When you take out a mortgage you agree to a charge being placed on the property. Can anyone tell me if an individual can place a charge on your property in similar manner say to settle a debt? If they can, must they have your written agreement and how would they go about it ?
As far as I know, the person/organisation owed the debt has to obtain a County Court Judgement against the individual first - only then will the Land Registry contemplate agreeing to an application to place a second charge on the property.
You'd know if a CCJ was obtained against you.
If a County Court Judgement has been obtained, but the debtor hasn't paid, the procedures in this document (from HM Courts Service) are relevant:
http://www.hmcourts-s.../forms/ex325_1208.pdf
Otherwise the consent of the owner is needed in order to place a charge on a property. It involves little more than completing a form but the services of a solicitor should be used to ensure that everything is done properly.