neighbours and their 'fence'

caancil

New to this forum so hello and apologies if it's posted in the wrong place!


Our neighbours who moved in approx. 7 years ago (after us by a year or so) have always been a bit weird, they didn't really want to talk to us from the start and you could see it was a real effort to be polite. We are quiet ourselves and didn't see a problem at first, but things deteriorated at some point and neither of us know what we have done to upset them!


To cut a long gripe short last year after us having to prop up and mend their fence countless times (they have recently retired and have spent money on a new roof for the conservatory, patio etc.) they finally got round to having a new fence put in which was great news for us too!


But joy was shortlived as the finished article has one entire fence panel missing(!) and they obviously think this is ok as their garden shed fills the gap. Which would be terrific if only there wasn't a window in the fence that looks out onto our garden! We have a daughter who is 3 in September, and although I know you can't assume everybody is a pervert or worse this feels like a complete invasion of privacy! To 'cure' this they have hung up some curtains at the offending window which is hardly much of a solution!


Money is tight for us and I don't see why we should be paying out to finish off their fence. I realise I can put a piece of ply over the window our side but is that allowed?
I don't want to do anything too rash until I get some advice so this is one outlet I'm using. I have considered complaining to the council but do they have any powers to remedy this?


On another note the old boy has put some big rocks out in the service road to prevent me driving across their drive in my works van which I did once and apologised for! I wouldn't have done it if I knew how much it would upset them! However to get my car out of the garage requires me to move the last rock as it's quite a big car and quite a tight squeeze down the service road, but now he has cemented them in place. That's not all, he has cemented them in place MY side of the boundary fence......


I don't wish to fall out but this guy spends all his time pottering about in the garden as he has no apparent hobbies/interests and spends his time doing 'home improvements' to a sub standard. But that's another story!


What advice would anyone give us for this please? We are both out working all day and dread to come home to see what he's been messing with next!


Would the council have any powers or would writing them a letter of complaint be a waste of time?


Our neighbours refuse to communicate with us anymore so asking them what they intend to do would be futile


Sorry for such a long rant, but needed to get this off my chest!!


Mick

NeverInDebt

There is nothing to stop you putting up your own fence on your side or for that matter anything else is its reasonable and not too high if you have concerns about privacy. You could of course just put a plant near window like Laviteria

caancil

It should read window in the shed, not the fence obviously!

phill99

The council wont intervene so don't waste the cost of a phone call.

Unless it states otherwise in his deeds, there is. No legal requirement to have a fence so he is well within his rights not to have any panels if he so wishes.

I would be inclined to erect a single panel between 2 posts were his panel is missing. Make sure that it is erected within your garden so that he can't complain about trespass etc. He will probably go mental as it will block light to his shed but thats not your problem.

SailorSam

Did you say you could always put a piece of ply over the shed window ? You can't nail wood onto his shed.
Don't think contacting the Council would make him put up the extra fence panel. I doubt there's a law to say we need to put up any fence, we could leave everything open plan.
Look for some fast growing plants if you don't want to buy a new panel, or look on Freecycle see if someone there is giving stuff away.

Mojisola

caancil wrote: »

But joy was shortlived as the finished article has one entire fence panel missing(!) and they obviously think this is ok as their garden shed fills the gap. Which would be terrific if only there wasn't a window in the fence that looks out onto our garden!

We have a daughter who is 3 in September, and although I know you can't assume everybody is a pervert or worse this feels like a complete invasion of privacy!

Is the shed close enough to the fence to stop your daughter going through into their garden? If it isn't, you'll need some kind of fencing to prevent that, even if it's just chicken wire.

If the garden is secure, you could put up a few bamboo poles with black plastic between them across where the shed window is - that would be cheap.

Eventually, aim to put up a fence panel but the panel and posts will have to be in your garden; you can't fit a panel in and use his posts.

Avoriaz

caancil wrote: »

...On another note the old boy has put some big rocks out in the service road to prevent me driving across their drive in my works van which I did once and apologised for! I wouldn't have done it if I knew how much it would upset them! However to get my car out of the garage requires me to move the last rock as it's quite a big car and quite a tight squeeze down the service road, but now he has cemented them in place. That's not all, he has cemented them in place MY side of the boundary fence.........Our neighbours refuse to communicate with us anymore so asking them what they intend to do would be futile....

If you are certain that the rocks are on your property, then write to them requesting that they remove the rocks from your property within two weeks or you will have them removed and send them the bill.

If that doesn't work then remove them yourself and put them in their garden.

Most people want a quiet life and want to get on with their neighbours but it appears that nothing but firm action from you will resolve this situation.

Are you sure that you are doing nothing to upset them yourselves?

Norman_Castle

I realise I can put a piece of ply over the window our side but is that allowed?

You're not allowed to fix anything to their fence or shed. You can put your own fence or screen on your own land.
Rocks on your driveway!. Generously give him 24 hours to remove them and advise he is responsible for any damage caused by putting them there or their removal.
He clearly has to much time on his hands and a chip on his shoulder.

adrian66

Awkward! I feel your pain ;(

Old people can be quite territorial I think!

I would personally avoid making it a legal issue until you have exhausted all other avenues. They may have a more time to deal with a 'dispute' if you are both busy parents and they may well feel victimised and dig their heels in.

I know you may not feel like it but how about trying to build a bridge - send them a small fruit basket with a nice note trying to resolve these issues quid pro quo. (It's a bit Dr Phil but you never know!) You may feel like you're going out on a limb ('above and beyond') but what's the worst that can happen? They probably don't want any tension/animosity either, especially if you are bending over backwards. If they are a bit curmugeonly, you may need to give more than you get in the short term in terms of compromises. Focus on what's most important to you and what might benefit them also. Try and build a dialogue with them. Let them know your predicament of not wanting to block their shed window without first discussing a way around it. Can the window be located on another wall on the shed? You may need to offer to split the cost on this and getting a fence panel in - tell them you'll have to save some money over a period of a couple of months to contribute to these improvements - they may go ahead and pay for it themselves.