Legal Advice re council flat

KimStar

Hey guys

I was looking for some advice.

I have just moved into my new home and now realise it was a big mistake as the guy above is a total nightmare. (maybe not entirely his fault though).

The problem is I can hear everything above, when I go to bed I can hear the guy snoring, when I'm sitting watching tv I can hear the guy coughing. It gets worse when he decides to go on a 2 day bender with thumping dance music on and all his cronies round, the floorboards are constantly squeeking also with every move. (I'm 100% sure the guy doesnt have any carpet, just old floorboards)

The last straw was on Friday night, Saturday morn just there, I had just gotten into my bed when I heard loads of commotion and looked outside and there was about 10 people going up to his for a party......

Anyways getting to the point. I spoke to the council a couple of days after and they basically said they are aware of the poor insultaion problem within the houses around my area!! - I said if I knew this I would have never took this house in the first place.

Has anyone else experiened anything like this and if so what did you do about it?

And also do I have a case here? As I feel the council should have informed me about this problem before I spent a fortune doing it up and moving in!!!

Any advice would be much appreciated.

poppysarah

See your local councillor and ask what sound insulation should be made available.

Jowo_2

Your local council website will have an environmental services section that provides information about noise nuisance and your rights.

Ordinary living noise isn't dealt with but anti-social noise, such as loud music and parties is. Often they have a noise abatement team that will call on noisy householders.

Also, the Shelter website has excellent information on how to deal with neighbour relationship and environmental issues.

Engelbert

Are you a tenant or leaseholder?

There are two problems here

1) - poor sound insulation so that you can hear everything which goes on. You need to talk to the council and environmental health department about whether they will install sound insulation. They may well be aware of a problem but have little or no budget to deal with this. Talk to your local councillor as advised earlier

2) Then there are the all night benders and parties. That sounds like noise nuisance. Keep diary sheets noting down the noise, how loud it is, and the effect it has on you and contact your housing officer and environmental health regularly. You normally need diary sheets over about 2 weeks and then they will look at putting in a sound recorder. This is a machine where you press to record when there is noise. Environmental Health can then say if the noise is a statutory nuisance and they can serve noise abatement notice. If the guy below is a tenant, the council can start possession proceedings, and/or an Anti social behaviour injuction in the meantime. If he is a leaseholder he is in breach of his lease so they can start proceedings on this. It will take a while but this can be sorted. Noise nuisance is the easiest type of ASB to deal with as it is normally black and white. IT is hell to go through though, you have my sympathy

KimStar

(firstly thank you for taking the time to reply to my message)

I am the tenant.

I will definently get in touch with my local councillor. I am just wishing I had never moved in now!! Only been here 4 months as well.

I guess these council properties have thier pros and cons....!

I did have the noise pollution officers out and they said they could come round and witness the noise level from my property and then issue him with a fine......but I don't think he would take too kindly to this. So I can't really go down this route in fear of reprisals...

KimStar

Thank you all for replying to my message.

I will let yous know what happens next!

Fire_Fox

Speak to the upstairs neighbour and explain that you can hear so much, that you have reported the problems to your councillor and Environmental Health in order to get sound insulation installed not to complain about him.

Engelbert

Please don't let fear of reprisals stop you reporting him. The council shouldn't tell him who has complained (although admittedly it will only ever be a small number of people).