THE hottest topic in my mail bag, on my radio talk show and online undoubtedly is upset with neighbours.
By the time the issue is shared with me, it has usually escalated. But my role is to diffuse the situation by telling people their rights – or correcting them if they’re about to take the law into their own hands. Here are some examples of neighbourly disputes – and how to handle them.
Our neighbour has built a large wooden gate that blocks access to the side of our home and electricity meter, so we can no longer read it. Title deeds say we own the side of our house. The owner rents out the property as a holiday let and has just agreed to sell it. What can we do?
J. Jones, Newquay, Cornwall.
You firstly need to ascertain if you own the land to the side of your house where the gate has been built. You should be able to find this information within the property deeds, as they should contain a plan showing your boundaries.
From youngsters on trampolines to overhanging branches… Dean has dealt with it all
If it transpires you do own the land, provide your neighbour with evidence of this, demand (nicely) that the gate be removed and then erect a fence/boundary around the land so it is clear that it forms part of your garden/land.
If you do not own the land, check to see if the deeds make reference to any legal right of way to inspect/read the electricity meter. This may be expressly shown on the property deeds as an ‘easement’.
If the deeds show no easement, find out when your house was built. If it was more than 20 years ago, it is likely that an implied legal right of way will have been established, meaning you will have the right to access your neighbour’s land to inspect the meter.
If your neighbour agrees that you do have the right to access their land, it would be prudent to get them to agree this in writing, especially as they are about to sell. If they do not agree with your position, this is a matter that I would advocate taking to court as it has a significant impact on you and the value of your home.
Here the outcome looks positive as in all the cases like this I have dealt with the attitude of the courts has been to be in favour of the property owner who needs access to their meter, as was demonstrated in a recent case called Dickinson v Cassillas, where the court concluded that Mrs Cassillas did have the right to cross the boundary line and enter onto her neighbour’s land to check the condition of her property, carry out any necessary maintenance or repairs, and inspect her gas and electricity meters.
We live in a mid-terrace cottage and share the strip of wooden fascia and soffit behind the roof guttering with our neighbour. Their side has rotted and is now affecting ours. Is there anything we can do if they refuse to fix it?
N. A., via email.
Hopefully your neighbour will not refuse, and to increase the chances of this I would advise you to take a few steps before contacting them. First, check your title deeds as these may contain provisions about maintenance and repair responsibilities between yours and your neighbour’s property which will help when you have the conversation.
You can obtain a copy of the deeds from your local land registry. Secondly, gather evidence, such as taking photographs of the rotten fascia and soffits.
Dean Dunham explains how to cope with neighbour disputes
Finally, obtain an opinion and quote for rectifying the problem from a tradesperson. Armed with all this information, approach your neighbour and have a friendly conversation about the need to carry out the repairs.
If your neighbour refuses as you fear will happen, your next step is to check if your home insurance covers damage caused by neighbouring properties. They might be able to assist with repairs or even pursue the neighbour, via their insurer, for the cost.
If all else fails you could take your neighbour to court and seek an order that they either take steps to repair/maintain the fascia or reimburse you for doing so. This is the absolute last resort as it could turn out to be very costly.
Finally, you will see some people online advising that you report the matter to your local council as a ‘statutory nuisance’.
You could do this, but in my experience local councils do not get involved unless the nuisance is significant and is caused
by the likes of noise or a negative behaviour.
Our neighbour has put a trampoline up in their garden against an adjoining wall. When sitting outside facing the sun I see teenage girls bouncing, and as a man this makes me feel uncomfortable. We could talk to them about it but, due to previous arguments, fear this could end in confrontation. What rights do we have in this situation?
N. K., via email.
This is a common issue that I seem to hear every summer. Talking to your neighbours about the situation and explaining your position and how you feel is definitely the first step to take. Sometimes having a neutral third party, if possible a common friend or acquaintance, accompany you can defuse the situation and assist with the conversation.
It is also helpful if you are able to articulate, in a friendly manner, not only how you feel about a situation but what the legal position is and for you to propose an amicable solution.
Here, the legal issue is your right to privacy as this is potentially being breached every time your neighbour’s children peer over your fence while using the trampoline, and the obvious remedy would be to suggest they move the trampoline to a more suitable position.
If the friendly chat with your neighbour doesn’t work, you could contact your local authority to see if it will help. But, as I have explained above, experience tells me it will only be interested if there is a significant noise or behaviour issue, so this will probably be a fruitless exercise.
The last resort option, would be to go to court. You will see people online advising to go down this route in these circumstances. However, I urge caution as we have had a string of recent court cases, including one in the Court of Appeal (the second highest court in the land), where it has been found that ‘mere overlooking’ (as in your case) is not a breach of privacy.
I find it hard to agree, but it does make clear that the courts are unlikely to intervene unless the breach of privacy is severe.
