Problem with upstairs neighbour any ideas?

loopy94

Hi I was wondering if anyone had any ideas on how to deal with a problem with the tenants in the flat upstairs. We live in two storey block of flats with us downstairs. Backing the flats is our garden with our neighbours behind. The lady living upstairs (single mum with 3 kids under 5 and a small dog) smokes as do her many visitors and they throw all their cigarette ends into our back garden about 10-15 a day.
I have asked her to stop 3-4 times over the last 2 years as has my husband to which she is always nice and says of course but never does. We were tempted to sweep them up and put them through her door but we wouldn't because of the kids. Is there anything we could do?

bluebeary

do you work and own your property and she rents hers ?

Mojisola

loopy94 wrote: »

I have asked her to stop 3-4 times over the last 2 years as has my husband to which she is always nice and says of course but never does. We were tempted to sweep them up and put them through her door but we wouldn't because of the kids. Is there anything we could do?

Could you collect them up and give them to her in a bag? She might be thinking that the occasional cigarette isn't a problem - seeing a weeks' worth in one go may make her stop.

If it doesn't, I don't think there's much you can do.

Mrs.W_2

loopy94 wrote: »

Hi I was wondering if anyone had any ideas on how to deal with a problem with the tenants in the flat upstairs. We live in two storey block of flats with us downstairs. Backing the flats is our garden with our neighbours behind. The lady living upstairs (single mum with 3 kids under 5 and a small dog) smokes as do her many visitors and they throw all their cigarette ends into our back garden about 10-15 a day.
I have asked her to stop 3-4 times over the last 2 years as has my husband to which she is always nice and says of course but never does. We were tempted to sweep them up and put them through her door but we wouldn't because of the kids. Is there anything we could do?

Place her cigarette ends in a zip-lock bag and sellotape it to her front door.

ETA: Sorry, cross posted with Mojisola.

motherofstudents

Does she have a balcony or something ? Maybe buy her a metal waste bin ? I think she would have stopped doing it when asked if she was going to. It's clearly unacceptable behaviour but I'm not sure what else you can do.

Person_one

motherofstudents wrote: »

Does she have a balcony or something ? Maybe buy her a metal waste bin ? I think she would have stopped doing it when asked if she was going to. It's clearly unacceptable behaviour but I'm not sure what else you can do.

I was just going to suggest buying her an ashtray to keep out there.

Staying on reasonable terms with neighbours is something you can't put a price on, even if it does mean biting your tongue and doing a bit of appeasing every now and then!

lady1964

Buy her a nice ashtray and politely suggest she uses that instead of your garden.

I can see how it must be irritating but do you want to fall out with them over something like that?

Mojisola

Person_one wrote: »

I was just going to suggest buying her an ashtray to keep out there.

Staying on reasonable terms with neighbours is something you can't put a price on, even if it does mean biting your tongue and doing a bit of appeasing every now and then!

Especially when they live above you and have lots of visitors!

She could make your life very difficult.

thunderbird

I would try and keep it as friendly as possible

How about you both go around and ask again and say you don't want to fall out but it is really upsetting you that they are dumping their cigs in your garden, then give her a new year's gift of an ashtray to use.

If you do collect them all up maybe just leave them somewhere that she will see them when leaving the building, just to act as a visual reminder

eta - took so long to type my reply I got beaten to it with the ashtray idea!

loopy94

We do own our place and both work. We both try to let it go but we now have a baby and if we go outside they stick to your shoes and end up on our floor. I don't really want my little boy chewing on cigarette ends.
Thanks for all the ideas so far collecting them together might show her how bad it is.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

A bin/ashtray would be a lovely idea. After all, it could be that she tries to stop people doing it but they snap back 'I'm not having them tell me what to do'. I know for a fact when I still smoked, I found it impossible to stop the idiot ex from a) smoking inside b) chucking still lit fags over the balcony. His attitude was that he lived there too and whilst he was, there was no way I or another person could do a thing about it.


And yes, I was the one who ended up with his dog ends pushed through the letterbox. And cleaning them up as he would have gone ballistic at the neighbours for it.