builder drilled through neighbours wall

millymolly48

hello

can anybody tell me how i stand,

i am currently having a kitchen fitted but we had to have the fireplace knocked out. we warned the neighbours and did this over the weekend. on monday our neighbour turned up saying the builder had gone through the wall with the hammers and it was unstable !!! he tried to tell me there were lumps and bumps all over the wall due to the builder. On inspecting his wall, the hole is in a different place and it looks like they have drilled the wall and it has pushed the wallpaper out at his side so therefore causing a small lump, it has broken the paper. he is now saying he wants the whole of the wall replastering and obviously it is papered and painted.
please help i understand he wants it putting right

DirectDebacle

Builder and your neighbour should get together. Looks like a claim on the builders public liability insurance would be one way forward.

Whoever caused the damage should be the one putting it right.

victor2

As above.
Neighbour deserves it putting back to as it was. If that is not possible, then re-plastering/re-papering could be the outcome.
Different circumstances, but we had very slight staining to a wall after a water leak loosened the ceiling paper in a room. Insurance company paid for ceiling to be stripped, painted (as agreed with us - hated the paper anyway!) and all four walls to be re-painted as it was impossible to guarantee a colour match.

cyclonebri1

It's not your problem, it also shouldn't be your neighbours.

It is however the builders problem/responsibility to sort out, either through insurance or repair.

ValHaller

cyclonebri1 wrote: »

It's not your problem, it also shouldn't be your neighbours.

Actually, if it was OP's builder, it is OP's problem. If the builder gets sloping shoulders with the neighbour, the neighbour could quite rightly be chasing OP for a resolution.

BuildingFife

It should either be a claim on the builders public liability insurance, unless the builder agree's to do the work themselves to save a claim.

ValHaller

BuildingFife wrote: »

It should either be a claim on the builders public liability insurance, unless the builder agree's to do the work themselves to save a claim.

Neighbour could make this claim against OP - if a court would uphold the claim against the builder, then they would also uphold it against OP! OP would then be left to pay up, refer it to his insurance company or to pursue the builder.

cyclonebri1

ValHaller wrote: »

Actually, if it was OP's builder, it is OP's problem. If the builder gets sloping shoulders with the neighbour, the neighbour could quite rightly be chasing OP for a resolution.

You didn't quote the bit that actually matters though, it is the builders responsibility to repair, if he shirks, then yes, it does become a problem for the OP.

Good reason for always being level regarding payments to trades, he ain't going to walk away if he's owed.

Hopefully a simple word between the builder and next door will have resolved this by now??

macman

Did you fail to serve a Party Wall Notice on the neighbour before doing ths work?

cyclonebri1

macman wrote: »

Did you fail to serve a Party Wall Notice on the neighbour before doing ths work?

Valid point, maybe they didn't expect it to be such an intimate party:D

Given they won't have, and the neighbour has probably never heard of the PWA, again a friendly and quick repair is in order. Maybe the builder should be reminded of the issue.

It is starting to sound like a sketch from Fawlty Towers or similar.

diable

In the future if anyone is having a fire place or chimney breast removed that has a neighbour on the other side of the wall then inform the neighbour of the work and take photos of the neighbours walls as any small crack they will be on to you to repair.