Neighbour Says Fence is Ours

anotheruser

We have recently moved in to a house and only just spoke to the neighbour (they've been away).

They're saying the fence to the left, when looking from the street to the house, is ours. This is the fence between our properties.

At the front of the house there is a short brick wall. This continues at the back of the house, where the wall is on our side. It's easy to see because it connects to the house wall. It's even easier to see because our house has a single storey extension.
On the other side of the wall is a fence. It connects to the side of our extension. If the fence was to continue, it would bump into the neighbours house.

During Storm Doris, a few of the panels fell down. The neighbour repaired one so we just left them others as we presumed the fence wasn't ours and by them repairing the first panel re-inforced this.

We're planning to erect a fence of sorts on the brick wall at full cost to us, but won't be until next spring or summer now.

So, the neighbour has just spoke to us, very nicely, asking when we'll be repairing the fence as it's ours. They said about the "always own fence on the left". They also said they paid "some money" to the previous house owner to get the fence done.

While I don't want to create an enemy, I don't want to rush and get it done as I'm certain the fence is actually on their land. As we're going to put a new one on the wall anyway, the original one will look even more like it's on their land.
I don't think they would go 50/50, even though whatever arrangement they had with the previous home owner is no concern to us.

Here's a photo looking from the back towards the properties:



So you can see our house is on the left (with the flowers), but the fence clearly connects to the other side. There is around 10cm between the end of the wall and the fence.

What advice do you have MSE?

Carrot007

Utter tosh. The fence is whoever put it ups. Might be your prior owners, might not be.

Either way beyond a few off covanents there is no need to have or mantain a fence. Just the border. Which can be done with a stick and some string! Sounds like they just want you to pay. Your deeds will say if you have to maintain the border and it is purely random, not what they are saying. Check it and offer a stick and string. Maybe they will get a fence then!

SplanK

What does it say on the deeds about maintaining fences? IF its new-ish they often have some sort of mark as to who is responsible for the boundary or fence?


Where does the fence fall in your opinion, on yours, theirs or on the boundary line?


As for money paid to the previous owners, tough, not your problem that really I'm afraid to say, or they could be telling some porkies!

d0nkeyk0ng

If they're worried about damage, just take the fence panels down. As above there's no absolute need for a boundary unless determined so by a covenant.

maisie_cat

I would replace the fence and gain some land if I were you! We had an issue with next door claiming that falling down fence was ours as soon as we moved in!
We checked the deeds as the responsibility for the boundary was theirs. It was only after they checked and replaced with the ugliest fence that we spoke to the previous owner, who confirmed that he'd actually put the fence up on our side of the boundary in the 1970's.
So our neighbours gained a small amount of land and we have to look at the ugliest brown fence ever. I so wish I'd just replaced the fence

Geoff1963

Repair "your" fence, and paint it ; on your side with some green or brown creosote, on their side with a suitable "mural".

Chrishazle

Look at the Land Registry deeds for your property. Normally on the property boundaries will be little arrows showing who has responsibility for the fencing on that boundary - if the arrows are on your side pointing towards the boundary, then the fence is yours. If, however, the arrow is on the opposite side pointing towards your property, then the responsibility is your neighbours.

Gloomendoom

Chrishazle wrote: »

Look at the Land Registry deeds for your property. Normally on the property boundaries will be little arrows showing who has responsibility for the fencing on that boundary - if the arrows are on your side pointing towards the boundary, then the fence is yours. If, however, the arrow is on the opposite side pointing towards your property, then the responsibility is your neighbours.

I think you might mean T or H marks. Unfortunately, not all deeds give information about boundary structure ownership. Mine don't.

Davesnave

Gloomendoom wrote: »

I think you might mean T or H marks. Unfortunately, not all deeds give information about boundary structure ownership. Mine don't.

Very few do, and responsibility is not the same thing as ownership. Back in the mists of time, someone may have erected a fence without regard to the title plan, or where the boundary is, which often can't be determined at the scale of the plan anyway!

The boundary should be marked and whatever is used to mark it ought to be maintained, but no one can argue the toss over what that is, unless there is a clear stipulation in the title documents.

If you plan to change things by building a new fence next year, just say so. They may as well have time to absorb the idea and it won't come as a terrible shock. Meanwhile, unless you have a dog that may escape maybe put something cheap, like netting, between the posts. They'll hate that and feel grateful when you do build your fence!

Biggles

I can't see the problem. If you're already planning to erect a new fence (on top of the wall), just tell them that, job done.

There's no need to be too specific about exactly when you plan to do it, but fencing supplies can be very hard to come by at this time of year, it may not get done for a few months...... and there's holidays.....

Ant555

As already suggested, the issue might be that they claim to have paid 'some money' to the previous occupant of your house and he has pocketed it so they feel quite aggrieved which is not really your problem.

The fence does indeed look like its on their land though - the one on the right in the picture you posted?

Just out of interest if the fence blew down during Doris (Feb 2017) then when did you move in?
They have been on holiday so haven't had chance to speak to you as new neighbours until now so if one of the first things they ask you is about the fence then that gives you a sense that it is high up THEIR list of priorities.

People that have lived in places for a while do get worried when new neighbours move in.

My advice in the interests of being neighbourly is that you almost certainly want to find, suggest or infer an agreeable solution but not necessarily any fixed timescale - if you say by end of the summer then they might knock on your door on 1st September for an update!

I hope it all goes well.