPlus+ for details. It will be assumed that development will take place in all commercial coal mining search reports.
Detail of the information, additional to that provided in the residential coal mining report, provided in a CoalSearchPlus+ commercial coal mining report is given below:-

• Details of any withdrawl of support
  
• Working facilities orders
  
• Payments to owners of former copyhold land

3.Independent Ground Stability Reports

David Bellis Consulting Surveyors can provide a ground stability report. A ground stability report will assess the geology underlying a property or area of land and assess the risk to the stability of the property or land from the structure of the ground surrounding and beneath it.

4. Coal Mining Technical Reports and Desk Studies

The David Bellis Consulting Surveyors team of geologists and surveyors can carry out extensive desk based technical reports in relation to a property or area of land. Such desk studies report detailed information related to the underlying geology and any coal mining that may affect the specified property. The exact nature of any study will depend on client requirements and the intended future use of the property or land.
If development of a property or area of land is intended David Bellis Consulting Surveyors would recommend that a detailed study is  always carried out if the property is situated in a coal affected area.
If you require this Services please contact us for details.

5. Subsidence Claims Handling Services

Where a property has been affected by subsidence David Bellis Consulting Surveyors can assist in the following ways: -

All subsidence problems are different and demand individual attention therefore if you require further information please contact us and you will be able to discuss your requirements directly with a member of our team of geologists and surveyors.

6. Subsidence Claims Handling Services

Where a property has been affected by subsidence David Bellis Consulting Surveyors can assist in the following ways: -

All subsidence problems are different and demand individual attention therefore if you require further information please contact us and you will be able to discuss your requirements directly with a member of our team of geologists and surveyors.

7. Property Surveying

David Bellis Consulting Surveyors can provide a full property surveying Services. Please contact us in order to discuss your requirements