Boundary advice

djdust

Ok, there's obviously been a bit of a rethink today.... Just got home from work to find that Steve has moved the whole thing slightly back a bit so that's it's now far more on their side of the wall...

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/16317927/ext6.jpg
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/16317927/ext7.jpg

No sign at all of any guttering though. Here's a close up of the edge of our houses now...

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/16317927/ext8.jpg

And here's a close up of how you can see that the bottom of the construction is no longer on the centre of the wall but attached to their side of the wall with nothing but expanding foam:

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/16317927/ext9.jpg

I've no idea at this point whether this is the finished article...

Enterprise_1701C

I see they've damaged the wall further, are they going to put that right?

djdust

Enterprise_1701C wrote: »

I see they've damaged the wall further, are they going to put that right?

I think that's pretty much how it was anyway, I notice the bricks that have vanished in the last week haven't been put back....

moneyistooshorttomention

Am I getting this wrong - but it looks as if a couple of supporting wood struts on the wall are your side of the wall?

djdust

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

Am I getting this wrong - but it looks as if a couple of supporting wood struts on the wall are your side of the wall?

Nope, it's all firmly on their side - I'm on the left, they're on the right...

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/16317927/ext7.jpg

Aylesbury_Duck

djdust, forgive me for being so direct but you are letting time and construction tick along to your detriment. Taking photos and informing us of progress, while interesting, is not doing anything to address the real problem you face. Your lack of a proper objection and instruction to halt work is being interpreted by your neighbour as consent. More damage is being done to what seems to be a party wall with every day that passes.

You will undoubtedly face problems in the future as a result of what is clearly a poorly conceived and appallingly constructed structure. At best it looks awful. At worst, it could cause expensive damage to the wall and possibly to your property. It will also make your house difficult to sell if you ever wish to do so.

The time to act is now, before more progress and more damage is caused. Tell your neighbour that work must cease immediately, then go about ensuring that the party wall can't be used to support a shambles. Otherwise, this will only end with problems for you.

djdust

Thanks AD, I totally get where you're coming from. My problem is this - the council don't seem to give a damn and have given their blessing to the work. I'm working 9 to 5 every day in a remote location so can't just pop into the Citizen's Advice bureau and I'm not remotely in a position financially where I can start getting solicitors involved, nor can I pay to get other builders round to come and give their professional opinion about it. I had to fork out several hundred pounds that I didn't actually have to pay for a fence to stop flytippers because the same damned council were threatening me with court action.

I feel a bit like a rabbit in the headlights at the moment.

Aylesbury_Duck

I sympathise. It's not an easy situation. However, I don't think you need to be spending time and money on this just yet. Write a formal letter to your neighbours insisting that work stops until they can demonstrate that they are allowed to build upon the wall and that they have ensured that if they are allowed, that the wall is capable of supporting the structure. You can word it in such a way that future legal action is implied rather than stated, even if ultimately you are bluffing. Hopefully they will stop work which will buy you time to consider your next move.

If you do anything other than this, they are inferring consent on your part.

djdust

Hi all, ok it seems that appearances can be deceptive. The neighbour just came round and asked me to come take a proper look from their side - and it turns out that the wall is now *not* supporting this contraption after all - there are now posts going right down to the floor on their side...

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/16317927/ext10.jpg

Plus, I've been assured that the guttering will firmly be on their side and won't be crossing over.

Case closed?

DRP

djdust wrote: »

Hi all, ok it seems that appearances can be deceptive. The neighbour just came round and asked me to come take a proper look from their side - and it turns out that the wall is now *not* supporting this contraption after all - there are now posts going right down to the floor on their side...

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/16317927/ext10.jpg

Plus, I've been assured that the guttering will firmly be on their side and won't be crossing over.

Case closed?

Yes I could see that from the previous photo you posted - In which case I would question why it needs to be on top of the wall at all? It would be straighter and truer if it was all done independently of the wall.

As Aylesbury duck says, it is at best a mess ...