Posted: Tuesday, 16 February 2010 @ 17:07
When you take a car in for its service do you ever get the feeling that you have been taken for a ride quite literally?! I certainly do when given the list of parts the garage recommends be replaced. It would be useful to have some way of getting to the bottom of what really is important. This was the inspiration behind my Planning Law Guide that certainly can be as complex as the average Audi.
Take the following example. The word “Development” in planning terms does not just mean building works but also changing the use of a property. In order to work out whether planning permission is required for a change of use it would be necessary to look at the “Use Classes Order”. Alternatively a change of use may be allowed under the “General Permitted Development Order” without ever needing to make a planning application. It gets more confusing though - a change from estate agent to shop does not require planning consent but if at a later date you wished to revert back to a shop from estate agent this would require the approval of the local authority.
As you can see it is very easy to get tripped up so I hope my A-Z list explaining the main planning terminology will be useful. Check out the Planning Guide.
Steve Petty
Commercial Property Solicitor
01926 629 005
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