Latent Damage Act 1986
The following sections shall be inserted in the Limitation Act 1980 (referred to below in this Act as the 1980 Act) immediately after section 14 (date of knowledge for purposes of special time limits for actions in respect of personal injuries or death)—
The following section shall be inserted in the 1980 Act immediately after section 28 (extension of limitation period in case of disability on date of accrual of cause of action)—
In section 32 of the 1980 Act (postponement of limitation period in case of fraud, concealment or mistake), at the end there shall be added the following subsection—
Subject to the following provisions of this section, where— a fresh cause of action in respect of that negligence shall accrue to that other person on the date on which he acquires his interest in the property.
a cause of action (“the original cause of action”) has ac crued to any person in respect of any negligence to which damage to any property in which he has an interest is attributable (in whole or in part), and
another person acquires an interest in that property after the date on which the original cause of action accrued but before the material facts about the damage have become known to any person who, at the time when he first has knowledge of those facts, has any interest in the property;
A cause of action accruing to any person by virtue of subsection (1) above—
shall be treated as if based on breach of a duty of care at common law owed to the person to whom it accrues; and
shall be treated for the purposes of section 14A of the 1980 Act (special time limit for negligence actions where facts relevant to cause of action are not known at date of accrual) as having accrued on the date on which the original cause of action accrued.
Section 28 of the 1980 Act (extension of limitation period in case of disability) shall not apply in relation to any such cause of action.
Subsection (1) above shall not apply in any case where the person acquiring an interest in the damaged property is either—
a person in whom the original cause of action vests by operation of law; or
a person in whom the interest in that property vests by virtue of any order made by a court under section 538 of the Companies Act 1985 (vesting of company property in liquidator).
For the purposes of subsection (1)(b) above, the material facts about the damage are such facts about the damage as would lead a reasonable person who has an interest in the damaged property at the time when those facts become known to him to consider it sufficiently serious to justify his instituting proceedings for damages against a defendant who did not dispute liability and was able to satisfy a judgment.
For the purposes of this section a person’s knowledge includes knowledge which he might reasonably have been expected to acquire— but a person shall not be taken by virtue of this subsection to have knowledge of a fact ascertainable by him only with the help of expert advice so long as he has taken all reasonable steps to obtain (and, where appropriate, to act on) that advice.
from facts observable or ascertainable by him; or
from facts ascertainable by him with the help of appropriate expert advice which it is reasonable for him to seek;
This section shall bind the Crown, but as regards the Crown’s liability in tort shall not bind the Crown further than the Crown is made liable in tort by the Crown Proceedings Act 1947.
Nothing in section 1 or 2 of this Act shall—
enable any action to brought which was barred by the 1980 Act or (as the case may be) by the Limitation Act 1939 before this Act comes into force; or
affect any action commenced before this Act comes into force.
Subject to subsection (1) above, sections 1 and 2 of this Act shall have effect in relation to causes of action accruing before, as well as in relation to causes of action accruing after, this Act comes into force.
Section 3 of this Act shall only apply in cases where an interest in damaged property is acquired after this Act comes into force but shall so apply, subject to subsection (4) below, irrespective of whether the original cause of action accrued before or after this Act comes into force.
Where— a cause of action shall not accrue to that person by virtue of subsection (1) of that section unless section 32(1)(b) of the 1980 Act (postponement of limitation period in case of deliberate concealment of relevant facts) would apply to any action founded on the original cause of action.
a person acquires an interest in damaged property in circumstances to which section 3 would apart from this subsection apply; but
the original cause of action accrued more than six years before this Act comes into force;
This Act may be cited as the Latent Damage Act 1986.
In this Act—
" the 1980 Act" has the meaning given by section 1; and
“the 1980 Act” has the meaning given by section 1; and
" action " includes any proceeding in a court of law, an arbitration and any new claim within the meaning of section 35 of the 1980 Act (new claims in pending actions).
“action” includes any proceeding in a court of law, an arbitration and any new claim within the meaning of section 35 of the 1980 Act (new claims in pending actions).
This Act shall come into force at the end of the period of two months beginning with the date on which it is passed.
This Act extends to England and Wales only.