Allowing neighbour to put scaffolding on my drive?

misgrace

justontime wrote: »

I was in a very similar situation several years ago, the next door house that bordered my drive was being renovated. I wasn't over the moon about months of building work, but I was pleasant and accommodating with the builder. It didn't involve scaffolding on my property but it did overhang my drive. During the time the works were going on I got 4 punctures because they were doing work on the pavement and they left nails and stuff in the gutter at the end of my drive. That cost me a new tyre each time! There were several incidents with intruders climbing up the scaffolding causing me worry and a lot of wasted time, and it frightened my young children. Then someone climbed the scaffolding and started throwing white gloss paint about (left out by the builder), it went all over my 6 month old Ford Galaxy. The builder was not interested, I investigated suing him but it would have been expensive and exhausting and not guaranteed to succeed. My insurance paid up except for the excess, but it damaged my no claims and my insurance went up significantly the following year.


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This is what I mean, it always starts of careful and friendly, then time goes on, people get lazy and sloppy, then accidents happen.

A client of mine had to have his car re-sprayed, as builders were in next door, he said to the builder, if you are going to have a lot of karp coming off the walls, here is an old dustsheet to put over my car.
He even moved his car to the other side of his house, as the car was originally on the party wall side of his drive.

The builders were using a brick grinder, and of course the dust was getting everywhere, no, they didnt cover up my clients car,(even though he gave them a dustsheet) and it poured down with rain, so all the brick dust that went on his car, mingled with the rain, and left his car in a mess, it was all pitted, he had to have a respray.



he had a nightmare fighting with the builder to get it resprayed

meester

Mr_Warren wrote: »

in Geordieland my good lady, people do talk to each other and people are known to be friendly. if a new neighbour arrived and asked me that question, i would have negotiated with them as discussed in this forum and i see many answers similar to mine. we do have a couple of grumpy ladies around, one who owns a derelict house (not lived in) that caused much problems to her next door family when said family wanted to errect a conservatory. Mind she is 73 and suffering from slight dementia.....and she is from the South too.

ah, I see I was right about you being a presumptuous geordie.

I am a Yorkshireman.

Best not to work on the basis of assumptions eh?

Mr_Warren_2

Man , woman....our days you never know who you dealing with. A grumpy Yorkshireman in deed and not one i would enjoy as a neighbour in that case.

tomstickland

darich wrote: »

i'd contact the council and tell them he's building without permission.
What happened to "neighbour notifications"??
What he's doing is building without permission and hope the council will be less likely to tell him to take it down than they would be if he asked before building. The council have enforcement officers who look after this type of thing.
There is no such thing as being told verbally it is ok - he must have drawings and the council will only give permission if the proper procedures are followed.

It's quite possible that the new buyer is simply doing preliminary work. ie: Discussing plans with neighbours etc, before proceeding with the official plans. To accuse him of building without permission is premature, because he's not doing any building yet.

darich

tomstickland wrote: »

It's quite possible that the new buyer is simply doing preliminary work. ie: Discussing plans with neighbours etc, before proceeding with the official plans. To accuse him of building without permission is premature, because he's not doing any building yet.

Possibly but if the builder is asking for permission to erect a scaffold and has told the OP he plans to demolish and rebuild then it it would appear to be more than just preparotory work.
To also claim the council have told him verbally it is ok is probably an "untruth". Councils don't operate that way and would require drawings, applications, paperwork and procedures to be followed. They'd then give permission properly.

To demolish a building still requires permission and procedures to be followed - and if it's verbal permission, it means procedures are not being adhered to.

slummymummyof3

darich wrote: »

Possibly but if the builder is asking for permission to erect a scaffold and has told the OP he plans to demolish and rebuild then it it would appear to be more than just preparotory work.
To also claim the council have told him verbally it is ok is probably an "untruth". Councils don't operate that way and would require drawings, applications, paperwork and procedures to be followed. They'd then give permission properly.

To demolish a building still requires permission and procedures to be followed - and if it's verbal permission, it means procedures are not being adhered to.

This is incorrect - it is possible to have an informal chat with the planning dept to see what their thoughts are on such a development. Anyone contemplating this sort of work would be sensible in this approach prior to buying the property and going to the expense of having plans etc drawn up, if there was a chance that the planning dept were going to say no categorically would be financial suicide!

This is incorrect - you do not need permission to demolish a building! The PWA may apply for a part of the demolition process but this depends on whether it is a party wall, whether the adjoining owner is using the wall as support for another structure etc. Even then, the building can be demolished to the height and width of the structure without the PWA!

darich

slummymummyof3 wrote: »

This is incorrect - it is possible to have an informal chat with the planning dept to see what their thoughts are on such a development. Anyone contemplating this sort of work would be sensible in this approach prior to buying the property and going to the expense of having plans etc drawn up, if there was a chance that the planning dept were going to say no categorically would be financial suicide!

This is incorrect - you do not need permission to demolish a building! The PWA may apply for a part of the demolition process but this depends on whether it is a party wall, whether the adjoining owner is using the wall as support for another structure etc. Even then, the building can be demolished to the height and width of the structure without the PWA!

I understand an informal chat is prudent but the builder has told the OP they have verbal permission. That's different from an informal chat and approval in principle. He also would not be told "no problem" as he has relayed to the OP. He would probably be told it would be acceptable subject to appropriate plans being submitted and advised that no work should commence until adequate permission has been received.

As far as Scotland is concerned you definitely do need permission to demolish because i had to go through the procedure earlier this year. And Having had a quick read through the posts, I don't believe the OP has said where she is - the PWA is only applicable in England and Wales so if the OP is in Scotland then the PWA is completely irrelevant.

hewhoisnotintheknow

i always take time to consider things like this, a straight forward no in my view is rude.

You could of got a new block paved drive/garden / cheap new garage / extension out of it!

badmumof1

hewhoisnotintheknow wrote: »

i always take time to consider things like this, a straight forward no in my view is rude.

You could of got a new block paved drive/garden / cheap new garage / extension out of it!

i think asking to do such a thing in the first place is rude.
The asker always think they have to right and if you object you are the one being unfair and will then they will make you suffer for it.

I have been there with my neighbours and the builders etc and i know how much of a micky take this can lead to like breaking into MY garage to use MY electric without MY permission and unplugging MY freezer.
Removing MY fence panels and using MY outside water tap and even stealing MY hose along just for good measure.:mad:
If you complain then comes the blocking of the driveway with their vehicles the sand over the car and even bits of morter cracking the windcreens.
But hey ho hum when someone builds a house nextdoor you have to allow them to do whatever they want.

hewhoisnotintheknow

Well, they cant just not ask, if everyone had a NO attitude we would never get anywhere, give and take and all that