Midnight on 12 October 2013 saw the end of the ten year grace period set by the Land Registration Act 2002, when some of the more 'archaic' overriding interests lost their overriding status. The Land Registry (LR) has received a flood of last minute applications relating to chancel repair and ancient manorial rights to mines and minerals. Whilst the abolishment of 'overriding' status for these interests was designed to make the registration system more transparent, there has been a lot of confusion about what the changes actually mean, and increasing concern about 'fracking.'  

What are overriding interests?
Overriding interests are those which formerly did not need protecting on the register to be binding on a landowner. Not all overriding interests lost their overriding status - just a few of the more historical categories, including chancel repair rights and manorial rights.
Chancel repair is already a familiar issue for most buyers and property developers. On any purchase, property searches are normally done to identify chancel repair liability so that indemnity insurance may be taken out if required. Manorial rights to mines and minerals are slightly more obscure. Essentially, some Lords of the Manor enjoy rights to minerals under the surface, regardless of whether any are actually present.