Neighbour asking for half fence costs

mrdubs

What are peoples thoughts on this please...

The fence between me and the neighbour blew down. They said its my fence but they will pay half if we get it all replaced with a complete new fence (Fence is very very old).

I then checked with my other neighbour and my land deeds and the fence belongs to them!
Now they are saying as they offered to pay half, we should do too.

I don't want to fall out, but what would you say is fair? Bear in mind I have a fence the other side that may blow down and I would have to pay all for!

Thanks
Gregg

TheCyclingProgrammer

Do your deeds say the fence belongs to them or that they are responsible for the boundary? Its much more likely to be the latter. Whose side of the boundary is it on? If its on their side then its reasonable to assume the fence belongs to them so you're not obliged to contribute towards a new fence. If its on the boundary then who knows. If its on your side then it might actually belong to you regardless of who is responsible for the boundary.

If you both own and accept responsibility for the fences on the opposing sides of your properties then its not necessarily a bad thing to split the costs of the central fence though you may want to have some agreement that any future maintenance costs will also be shared. I don't think you'd be able to bind any future owners of their property on that agreement though.

If the fence is on your property and belongs to you you're still under no obligation to renew the fence but you may want to consider in this case that your neighbour is actually making a very reasonable offer!

EssexExile

And this way you get the fence you want, not the fence your neighbour wants.

mrdubs

Thank you for quick reply!

They are saying that they are responsible for the other boundary and not this one (Fence is so old its been there ever since they moved in). It can't be that nobody is responsible for the boundary! I think they are lying. How can I prove??
Ultimately they say they will pay for half and are trying to make me feel like they are doing a good thing for me. In reality I think they are just trying to get away with paying for it all !!

My neighbour the other side said the previous owners of my house fixed the fence between them and took full cost. Past owners have said they have always tried to claim the fence isn't their boundary.

Its all very stressful! Should the owner of the boundary be the one that pays for the whole fence?

Thank you
Gregg

martinsurrey

mrdubs wrote: »

Its all very stressful! Should the owner of the boundary be the one that pays for the whole fence?

You seem to be getting confused with fences and boundaries.

The one who buys the fence should be the one to pay for it, and anyone who agrees to contribute should contribute.

The person responsible for the boundary, should do that, and be responsible for the boundary, there is NO obligation to put a standard 6 foot fence up. A piece of string tied up between 2 broom handles on the boundary would do.

If the Neighbor doesn't like the responsible parties solution they are free to put their own fence, at their own expense, on their side of the boundary.

a bit of give and take is always better though.

TheCyclingProgrammer

Should the owner of the boundary be the one that pays for the whole fence?

Arguably the only person who should pay for a fence is the person that wants it. Anyone can put a fence up on a boundary so long as its entirely on their property (not withstanding any restrictive covenants that would preclude this).

Would you like a new fence? Would you like one for half the price of what it would cost you without your neighbours offer? If the answer to both of these is yes then I'd take your neighbour up on the offer - the only alternative is to say no and wait and see if they put one up themselves (and there's nothing stopping them from erecting a new fence on their side of the boundary but leaving the rickety old fence where it is for you to look at).

mrdubs

Some great quick replies, thank you!

My real concern lies in the fact I feel the neighbours are lying to me and trying to get a half price fence!

Aylesbury_Duck

Lying to you about what? They've offered to pay for half of the new fence. No lies, just an offer you are free to accept or decline. If you want a new fence there, pay for it yourself or accept their offer. If you don't want to pay, just erect something to mark the boundary. Unless you have a dog, in which case you are obliged to provide a secure boundary.

r2015

My neighbour wanted me to pay half to replace the 3 wires and 5 fence posts that consisted of our joint fence.


I told him I was happy with the fence as it was because I was an old pensioner and didn't need to waste money on something I didn't need as I'd rather spend it on booze and holidays.


Now I have a 6 foot high fence that I can't even see through that cost me nothing.


Then he said that I needed to paint it to keep it from going rotten.


I gave him the same answer but that he was welcome to come into my garden and paint it himself.


Still not been painted after 3 years.

mrdubs

Sorry for confusion. They want a new fence but they know full well the boundary belongs to them but because we just moved in they told us that the boundary belonged to us! Also they said that previous repairs were shared in costs but I've contacted previous owners and they say that was not the case.
Therefore my dilemma lies in so we pay half for a fence that they should be paying for, just to keep the peace.

Gregg

Aylesbury_Duck

Gregg, you're still confused. The boundary belongs to no one. Responsibility for the boundary may belong to them but that's all. They could choose to just mark the boundary with posts and string.

They "shouldn't be paying for" anything. It's up to them.

It's straightforward:

If they want a fence and you're not bothered, they can pay for it themselves or be satisfied with a boundary marking.
If you want a fence and they're not bothered, you can pay for it or be satisfied with a boundary marking.
If you both want a fence, it makes sense to share the cost of it.