Neighbour refusing to pay for garden wall

Dm31

Hi all,
I own a terraced house that I rent out and one shared garden wall has collapsed and will need clearing and replacing with a fence. I have checked the title deeds and it says that walks and fences between our house and the 2 adjoining houses are” party walls and or fences and shall be maintainable and repairable as such.”
We tried to show the deeds to the neighbour but he says it’s all our responsibility and refuses to pay what will be quite considerable costs. He has also said he had had concerns about the wall for years, claiming he told our tenants his concerns. They deny this and to be fair they are good tenants who have always told us if there is anything wrong.
I am aware that this issue often causes problems but to see something on a legal document that states quite clearly about joint responsibilities causes me to consider pursuing this. Our tenants property has been damaged as a result of this collapse and we have already agreed to put this right. We are considering speaking to a solicitor and sending a letter requesting half the costs. Anyone else experienced something similar and got anywhere?

shaun_from_Africa

Dm31 wrote: »

are” party walls and or fences and shall be maintainable and repairable as such.”

Unless the deeds specifically state that there must be a wall then as it does state "and or fence" then a fence is probably perfectly adequate.
This fence could simply be a long bit of string between a couple of posts so your neighbour doesn't have to contribute to the cost of rebuilding a wall if they don't want one there.

Mojisola

Dm31 wrote: »

I own a terraced house that I rent out and one shared garden wall has collapsed and will need clearing and replacing with a fence. I have checked the title deeds and it says that walks and fences between our house and the 2 adjoining houses are” party walls and or fences and shall be maintainable and repairable as such.”

While this could stop one neighbour from making changes without involving the other side, it would be hard to force the neighbour to contribute.

The wall has fallen down and affects your side more than his and you want to remove and replace it with a fence - your neighbour is within his rights to say "Go ahead - do what you want".

stator

Not much point getting a solicitor involved. Get the wall demolished and replaced with something reasonable.

If you think the deeds (both yours and his) say the maintenance costs are to be split, then send him a letter before action and take him to small claims court to reclaim half the costs.


You should be prepared to win or lose.

zaqxsw

If it is a shared wall, then you can serve a notice under section 2(2)(b) of the party wall act. This means that you wish to get a shared asset repaired. It may be the case that surveyors are appointed which would add cost, however, common sense says that it is better for two neighbours to put their money into bricks as opposed to paper.

The party wall act is good, because it has deadlines. This means that you can force through the repair, and that it is legally binding. Surveyors can apportion costs, depending on the cause of the damage. If it is simply an old wall, then I imagine they would split costs equally, including their fees.

As it is a shared asset that you wish to repair, you need to get consent in writing or serve a notice under the party wall act to meet your legal obligations.

zaqxsw

Just a quick point too - you are not allowed to removed a shared brick wall, replacing it with a fence, unless you have written consent to do so. The shared wall is an asset, and you are not able to remove it without first getting consent in writing. A shared asset, for example a shared garden wall or shared chimney stack, simply cannot be removed unless both owners are in agreement. There are many reasons behind this which are too long to list here - but if your intention is to replace it with a fence, make sure you get written consent from the other owner to avoid future problems.

Dm31

Thanks all for your replies. We have had to take down what remained of the wall as it was dangerous. We have spoken to a solicitor and shown our deeds. He said it’s definitely a shared cost and we need to give him the opportunity in writing to get involved. If he refuses we pay and go to the small claims court for half the costs. The solicitor is also checking whether it falls under the party wall act. If it does I understand the procedure but I think he will just not bother responding to our party wall letter and so this process could take a while.

Norman_Castle

shaun_from_Africa wrote: »

Unless the deeds specifically state that there must be a wall then as it does state "and or fence" then a fence is probably perfectly adequate.
This fence could simply be a long bit of string between a couple of posts so your neighbour doesn't have to contribute to the cost of rebuilding a wall if they don't want one there.

Presumably they would still be partly responsible for the removal and disposal of the current failed wall.


If it had collapsed into the neighbours garden I suspect their opinion would be different.

Davesnave

Norman_Castle wrote: »

Presumably they would still be partly responsible for the removal and disposal of the current failed wall.

Skips are expensive and the bricks may be reusable, so bear in mind a need to minimise costs before deciding on this.

teneighty

Dm31 wrote: »

Thanks all for your replies. We have had to take down what remained of the wall as it was dangerous. We have spoken to a solicitor and shown our deeds. He said it’s definitely a shared cost and we need to give him the opportunity in writing to get involved. If he refuses we pay and go to the small claims court for half the costs. The solicitor is also checking whether it falls under the party wall act. If it does I understand the procedure but I think he will just not bother responding to our party wall letter and so this process could take a while.

No! Bad advice from your solicitor (and some posters here). Follow Zaqxsw's advice that is spot on.

If you think a Party Wall Notice is slow you are in for a nasty surprise if you try the "small claims/moneyclaim" route. Plus if you haven't followed the procedures in the Party Wall Act you could well lose you small claims case.

Fire_Fox

Welcome to MSE.

Did the neighbour have your contact details to discuss his concerns about the wall to you, or concerns about anything else related to your property?

Jumping straight from a brief verbal exchange to legal action will not help neighbourly relations. If this escalates you might lose your good tenants. A polite, clearly worded letter from you would be preferable, and cheaper than instructing a solicitor.

Since your tenant's property has been damaged, it would be worth reading your landlord's insurance policy.

HTH.