Right to Light

swingaloo

A friend is objecting to houses being built on land opposite as she has been in the house since 1971 and believes she can use the 'Right to Light' act.

Ive googled it but cant seen to find anywhere which explains exactly how near the houses have to be to restrict your light. The houses being built are actually across the road from her on ground which is substantially raised so they will be looking down on her house but I cant see how they will restrict the light as they are some distance away.

Don't they actually have to be casting a shadow over your windows to restrict your 'Right to Light.?

Old_Git

she is looking for "right to a view " she wont get that .

agrinnall

See this article on the threat to remove 'right to light' (which is common law, so you won't find it in legislation) - as it was a year ago it may already have happened.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9878486/Right-to-light-under-threat-in-planning-law-shake-up.html

And these on 'right to a view'

http://www.lyonsdavidson.co.uk/news/5046/property-litigation-solicitor-kevin-morgan-asks-do-you-have-a-right-to-a-view

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/49609

da_rule

Section 3 of the Prescription Act sets out that a right to light can be implied if there has been 20 years use. This right only means that light must be maintained at current levels. It does not prevent someone building as long as the shadow cast by that building doesn't impact on the light in the effected property. Also, this right can be extinguished if there was a provision in the transfer, so it's worth checking the deeds/title register.

RAS

She needs to think about over-looking and privacy rather than right to light.

And read her local council's policies on planning. Any objection has to be based on those rules.

da_rule

There is no right to not be over-looked or privacy or view. Whilst you can appeal to the council on these points as points of concern they will hold very little weight as they are not enforceable rights. Whereas the right to light is.

Johnandabby

I didn't think that 'right to light' was an enforceable right within the planning context - when planners consider impact on daylight and sunlight levels they use different parameters to 'right to light' calculations. It's something that developers have to be aware of, as compensation and modifications can be costly - also no general rules of thumb for 'right to light' calculations, so requires expensive surveyers to calculate and negotiate.

It's nothing to do with shadows of the buildings as it's not a right to sunlight - only a right to light from the sky.

da_rule

My point with the shadows was that if the building casts a shadow that then decreases the average amount of light that passes into the window then this would be breaching the implied covenant.

I agree that the council will not refuse a application purely based on this, but raising it at the application stage will at least let the developer/builder know about the problem and they may be able to offer some form of redress (compensation/changing the plans slightly etc) before the building work begins and before things get really ugly.

Johnandabby

The shadow is irrelevant as the daylight and right to light calculations use an uniform sky (CIE standard overcast sky) which has diffuse daylight but no direct sunlight. Ultimately it's looking at the proportion of access to the sky through the window that is blocked due to the new development.

If the angle between the centre-point of the existing window and the highest point of the development is less than 25 degrees then it's unlikely to significantly affect the existing levels. However rights to light could still be an issue.