Party wall agreement - excavation for foundations

EnterUserName

Hi all,

I wonder if there is anyone here with working knowledge of the above? Briefly, we have been served notice due to excavations due to commence within about 1m of our property. It looks like the foundations will be trench fill, circa 2m deep.

I know very little about this. The surveyor's letter has two options - agree (and you're on your own), or disagree (and incur your neighbour the bill).

I don't want to cause any unnecessary expense to my neighbours. I also don't want to be left unprotected if damage accidentally occurs.

Comments, anyone?

Thanks

welshmoneylover

Get your own surveyor and disagree, don’t worry about costs , your neighbour pays 

Rosa_Damascena

welshmoneylover said:

Get your own surveyor and disagree, don’t worry about costs , your neighbour pays 

Why not go with the neighbour's suggested surveyor? Adding unnecessary costs for the heck of it is not a nice thing to do and is not going to help anyone, apart from the surveyor.

Newuser1987

If you do decide to get an agreement I would definitely recommend using the neighbours surveyor as an 'agreed surveyor'. This keeps costs down for your neighbour.

The strange thing with the Party Wall Act which people do not often realise is that the service of the notice, which they have already done, is what protects you. You are just as protected now as you would be if you had a full agreement prepared by a surveyor. 

What I would advise is getting a schedule of condition carried out regardless of the route you choose. This will provide evidence if damage does occur. You can at any point call upon a surveyor if damage occurs.

2m does sound very deep. Are you in an area near trees or clay ground?

EnterUserName

Thanks all.

We have good neighbour relations so this is a simple toss up between protecting myself and our neighbourly relations.

There are lots of trees around, I am not sure about the soil conditions. The closest ones are maybe 5m away, some 20m away but much taller. It says foundations should start at 2m and go deeper if required by building inspector.

I will see if I can get their surveyor to do a schedule of condition, this sound like the best middle ground.

Doozergirl

I think that's the best move. 

2 metres does mean that there's some kind of potential ground instability.  Not a problem but not the most straightforward and there are working practices that should be adhered to.  

Theres no reason why one surveyor can't deal with it.  It's not like solicitors where only one is out for your interests.  Surveyors are all interested in the best interests of the property.  

Jeepers_Creepers

EUN, this is simply one cost that the neighb should be factoring in in any case - it's just part of the build, like submitting plans for PP and BC, paying for an architect, ecology surveys, stuff like that. Don't feel bad about it.

And the founds do sound deep, and could go even deeper. Of course you want good relations with your neighb, and so do they - this isn't going to affect that. (It shouldn't - if it does, that's their fault).

Yes, stick with the one surveyor suggested by the neighb. And, when you see your neighb, tell them how much you appreciate them following the correct process - and wish them luck with their extension.

It would be silly to take the risk of just agreeing - should anything go wrong, that will test your neighbourly relations...

(And should anything go wrong and you need to get your Legal Protection involved, I think I can guess what their first question to you would be    )

Newuser1987

Jeepers_Creepers said:

EUN, this is simply one cost that the neighb should be factoring in in any case - it's just part of the build, like submitting plans for PP and BC, paying for an architect, ecology surveys, stuff like that. Don't feel bad about it.

And the founds do sound deep, and could go even deeper. Of course you want good relations with your neighb, and so do they - this isn't going to affect that. (It shouldn't - if it does, that's their fault).

Yes, stick with the one surveyor suggested by the neighb. And, when you see your neighb, tell them how much you appreciate them following the correct process - and wish them luck with their extension.

It would be silly to take the risk of just agreeing - should anything go wrong, that will test your neighbourly relations...

(And should anything go wrong and you need to get your Legal Protection involved, I think I can guess what their first question to you would be    )

Again its worth pointing out that because the neighbour has served notice they have enabled the act and are now protected. Getting surveyors involded isnt about protection and not how the Act has been written. Surveyors are only required if there is a dispute and they can be called upon at any stage. 

Yes people should factor in this cost when doing building work but its a shame that people think it is the only way to protect yourself because it is an avoidable expense.

EnterUserName

Ok plot twist. Sounds like the builders are starting work before either party has replied to the PWA notice...

I'm all ears for ideas

Rosa_Damascena

Have you had adequate time to reply? There should be a 2-week deadline on the notice and if you haven't said yes by then your neighbour should assume that you are in dispute. If that is genuinely the case put them out of their misery and tell them whether you are happy to go with their choice of surveyor or your own.

EnterUserName

No, we're about 6 days into the 14 days... Very odd.

Perhaps I misunderstood and works are starting but not the notifiable works. However whilst I am not a builder, I assume you normally start building at the foundations