Fence blown down, who pays

Becles

There are no markings or any mention of who owns the fences in our deeds and as it was panels, the posts were in the middle. Neighbour said as long as we were happy to sort out getting a new fence and it was just a basic fence and nothing expensive, he'd give us half the cash. So we did that!

martindow

Just a thought. If you are in a row of houses you could try asking neighbours up and down the road. You may find there is a pattern which will show which side of your garden is your responsibility.

seven-day-weekend

Please also bear in mind that if it turns out to be your neighbour's responsibility, they are not obliged to repair or replace the fence.

Nerf18

Rubber_Duck wrote:

Due to the high winds we have been experienceing up here in the North East park of my fence has blown down and will need to be replaced.

.

Answered your own question

HugoSP

seven-day-weekend wrote:

Please also bear in mind that if it turns out to be your neighbour's responsibility, they are not obliged to repair or replace the fence.

Correct. But most people want a fence between properties and if either of you has a dog or other animal, then the dog owner is responsible for containing it. Hence he/she may be obliged to erect a fence around the whole garden.

You cannot make any certain assumptions as to ownership of fences in either old or modern properties. The title plan on the deeds will give you an indication as to who owns the boundary feature (fence. wall, hedge etc). However, most people tend to erect panels with the nice side to their garden. This is a possible indicator as to who has been maintaining it before, but is by no means certain.

If the posts are your side of the boundary then the fence is yours. But the exact position of the boundary may not be known, so it comes down to who accepts responsibility.

The person who accepts responsibility/ownership of the fence with the consent of his neighbour. would be able to erect any boundary feature he chooses in the same position. This could mean a 2m block wall running the length of the garden. The other neighbour would have no control over what went up.

If you get on with your neigbours I would offer to contribute 50% of the cost and put an agreement in writing that the fence sits astride of the boundary (ie on the boundary, not one side or the other) and is jointly owned. I would also take the opportunity to confirm the exact position of the boundary using fixed structures (houses) as reference points.

This effectively means that neither person can work on it without the concent of the other. However I would agree between yourselves that each can carry out minor repairs that do not effect the other side in the future. A colour of creasote or paint should also be agreed.

Also, sharing the cost is good for neighbourly relations. Believe me, you don't appreciate a good neighbour until you've had a problem one!

moonrakerz

It's a bit of an urban myth that the deeds will tell you who the boundary fence belongs to, in most cases they don't !

Most garden fences tend to be made of 4" posts with panels nailed to them. To be blunt, they are c**p. The only reason they are used is because they are cheap.
I/we had problems with the fence between myself and my neighbour, every time there was anything more than a gentle breeze it blew down. In the end we got a builder in to put up a decent fence. 6" posts, three horizontal bars, vertical boards nailed to those and a removable gravel board along the bottom.
It has been there for about 15 years and looks still almost as good as new. I don't think a full blown hurricane would shift it.

Worth every penny. We went 45/55% on the cost, he got the good side ! As already said, it helps if you have good neighbours.

STORM_2

I sort of skipped some of the above, but if you want title deeds to your property then go https://www.landregisteronline.gov.uk input your details. You will have to pay approx. £2, They will have pictures of your property and details.
Good Luck!

HugoSP

STORM wrote:

I sort of skipped some of the above, but if you want title deeds to your property then go https://www.landregisteronline.gov.uk input your details. You will have to pay approx. £2, They will have pictures of your property and details.
Good Luck!

IIRC it's £3 for the title deeds and the same again for the plan.

Here's the link you need:


http://www.landreg.gov.uk/