New Build: Neighbours Electric Meter installed in my carport

moneyistooshorttomention

silvercar wrote: »

What is the issue?

a) that the meter takes up space that you want to utilise
b) that the neighbour may want occasional access to read their meter?

If it is (a) and the meter means that you can't open the door of your car, then it is important.

If it is (b) then I wouldn't be too concerned. With the roll out of smart meters, access will be barely necessary.

If there are no covenants, giving the neighbour the right to access the meter, then its irrelevant.

Chances are that even when/if smart meters come in - the neighbour might want to come in and check their reading anyway. I would be concerned about that and about having someone's elses property on my land.

I'm wondering what "leverage" OP has with this daft builder. Have contracts been Exchanged yet for instance?

If its gone beyond that stage - then maybe a letter to builder saying words to effect of "It wasn't stated anywhere on my paperwork that someone else's property would be on my land. Accordingly - it wont be. Now are you going to remove it? Because, if I have to, then I will bill you for doing so". Put a lot more tactfully than that - but that would be the basic message.

Hopefully that would get the builder to "get their act together" and remove it. If it didn't - then I would get it removed myself and bill him. (In answer to the obvious question - yes there are electricians who will do it and turn a blind eye).

NickiPort

Yes I am sure it's my neighbours meter - as it's been installed opposite mine in my carport.

I have now spoken to an Independent Distribution network operator that has been very helpful and I am taking it further with the builders, and I have had confirmation that it should not be installed their but it should be within the demise of it's own property boundary.
Thanks for all your comments - first time I've ever posted on a forum

gregsayer

sounds typical of avant, there are a couple of other threads about them (including one I posted about my brothers purchase)

HouseBuyer77

"It wasn't stated anywhere on my paperwork that someone else's property would be on my land. Accordingly - it wont be. Now are you going to remove it? Because, if I have to, then I will bill you for doing so". Put a lot more tactfully than that - but that would be the basic message.

The meter and service head are the property of the energy supplier and the network operator respectively. So a particularly vindictive, pedantic builder might remove your supply too? After all you just said you don't want anyone else's property on your land....

Rather unlikely but just pointing out is good to fully understand who is responsible for what in such matters before writing letters.

Glad the OP is getting it sorted.

robatwork

New house builders will in general get away with the "least pain" method of banging up new houses. They simply won't have cared about the practicalities of access.

My bugbear is the space they leave (or don't) between properties. The lack of access means that anyone working on or maintaining one side of the house HAS to ingress onto the neighbour's property. This leads to at best awkward conversations about leaving side gates open, pets in garden etc, and at worse life-diminishing "petty" squabbles.

Gigervamp

This thread is from December. I wonder how it went and if the OP got it resolved to his satisfaction.

PasturesNew

I can see why the OP is annoyed at this. There are many reasons why this might be inconvenient for everybody.

Not only does it mean the neighbour doesn't have clear access to their meter unless the OP's car is removed from the car port, but the OP also can't put a door on it.

Then, what if a dispute should occur and the OP puts the door on and decides to randomly turn the neighbour's electricity on/off simply because they hate that the meter's there. Weirder things have happened when somebody gets a bee in their bonnet about a neighbour.

He could turn it off and go out, closing the door behind him, knowing the neighbour can't even check it before incurring a big cost to get an electrician out.... who also can't do anything without being able to check it.

ethank

NickiPort wrote: »

Yes I am allowed to put a roller shutter door on the front, and this has been the case for 6 other properties on the same development - but in their cases they only have their electric meter within their carport

Have you checked you do not need planning permission. Our local council requires any carport which is closed up to have planning permission. This is because people tend to park on the road instead of their carport and it takes up too much parking space.