Neighbour disputes

The first step is to speak to your neighbour to try to reach an agreement you can both live with.

If they do not co-operate, start to keep a diary record of the disturbance covering the type of noise and timing.

Then you can consider action such as a formal letter of complaint (sent to them or their landlord if they rent their home). The sample letter below suggests mediation if you can’t both reach agreement between yourselves. This is something our small claim service may be able to help you with.

If mediation does not work then you your next step is to report your neighbour to your local council.

Noise or nuisance law: Section 82 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 allows the Council to investigate a nuisance on your behalf.

There are some situations that are unlikely to be covered, such as the sound of children playing.

They will find your diary helpful. They should also use equipment to measure the level of noise. They can advise if it counts as “noise nuisance” meaning they can take matters further.

They may then speak to your neighbours to see if they will agree to stop or reduce the noise nuisance. They also have the power to take your neighbour’s noise-making equipment.

If this does not stop the “noise nuisance” they must issue a “noise abatement order”. This tells your neighbour what they must do to stop making a noise nuisance.

If your neighbour does not comply with the “noise abatement order” about the council can take further legal action and they can be fined up to £5,000. If it’s noise from a factory or business, the penalty can be up to £20,000.

Councils also have the power to take swift action in certain situations :

• Noise from car alarms - they can break into the vehicle to stop the alarm if it is creating a nuisance.
• Noise form house alarms causing a nuisance (sounding for 20 minutes non-stop or on and off for at least an hour) – they can enter the building to disarm the alarm (although they cannot force an entry without a warrant).
• Music from loudspeakers in the street which are banned from 9pm and 8am by taking the equipment
• Noise coming from pubs (licensed premises) between 11pm and 7am.

Types of noise or nuisance that the legal action can help with:

• A noisy neighbour – causing unreasonable noise (such as loud music, parties or barking dogs) which has results in significant reduced enjoyment of your home and garden.
• The nuisance neighbour could be a business – perhaps causing problems such as smoke or other fumes. It might be a noisy pub.
• A nuisance neighbour might be causing problems such as leaks or smells which has cause damage or significantly reduce your enjoyment of your home and garden
• Allowing a a build-up of rubbish that could harm health

Hedge: You do not have the right to reduce the height of your neighbour’s hedge even if it is blocking your light.

As with all neighbour disputes you should first try speaking with your neighbour to resolve the matter. If that fails you can put your concerns in writing, perhaps offer a suggested solution and perhaps offer to use a mediation service. The sample letter below covers this type of situation and our small claims service can give you legal advice and put you in touch with a mediation service.

If all else fails you can resort to the law. The Antisocial Behaviour Act 2003, covers issues relating to high hedges over 2m.

If you report your problem to your local council, it gives the council powers to investigate your complaint. You will often first have to pay a fee. If they agree the hedge should be reduced to 2m, the council can then take legal action to force the reduction in the hedge’s height through a court order.

Access to neighbour’s land: You may have the right of access in the title deeds to the property. It is usual to have such rights – these can be checked with the Land registry.

If you do not have such rights then the Access to Neighbouring Land Act 1992 may give you the right to go onto your neighbour’s land in order for you (or a workman instructed by you) to carry out 'basic preservation works' to your property.

If the neighbour doesn’t agree to your request to access his land for this type of maintenance, then you’ll need to apply to court. However the court can still refuse you the requested access if it considers this would cause hardship to your neighbour or significantly interfere with their enjoyment of the land in question.

If you did need to apply to court and were given an “access order”, it will specify what work you can carry out, when and where. It may also say that you must provide compensation to your neighbour for any loss or damage suffered by them.

Lots of services can be shared with your neighbours – paths, driveways, parking bays, fences, water and sewage pipes and chimneys. With flats even the roof is shared.

The title deeds will often cover who is responsible for repairs and the rights of access needed for repairs. These can be usually checked through the Land Registry.

Where the service has been used over a long time – continuous and unchallenged use – usually for 20 years – then the right is given in law.

If a neighbour disputes your right to the facility or to make repairs then you may need to apply to court for the court to decide what should happen in the circumstances.

Types of shared use disputes include:

• Damage to a shared wall caused by your neighbour.
• Fencing disputes - who is responsible to repair a fence or boundary wall?
• Your neighbour's failure to carry out repairs is affecting your property or garden.
• Your neighbour will not give your workmen access to repair a shared sewage pipe.
• Dispute over parking rights
• Blocked access to house, garage or garden
• Use of a shared pathway (especially if it crosses the other house’s land)
• Right of way dispute with your neighbour over getting to your house or garden by crossing their land.

Neighbours can fall out over where the boundary lies between their houses and gardens.

The title deeds will give the position of the boundary line. Most land in England and wales is registered and there are computer records that can be usually checked through the Land Registry. If land has not been registered, the owner should have title deeds (often held by their solicitor or mortgage company).

Problems can occur if:

• The land in question is not clearly shown or described in the records
• An agreement had been reached between neighbours to vary the boundary and there is no clear record of what has been agreed.
• One of the neighbours has just been using the land belonging to the other without permission.

Here it may be necessary to obtain a court order to decide on ownership – if an agreement cannot be reached between the neighbours (perhaps through mediation)

Ball goes into neighbours land: The ball or other item remains the property of the owner and should be returned. But the ball owner cannot go onto the neighbours land to collect it without their permission and they are responsible for any damage the neighbour can prove was caused by the ball.

Tree branches or roots crossing the boundary: The owner of the tree is determined by the position of the tree trunk - on which side of the boundary it was planted. Where there is a tree preservation order on the tree, the local council’s permission is needed before the tree or branches are trimmed.

If a neighbour’s tree is causing you a problem by having overhanging branches or roots that extend under your side of the boundary, the legal position is:

• With overhanging branches, the tree owning neighbour should first be asked to trim back the branches so they do not cross the boundary.
• If this is not done you can then trim them back to the boundary line.
• However the branches and any fruit belong to the tree owner and should be offered back to your neighbour.
• With roots, you can remove them but (where possible) in a way that causes least harm to the tree.
• If the overhanging branches or roots caused property damage or injury, the tree owner may be liable to pay compensation. This may be covered by the tree owner’s house insurance.

If the tree needs more severe action to prevent it causing damage, and the tree owner will not take action, you can apply to your local council to ask them to inspect and if necessary they can order that the tree owner makes the tree safe (or they can do this and reclaim the costs from the tree owner).