Britain’s new high-speed railway has been accused of causing misery for hundreds of households by rejecting almost half of applications to sell homes near the line. Figures published by HS2 show that 151 of 317 requests made to the end of July under its “need to sell” scheme, which are often submitted for health reasons, had been turned down. This amounted to 48 per cent of applications with another 101 decisions still to be made. The rejections were made under rules that replaced a previous scheme in November last year. Under the new rules, households with a “compelling” reason to sell, such as ill health or a new job, but who cannot do so because of HS2, can apply to sell their home. The previous
The company building the HS2 railway has rejected nearly half of applications by homeowners who want to sell their houses. Of 317 requests made under the "need to sell" scheme, 151 (48%) were turned down, with 101 decisions pending. New rules were introduced last year requiring a "compelling" reason for a sale, such as ill health or a new job, and evidence that HS2 is preventing a successful sale. This replaced the previous regime, which required homeowners to prove "exceptional hardship" and was criticised as being too stringent, with 65% of applications turned down.