Toxic Neighbour (Literally)

greatcrested

spoovy said:

DX-SFX said:

We have the quintessential young neighbour from hell downstairs. Loud music, banging doors, visitors at three and four in the morning and drug dealing. We've complained numerous times to the council (Ealing) and the police and getting nowhere. The housing officer handling the case clearly takes sympathy with the single mum being a contemporary and of course the tenant is an angel when the officer is visiting. To cut a long story short, now, usually between the hours of 11pm and 3am, she's either smoking drugs or burning something which not only stinks up our flat but makes it impossible to sleep. She knows we've complained and has clearly embarked on a voyage of intimidation (she's the type).  Is there any agency (independent would be great because the council is hopeless) we can approach who can send someone qualified at that late hour to smell the atmosphere and proclaim it unhealthy because we've come to the end of our tether?

Honestly if I hadn't read your previous thread on this subject I'd think this was a wind-up; you come across like a character out of Little Britain.
Different people have different lifestyles.  If you really can't learn to live alongside this person then you need to move out, wasting police time on this is ridiculous.   Just be happy that you rent so it should be easy to move on.

Indeed. Imagine trying to sell if you owned the flat.......!

PixelPound

AdrianC said:

hollydays said:

You first posted about this 18 months ago.

23 months... June 2018.
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5853199/pot-smoking-neighbours

Definitely MOVE.

Some people though will refuse to move as a point of principle - "I am not doing anything wrong", rather than take the path of least resistance. 

Moving may not have been what they wanted to do, but if two years have gone by and it's still an issue, then really now it is a case of either living with it or moving. Twelve months after moving, you'll be wondering why you never did it earlier.

MovingForwards

If you are in a private rental, why stick around? If you are in LA / HA get on the waiting / swap list.

I put up with it for 21 months. 8 flats in the block, at least 4 of the flats had occupants smoking dope. Next door was the screaming banshee, above was the herd of elephants, with all night parties, people coming / going at all hours and quick visits at times, doors slamming, arguing etc.

My flat stunk of dope, as did the communal areas.

Lockdown made everything a million times worse, I slipped into depression, anxiety, panic attacks, survived on 30 minutes to 2 hours sleep a day. Wouldn't recommend anyone go through that.

I wouldn't have lasted another week.

Took a while, but I got out last week and still have a bit of my sanity left, just have a slow recovery ahead of me, in a quiet home, with polite neighbours.

DX-SFX

Firstly I'd like to thank pothead Spoovy for his sympathetic approach. Get stuffed. No I don't have to put up with the stink of weed in my wardrobe. I could be sacked for coming in smelling of weed. MovingForwards understands the problem.

We are looking at moving but each time someone comes to look at the flat, they take one whiff and that's it. Meanwhile we have reported it numerous times to the local council but they simply don't do anything. We've called the police but they require proof. Trust me, we've been trying for a loooong time, hence the previous post. As it happens, I may have found a legal solution that doesn't seem to be widely known about that others might be interested in. 

https://www.richardbuxton.co.uk/the-law/nuisance

hazyjo

I was under the impression you were renting. So you actually own it? Can you clarify? Ta.

AdrianC

thazyjo said:

I was under the impression you were renting. So you actually own it? Can you clarify? Ta.

From the original post in the OP's thread from two years ago...

DX-SFX said:

I've complained to my private landlord

OP - whether anybody else wants to move in is not your problem. Simply give your month's notice, and find somewhere else to go to.

I'm assuming you haven't been so daft as to continually sign new fixed-period tenancies? If you have, then you'll need to wait for the current one to expire.

PLEASE assure us that you haven't bought the sodding flat off your landlord in the time since that thread...?

anselld

DX-SFX said:

As it happens, I may have found a legal solution that doesn't seem to be widely known about that others might be interested in. 

So how are you planning to evidence the "smell" and its origin to the magistrates?

GHolmesAdmin

I've had to move twice due to noisy and otherwise anti-social neighbours, the first time I stuck it out for years going through all the right channels assuming I would get help eventually, I never did, the second time I cut my losses and moved straight back out again knowing how these things play out, fortunately if you are renting moving out is a super power. Even now I have a downstairs neighbour who cultivates squeaky doors, or should I say screeching doors, this is a recent thing because previously we have lived in peace for years. Fortunately - or unfortunately maybe - I am moving in with my elderly mum soon as she cannot cope on her own any more, and would have gone already if not for the lockdown - believe me living in a maze of boxes for months is no fun - so the problem will be left behind for the next tenant. 

hazyjo

AdrianC said:

thazyjo said:

I was under the impression you were renting. So you actually own it? Can you clarify? Ta.

From the original post in the OP's thread from two years ago...

DX-SFX said:

I've complained to my private landlord

OP - whether anybody else wants to move in is not your problem. Simply give your month's notice, and find somewhere else to go to.

I'm assuming you haven't been so daft as to continually sign new fixed-period tenancies? If you have, then you'll need to wait for the current one to expire.

PLEASE assure us that you haven't bought the sodding flat off your landlord in the time since that thread...?

They threw me with this line: "We are looking at moving but each time someone comes to look at the flat, they take one whiff and that's it."

What's that got to do with anything if they're renting? 

greatcrested

hazyjo said:

AdrianC said:

thazyjo said:

I was under the impression you were renting. So you actually own it? Can you clarify? Ta.

From the original post in the OP's thread from two years ago...

DX-SFX said:

I've complained to my private landlord

OP - whether anybody else wants to move in is not your problem. Simply give your month's notice, and find somewhere else to go to.

I'm assuming you haven't been so daft as to continually sign new fixed-period tenancies? If you have, then you'll need to wait for the current one to expire.

PLEASE assure us that you haven't bought the sodding flat off your landlord in the time since that thread...?

They threw me with this line: "We are looking at moving but each time someone comes to look at the flat, they take one whiff and that's it."

What's that got to do with anything if they're renting? 

I assume there's a clause in the tenancy agreement prohibiting the tenant from ending the tenancy until they've found a replacement tenant whom eets all the landlord's criteria........