BT/Openreach and lack of a wayleave agreement

smileylondongal

Sorry everyone, I'm sure this has been asked many a time but I can't track down the answer anywhere.

I've been living at my property (a leasehold flat) for over a decade with a BT junction box attached to my garden wall (one of those small white boxes, not big green junction box). It caters for all flats in our unit (8) though I myself have never been a customer.

I've always assumed an agreement was in place and since 2003 have been on at BT to either remove it, tidy it up (which they did), or at least tell me when engineers wish to be on my property. This has been exacerbated recently by random engineers turning up in my garden with no by or leave - they've had my number but don't care to use it. My home insurance requires my garden gate to be locked and as trustworthy as I'm sure their people are, I don't like strangers coming in when they please as I have a young baby.

Now I've dug a bit more and Openreach can't find the agreement.

Ideally, I want this box out of my garden. If not, then I was hoping for a vast lump sum for a wayleave agreement.

- Does anyone know where i stand legally on this?
- Whose responsibility financially it would be to remove it?
- How much they would give me as a lump sum to enter officially into the agreement?
- If I did undertake a wayleave, would this mean they could come and go as they please or should they still arrange with me to enter my property?

So upset about this and didn't help that the last engineer was so incredibly arrogant!

Thank you
x

snab

Does anyone know where i stand legally on this?

Search google for 'electronic communications code para 20'

Whose responsibility financially it would be to remove it?

I suspect they would charge you to remove it if you ask directly. Go to the Openreach website and click on contact us then find out something. Use the top link about removal/ relocation to contact the line plant removal team about the box

How much they would give me as a lump sum to enter officially into the agreement?

If its a small grey box (about hand size) then the lump sum is likely to be about £25. If its bigger than hand size it's likely to be about £150. If there are cables on the wall then depending on the size of the box you may get additional payments for them as well.

If I did undertake a wayleave, would this mean they could come and go as they please or should they still arrange with me to enter my property?

Whether you have an agreement in place or not the engineers should chap your door and ask to get access. It's common courtesy nevermind anything else. You could stipulate that they must ask everytime but in practise this probably wouldn't make any difference, primarily because there are so may engineers that work in one area they won't all get the necessary information about your property.

Phone 0800 581525 to make a claim for the payment and getting the agreement in place.

Sorry about the searches, I can't post links yet

HTH

smileylondongal

Hi Snab

Thank you so much for your steer. The funny thing is I'm not bothered necessarily about the box being there; it's just the arrogant attitude of the engineers who come to work on the box from time to time like they have a right to be there, when now I've discovered they clearly don't. With the baby in the house, I'm extra concerned about leaving windows open and about who's prowling outside!

I find Openreach quite a beast of an organisation to deal with and if they don't have the right to be there, then I'd like this thing off my property. Might see if Ofcom or someone can help me too.

Thanks again
x

HappyMJ

smileylondongal wrote: »

Hi Snab

Thank you so much for your steer. The funny thing is I'm not bothered necessarily about the box being there; it's just the arrogant attitude of the engineers who come to work on the box from time to time like they have a right to be there, when now I've discovered they clearly don't. With the baby in the house, I'm extra concerned about leaving windows open and about who's prowling outside!

I find Openreach quite a beast of an organisation to deal with and if they don't have the right to be there, then I'd like this thing off my property. Might see if Ofcom or someone can help me too.

Thanks again
x

They do have a right to be there. As you own a leashold flat what has your landlord said about the access? Can you lock it?

BTman

I work for Openreach and have witnessed people living in ex-council properties cutting away bt cables / joints etc. If it's on private property with no wayleave, then you have a right to remove it.
The person had tried to contact BT, with no result, so had phoned the police who had advised them that they could remove the cable.
Openreach had to install a pole and provide the houses by overhead wires.

smileylondongal

HappyMJ wrote: »

They do have a right to be there. As you own a leashold flat what has your landlord said about the access? Can you lock it?

Hi HappyMJ, I'm not sure what you mean about their right to be there? This is private property and the garden is part of the property I own. Is there something you think I might be missing?

I have indeed locked the garden gate which hasn't been locked until now as we needed to repair it.

I'll check with the landlord too, thank you!

smileylondongal

BTman wrote: »

I work for Openreach and have witnessed people living in ex-council properties cutting away bt cables / joints etc. If it's on private property with no wayleave, then you have a right to remove it.
The person had tried to contact BT, with no result, so had phoned the police who had advised them that they could remove the cable.
Openreach had to install a pole and provide the houses by overhead wires.

LOL, I hope I wouldn't have to resort to that! It would be too complicated to move myself I think, due to the cables coming out of it, but hopefully they'll be reasonable about it... or perhaps not!

snab

BTman wrote: »

If it's on private property with no wayleave, then you have a right to remove it.

Incorrect!

You have a right to ask for it to be removed and repositioned or for a wayleave agreement to be put in place for it althouh the removal and repositioning will more than likely cost you in most cases.

Not having a wayleave in place is not a reason for someone to remove it by themselves. If that was the case there would be cables and poles disappearing all over the country.

BTman

snab wrote: »

Incorrect!
If that was the case there would be cables and poles disappearing all over the country.

What makes you think they don't?;)