My neighbour has seven dogs that are never taken out for a walk and their adjourning garden looks like a Steptoe and Son scrapyard. They blocked a hole in the garden wall which takes surface water from my garden into a shared drain and threatened to attack me if I unblocked it. I am 81 years old and feel threatened. What can I do?
C. Jones., via email.
My usual advice when it comes to issues with neighbours is to have a friendly chat first and try to resolve the issues, before escalating further. However, sometimes this is not appropriate or is simply not a good idea, and I feel this is the case here.
I would, therefore, advise you to contact your local council, in particular the environmental health department, and provide details of the three complaints/concerns you have: 1) the dogs; 2) the messy garden; and 3) the issue with the surface water.
The local council will firstly consider if there is a statutory nuisance. To establish this it will consider if the matters you complain of unreasonably and substantially interfere with the use or enjoyment of your home; and/or are likely to injure health.
I think the answer to these questions could be yes in relation to all three complaints, meaning the local council is likely to take action.
This would involve issuing a warning about the dogs, telling your neighbour to unblock the hole and in relation to the messy garden, issuing what is known as a Section 215 Notice, also known as an Untidy Land Notice’or Overgrown Garden Notice under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.
A Section 215 Notice is used by local authorities to address the issue of neglected or unsightly land, including gardens, that negatively impact the visual amenity of an area and requires the offending party to remedy the issue.
If the council route does not work, the last resort will be to go to court. I would confine this initially to the surface water issue. You would be seeking an order under the Access to Neighbouring Land Act 1992, to access your neighbour’s land to unblock the hole in the wall and recoup the cost from your neighbour. Or the order could determine your neighbour does the work.
My neighbour’s garden is overgrown with bramble, ivy and nettles that grow to up to 12 ft in height and which are pushing over the shared fence. Their house is rented out and the tenants refuse to give me details of the landlord. Who is responsible for the maintenance, and what can I do to resolve this growing problem?
C. Collins., Wolverhampton, West Midlands.
The owners of the property where the offending bushes are planted are responsible for their maintenance – so here the landlord of next door.
However, rather than escalating the matter and spending time tracking down the landlord’s address, you could simply prune the brambles/ivy/nettles yourself, as you are entitled to remove anything that comes over your fence/boundary – although, by law, you should offer any clippings to your neighbour.
My neighbour’s tree has grown halfway over my house roof, and broken tiles and damaged guttering. A couple of weeks ago I cut a branch down that was hanging over the kitchen window. The neighbour went crazy and punched me and I called the police. I am concerned that if I cut down another branch he will attack me again. What can I do?
J. W., Cardiff, South Glamorgan.
The first step is to find out if the tree in question is located within a conservation area or has a Tree Preservation Order (TPO). Trees in these areas are subject to additional protection, and you must seek permission from the local planning authority before carrying out any work. Even routine maintenance, such as pruning overhanging branches, may require consent and failure to comply with these regulations can lead to severe penalties.
If the tree is not within a conservation area and is not the subject of a TPO, then you will be perfectly entitled to cut down branches which overhang on to your land. However, from the circumstances you describe, it may be best now to take an alternative route. That route will be to report the ‘dangerous’ tree to your local authority, following which it is likely to either tell your neighbour to make it safe or deal with the issue itself – either way, it takes the issue away from you.
Our peace and quiet has been destroyed by new neighbours who have a young teenage son who seems to spend all day and night kicking a football against a fence that belongs to them. It is very loud, and we can no longer enjoy sitting in our own garden. What can we do?
J. P., via email.
Speaking to your neighbours nicely and explaining how this situation is causing you distress is the first step to take. If it’s annoying you, the chances are the noise is also annoying them, so they may have sympathy with you. If your neighbours fail to resolve the problem, your next step is to keep a diary for a few weeks, recording the precise dates and times when your neighbour’s son causes the disturbance. Armed with this, you can then approach your local council and complain that your neighbour is causing a ‘statutory nuisance’.
A statutory nuisance is any activity that is unreasonable or excessive and causes substantial interference with the enjoyment of your home, recurring on a regular basis (daily or at least three or four times a week). By law, local councils must investigate complaints of statutory nuisances.
If your local council decides noise caused by your neighbour is a statutory nuisance, they can issue them with a noise abatement order.
It tells them what they need to do to comply with the order and outlines what will happen if they don’t – typically meaning they are fined up to £5,000.
And finally…
With all neighbour disputes there is always the option to try mediation, a step-by-step process in which an impartial mediator helps people in dispute settle their differences quickly and confidentially.
It does not seek to prove right or wrong but helps those involved to identify what they want or perhaps need to change.
However, I have taken part in many mediations and more often than not they do not work with neighbour disputes, usually because one of the parties enters the mediation with no willingness to agree an amicable resolution.
Finally, before you embark on a dispute with your neighbour, it is worth remembering that when you sell a house you have a legal obligation to disclose to the buyer, details of any ‘neighbour disputes’.
Naturally, this could put a buyer off and could end up devaluing your property.
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