What Counts as a Right of Way

If you are buying a cottage at the end of a lane or a farmhouse with a paddock, one of the first things worth checking is not the roof or the boiler, but who has a legal right to cross your land. Rights of way are one of those features of country property that rarely appear in estate agent particulars, yet they can shape daily life more than almost anything else.

There are four main types, and they are not interchangeable:

• Public footpath — walking only. Dogs are usually welcome, though they should be under close control or on a lead around livestock and ground-nesting birds.
• Bridleway — walking, horse riding and cycling. Cyclists must give way to walkers and riders, and riders to walkers.
• Restricted byway — walking, riding, cycling and non-mechanically propelled vehicles, such as horse-drawn carriages.
• Byway open to all traffic — as the name suggests, motor vehicles too, though many are little more than muddy ruts.

All public rights of way are recorded on the definitive map and statement kept by the surveying authority, usually the county council or unitary authority. The map is the legal record and can be viewed free of charge. Historic paths that ought to be on it but are not remain a genuine risk; the deadline for recording them has been postponed more than once, so claims can still surface.

Open Access Land, Commons and Permissive Paths

Beyond the definitive map, a property can be affected by access land. Under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, the public has a right to roam on foot over mapped mountain, moor, heath, down and registered common land. Village greens, often tiny and easy to miss on a plan, can carry similar public rights. A permissive path is different again: it is granted by the landowner, usually by agreement with the council, and can be closed — sometimes for one day a year specifically to prevent it becoming a public right.

Privacy: What It Really Feels Like Day to Day

It is easy to underestimate what a footpath means in practice until you live with one. A path crossing a field in July can feel a world away; by January it may run within a few feet of your kitchen window, and in summer the early dog walkers start before six.

What to look for on a viewing: fingerposts and waymark discs at the boundary, worn lines through grass, stiles and kissing gates at fence lines, and gates that open onto your drive rather than a field. Ask to walk the route yourself, both ways, and visit on a weekend morning and a bank holiday if you can. A path that clips the corner of a paddock is a very different proposition from one that crosses the lawn, passes the front door or shares your access track.

Who Maintains What — and Who Is Liable

Responsibility is split, and it is worth knowing which side you fall on. The highway authority — the county council or unitary authority — is responsible for the surface of a public right of way. The landowner is responsible for keeping it clear of crops and overgrowth, for stiles, gates and signposts on their land, and for bridges over ditches. That means the practical upkeep of gates and stiles near your home usually lands with you.

Liability matters just as much. As an occupier you owe a duty of care to people using a right of way across your land, and you cannot simply block a path because you dislike it. Check that your buildings and contents or farm policy includes public liability cover for access, and tell your insurer if a path crosses the property. Keep gates in working order and stiles sound; small maintenance now avoids larger arguments later.

Changing a Route: Possible, but Rarely Quick

You cannot lawfully obstruct a public right of way. You can apply to divert or extinguish one under the Highways Act 1980, but the process is slow and not guaranteed. The council must consult, objectors can be heard, and a contested order can take a year or more and cost several thousand pounds. If a route only needs moving a few metres, a diversion may still be worthwhile — but factor the time and cost into any offer.

Landowners can also deposit a statement and map with the council under section 31(6) of the Act, which acknowledges existing paths and makes it harder for new ones to be claimed through long use. Ask whether any such deposit exists.

What to Check Before You Exchange Contracts

• Ask your solicitor to raise the standard local authority search and the CON29 enquiries, which include public rights of way.
• Request the definitive map extract for the property and check it against the sale plan.
• Ask the seller directly about path use, any disputes, any pending orders or claims, and any correspondence with the council or a local walking group.
• Walk the boundaries and look for gates, stiles, waymarks and worn tracks that do not appear on the title plan.
• Confirm the insurance position, including public liability cover under any farm or smallholding policy.

None of this need be a deal-breaker. Plenty of buyers live happily alongside a footpath, and villages often value them. But you should know exactly what you are taking on before you commit, rather than discovering it on your first sunny Sunday.