A search for the decays of the B+ c meson to pp¯π+ is performed for the first time using a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3.0 fb−1 collected by the LHCb experiment in pp collisions at centre-of-mass energies of 7 and 8 TeV. No signal is found and an upper limit, at 95 confidence level, is set, fc fu × B(B+ c → ppπ+) < 3.6 × 10−8 in the kinematic region m(pp) < 2.85 GeV/c2, pT(B) < 20 GeV/c and 2.0 < y(B) < 4.5, where B is the branching fraction and fc ( fu) is the fragmentation fraction of the b quark into a Bc+ (B+) meson.