Who Is Responsible For The Front and Back Fence?

roses

Hi,

My neighbour to the right has asked to replace the front hedge with a fence (my husband wants to keep the hedge) and the neighbour at the back has asked to replace the fence.

I looked at the title deeds but there is nothing in there showing ownership.

When the back garden fence blew down a few years ago, I paid to replace the fence to the left if facing the house (I don't remember why I paid!). However the same neighbour replaced the front garden fence and paid for this herself (she wanted something very specific).

Here is the image from the land registry website:

Anyone have any ideas?

Cisco001

If your neigbhour want new fence, she can erect it on her side of the garden and she will take full responsibility of her own fence.
I don't see why you need to replace hedge with fence on your land.

For the back garden, since the fence is install by yourself, you got the responsibility to maintain it. If she doesn't like the style, I assume you can remove it and ask her to get new fencing. And she should pay full cost for installation and maintain them herself.

G_M

Don't understand: you say there's a hedge dividing the front garden from your neighbour? Yet the same neighbour "replaced the front garden fence and paid for this herself". Is it a hedge or a fence?

Hedge
* Title Plan does not show ownership of the boundaty
* any other documents? Developer's plans from when built? Old conveyances?
* what about other properties in the road? Is there an established pattern whereby each property owns the boundary on the left (or right)? speak to other residents.
* who planted the hedge?
* is the hedge exactly on the boundary?
* if ownership cannot be established you'll have to rely on negotiation

Amicable negotiation is best anyway - neighbour disputes can really ruin a happy home......

If you replaced the dividing fence in the back garden, then you own it. Is this the fence the neighbour wants to replace? I'm confused!

Ownership of the rear boundary is as above. Ownership of the rear fence is dependant on who bought/installed it.

roses

G_M wrote: »

Don't understand: you say there's a hedge dividing the front garden from your neighbour? Yet the same neighbour "replaced the front garden fence and paid for this herself". Is it a hedge or a fence?

Two different neighbours. Low level brick wall on the left (neighbour paid for this herself but I paid for the back garden replacement on her side) and hedge on the right.

The house is ~1903.

Land_Registry

The title plan will hardly ever show you anything other than where the general boundaries are.

The register may refer to 'covenants' affecting the title which in turn refer to the responsibility of specific boundaries - they may be set out (extracted from a deed) on the register or contained in a deed referred to as 'copy filed'

However such covenants (if they are registered) are often several decades old and there has been a number of sales/purchases and the fence/hedge may have been replaced/moved as you refer to here.

As such invariably it comes down to the type of discussion and agreement you have already undertaken to decide who owns the fence (paid for the materials and work) and who is responsible for the boundary - these are two different things and just because you paid for a fence does not make you responsible for that boundary and bind your neighbour or any future neighbour.

In most cases when you sell you complete a particulars of sale which has a section relevant to the boundaries and who has done what. This along with any old covenants can give you an idea and a feel for what has gone before and can then help aid neighbours agreeing what happens next - as you will appreciate though people can have different memories/recollections so the particulars may not always match so you again come back to the basic premise of discussion and agreement with each neighbour.