Shared driveway

towncalledmalice

Right, bit of a strange one. I own a semi detatched house with a garage in a block. The access to the garage is via a private alley next to the neighbours house (he says he owns that land, which we've never challenged or disputed, just took his word for it as it was never a problem). He brought up in conversation the other day that he wants to tarmac the whole road and i am liable for one 7th of the cost (7 garages).
On my deeds it says i have right of way access, it mentions nothing about paying costs. Im happy to pay essential maintenance if need be but not to tarmac a whole road because he fancies a change (its currently concreted and in my opinion doesnt need any work) Who decides what is necessary work and how do we decide what quote to go for etc. The way he understands it is he gets the work done and just bills the other neighbours for it? Whats to stop him changing his mind and having it done again next year..? I also store a campervan in my garage, if the road is ammended in anyway i might not be able to get my van in and out of the garage (its VERY tight on the height!) Where do i stand legally there?

Davesnave

If there is no mention of payment for maintenance of the RoW in your title documents, then the neighbour can send you a bill, but you are not obliged to pay it.

Indeed, if you pay anything at any time, it should be on a good will basis and marked as such, so that no paper trail implying obligation is created.

I think it highly unlikely that many neighbours will pay if their title documentation is like yours. The guy is in fairyland if he thinks he'll be able to fund this on a whim, without proper consultation.

However, if he does go ahead, and this makes it impossible for you to exit with the camper van, this poses a much more interesting question about your rights, involving, I'd guess, the 'reasonableness' of your desire to use such a vehicle.

If it were, say, a double decker bus, then it might be unreasonable for you to require access. How many modern coach house entrances would allow one of those through, for example?

However, since this is an existing vehicle which you keep inside a garage, it seems to me a reasonable thing to have continued access.

As you can probably guess, the test of reasonableness would, of necessity, have to be applied in a court, and that could be expensive, so it's best not to go there.

Are the neighbours all on good terms? It is so much easier if people can meet, talk these matters through and decide a course of action.

What is causing the height restriction problem and is that amenable to change?

towncalledmalice

Hi, all the neighbours are on talking terms but i believe this might cause a few ripples at the least.
The height issue is due to it just being a relatively tight fit. Ive only got a 2" clearance from top of the van to the up and over door. Its an old vw camper so not massive, smaller than a normal traders van (say a transit van). So if the tarmac is laid over the current surface, id imagine it would be thicker than 2" thick.

So what would "proper consultation" consist of?
And how would re laying the whole road sit in relation to maintenance or personal choice?

Thanks for the reply

Le_Kirk

Wouldn't it be necessary to maintain a "step" from the roadway to the garage for drainage purposes? Surely the best way to do this job is to remove the existing concrete surface and lay the tarmac over a properly prepared sub-surface (whatever that is)?

AnnieO1234

In the first instance, check that the neighbour's (all of them including and especially the man who owns the ROW) don't state anything regarding the upkeep of the same.

We have a private roadway with 4 houses off the main road. The deeds are specific that we each upkeep our own portion marked on the plans. However, because we are all reasonable(ish!) people, we have all contributed to repairs that were needed in front of the first house. It gets all the vehicles for 2, 3 and 4 as well as people using it as a turning point.

I would try to arrange a sit down with tea and cake, discuss this as sensible adults. Find out exactly what the position is, why it needs relaying etc etc.

Xxx