Landowner trying to force me to put up fence

SmashedAvacado

davidmcn wrote: »

On what basis does he think you need to put up a fence? Have you checked the titles to see if you (or him) have an obligation to fence the boundary?

unless the land was leasehold, a legal obligation to fence a boundaray would be very unusual - and would have to work by reference to a deed of covenant because a simple obligation to fence the boundary would not be enforceable.

davidmcn

SmashedAvacado wrote: »

a legal obligation to fence a boundary would be very unusual

Really? They're pretty commonplace in Scotland. Admittedly it's probably not so common for a neighbour suddenly to notice that the condition has been long-ignored.

The question remains though, why does the farmer think the OP "needs" to put up a fence?

SmashedAvacado

In England and Wales, positive covenants do not run with the land. They are unenforceable. Landlaw 1.1

So the only way that a positive covenant like this can be binding is if the title provides for a deed of covenant to be entered into on a sale, whereby the buyer promises to observe and perform particular covenants. Anything else, just won't be enforceable.

xylophone

unless the land was leasehold, a legal obligation to fence a boundaray would be very unusual

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My suburban freehold house comes with a requirement to erect and maintain a fence to separate the end of my garden from the garden on the other side of it.

onwards&upwards

Davesnave wrote: »

You mean a ha-ha, I think. Very posh and what all the gentry used to do! Cattle are a lot easier to contain than sheep.

Says in the Op it’s already like a ha-ha, so fence may well be unnecessary.

SmashedAvacado

xylophone wrote: »

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My suburban freehold house comes with a requirement to erect and maintain a fence to separate the end of my garden from the garden on the other side of it.

and you will have had legal advice that this obligation would have been binding against the original buyer of the property as a matter of contract law but not binding on successors in title. That is of course if your solicitor knew the law.

in_my_wellies

I have a post and rail fence which does the job, however, cows have long necks and can reach a surprisingly long way over to eat my runner beans! Another year ponies reached over to eat rotten apples from the compost heap. (although I think they were helped by local children but I can't see from the house). Cows are inquisitive and come to say 'hello' and their weight was pushing my fence over. The farmer has installed a barbed wire fence one meter from mine all the way round his field. I can't imagine it cost him too much (two wires and post and done in a day)

GDB2222

You could plant one of the many plants that are poisonous to cattle.

teneighty

Seems unreasonable to me that the land owner expects OP to erect stock proof fencing to contain his cattle.

We are not talking a few timber fence panels, cattle will push that over in no time. You are probably looking at substantial timber posts and barbed wire.

Mojisola

vertex wrote: »

I have a small house that backs on to a field. My back garden has no fence/wall; a dranage ditch; then the field. It looks a bit like a ha-ha.

A local farmer has just bought the field and is going to keep cattle in it. He came over yesterday and said Id need to put up a fence so his cows dont cross the ditch into my garden.

Is yours the only property backing onto the field?

Is there stock-proof fencing around the whole of the field apart from your garden?