Fire exit runs through our garden dispute

ic

My guess would be...

The doctor's surgery has a right of access across the yard within their deeds.
The "jobsworth" fire marshal has a duty to raise risks and see them fixed - by law - https://www.gov.uk/workplace-fire-safety-your-responsibilities/who-is-responsible
The fire marshal may well have already been pursuing the landlord to get the exit cleared - no wonder he was happy for you to do it for them.
The fire marshal still has to highlight risks - they have to consider that in a fire not everybody that uses that fire exit would necessarily have full mobility, sight, etc., and to compound the situation they may be exiting in a panic. Whatever rules apply to the front access will also be applied to the fire exit - especially when upgraded (often rules do not apply retrospectively, but will where an installation is upgraded).
TBH your landlord shouldn't have given you the go ahead without highlighting all this.

From the link I gave above...

Shared premises

For common or shared areas, the responsible person is the *landlord*, freeholder or managing agent.

PasturesNew

Invite the local firemen over to look and advise you (both) what's safe/legal etc.

Might as well get it sorted (free) and sensibly, rather than both sides digging into their version of "what they think's right".

lstar337

ic wrote: »

My guess would be...

<blah blah blah>

TBH your landlord shouldn't have given you the go ahead without highlighting all this.

What? All the things you just made up as part of your guess?

AFAWK, the OP hasn't even asked them to prove they have any right of access yet. Why I don't know, it would be first on my list!

ic

I suppose my point was that the op should be talking to their landlord - its their problem to solve.

lstar337

ic wrote: »

I suppose my point was that the op should be talking to their landlord - its their problem to solve.

Trouble is most LL's are useless and not bothered by things that don't affect them getting their money each month. OP just needs to get the doctors to prove they have right of access, if they cant then problem solved. The doctors are the ones complaining, stick the ball in their court!