Fence Dispute?

ssolstice

Thank you all for your replies. I get that neighbourly relations aren't really worth risking over a fence, but his attitude stinks, so I'm not sure they're the kind of neighbours I want to be neighbourly towards anyway!

I really can't face looking out my window at this, my fence looks awful I tried to post a picture, but as a new poster it won't let me! I can't believe anyone would want a garden fence that colour in the first place!


I'm going to continue looking into the ownership of the fence and then either we'll put up another fence as suggested, or he'll tire of painting it blue before I tire of painting it black!

Our garden gets very little sunlight - literally nothing grows there, our grass is artificial (which he has covered in blue paint!) so growing something up it sadly isn't an option!

Mojisola

ssolstice wrote: »

Then tonight he showed me some sort of document that he claims he got from the builders which says that the boundary fences have joint ownership.

If the boundary is joint responsibility then, in principle, neither of you can do anything to it without the agreement of the other.

However, now he's painted it, it's not going to be easy or cheap to put him in his place.

phill99

I think you could be barking up the wrong tree here.

The BOUNDARY may have joint responsibility, but the fences may not. If you have built a fence which is clearly on your land, then it is nothing to do with him and he has committed an act of Criminal Damage which he can be arrested for.

Irony

Make friends,ask them if they have any left over. Paint your side to match and get rid of that blinking 'orrible Black fence. Never known/heard of anyone with that colour before. Plant some shrubs.
Poison ivy will go well aganist the black:p
Any pics?

macman

The side that the fence posts are on do not establish who owns the fence. Though it is 'traditional' to put the posts on your side, this is not always adhered to. Consult your deeds.

diable

phill99 wrote: »

he has committed an act of Criminal Damage which he can be arrested for.

don't be a drama queen..........

Mrs_Arcanum

This thread on the Garden Law forum might be of some help. - You really need to legally establish responsibility rather than guess based on the posts.

keystone

diable wrote: »

don't be a drama queen..........

Although a tad melodramatic he COULD be correct. Maintenance of the fence per the deeds is NOT the same thing as ownership of the fence. If the fence is on OPs land and thus his property (seeing as how a fence should never be erected exactly on the boundary) then the neighbour is not allowed to paint it, hang anything off it, nail anything to it etc etc etc without first seeking OPs permission. If he does not get it or its refused and he goes ahead anyway then what he has done IS classed as criminal damage.

If, however, the fence is on the neighbours property then the reverse applies and if the neighbour wants he can paint the OPs side the same blue as his own. The OPs choice then would be to put up with it or erect his own fence inside the present one and paint it what colour he likes.

Cheers

keystone

Mrs_Arcanum wrote: »

This thread on the Garden Law forum might be of some help. - You really need to legally establish responsibility rather than guess based on the posts.

Stacks of threads on that site regaring this issue. If you really want a laugh go look for the one where a poster (perfectly legally) painted his fence in lots of different pretty pastels because his neighbour was being an AH about something - can't remember the details exactly.

Cheers