Neighbour construction / party wall laws = sorry lots of detail

drjohn67

One homeowner decides to build an extension and wants to erect a fence.
Conditions of planning specifically = to consult planning dept any groundwork prior to commencing to avoid damage to existing protected tree roots.

1. The consultation did not occur - the council did not care.
2. There was no party wall notice provided.
3. The builders excavated the boundary across the area of protected tree roots.
4. The excavator drove through and dug up 2 long sections of our hedge (clearly on our side of the ancient boundary markers and in fact purchased by me - these were in places left in the air and others snapped off at the base.
5. My partner asked him to stop (video recorded the incident). He refused.
6. We took photographs of the damage and large bundles of our hedge being thrown on the tip. Over the next 6 months, an approx 6m section of mature hedge died off.
6. They erected the fence 40cm onto our property which, beyond the trespass, prevented the repair of the hedge which we have been left to self-fund.
7. The eaves and gutters extend over or boundary.
8. Due to the age of the original construction/the property deeds, the accuracy of plans was limited to 1-2m. However, there were ancient markers and some recent surveys that record the boundary position. (Perhaps) also supported by the estate agent's photographs, videos that I took prior to the construction and satellite images.
9. They have refused to reposition the fence and are manipulating to extort part of our rear garden to align with the boundary position that suits the construction. This will destroy a long section of mature hedge.
10. They refused to erect protective fence/netting and we have been subjected to huge amounts of cement, polystyrene/building litter and cigarette stumps being dropped on our garden/plants.

Advice would be most welcome, regarding the legal status of construction without party wall notice and the most appropriate next steps.

We would have given space for the extension if they had not ruined the hedge or want to exploit the situation to deflect the boundary further.

Doozergirl

You haven't mentioned anything in your post where the Party Wall Act applies.  

Even if it did, it's something to sort before, not after.  It's a rather toothless piece of legislation.  

The damage and trespass issues are of course relevant.  Do you have legal cover with your home insurance or union membership, perhaps? 

drjohn67

I understood that the party wall act had a section related to building on the boundary even if there was no existing building. We have legal insurance cover though wanted to avoid getting drawn up in a long case.

Thanks for confirming the party wall act as toothless. Similar to the tree root protection part.

Doozergirl

The party wall act does not apply to hedges or fences.  It was never going to make anything any easier for you if the neighbour doesn't care anyway.  

drjohn67

Thanks. we will consider the next steps regarding the boundary though from what I read the legal processes are a nightmare.

Heavily cropped image so scaling is not really possible. Also, and partly obscured by the tree. The fence in the distant view encroached 15cm which I didn't make a fuss about though by much more where the arrow is.
He says that the fence is not at all bent towards our house. Persective is odd/compressed although the bend took out 6m of the hedge.

ThisIsWeird

Jeepers, Dr John - this started over 6 months ago? And you have Leg Prot?

As soon as that digger began to level your hedges, that should have been a call to the local police, and a call to your LP. The former (tho' they might not attend quickly - unless you can justify it as criminal property damage) wouldn't become involved in the actual dispute, but - after confirming it ain't a clear-cut case of this neighb being perfectly within their rights - would advise the neighb to stop until they can evidence where the boundary is. They would then be foolish to continue.

Your LP costs nothing to call up and give their advice on what you need to do, both immediately and as a follow-up. If the neighb's worker has genuinely come over the boundary, and you have video of them being told to stop and refusing to do so, I would have thought your LP would smack their lips and rub their hands at the prospect of a claim; in essence, if they feel confident of a greater-than-50% chance of winning, they will usually take it on. You should win the cost of having the hedge reinstated - how satisfying would that be?!

But, I fear you are stuffed as I think you needed to act within a certain time - 60 days or something? Call them up now and have a good chat. Stick to the main issues - the damage and the trespass - forget the litter for now (but keep recording it).

Your post ends with 'you'd be prepared to allow some of your space for their extension'? Why on earth would you do that, even if you liked them?

I suspect, to get anywhere with this now, you'll need to employ a boundary surveyor to try and determine where the 'true' boundary is. Part of the evidence is likely to include 'ancient' features like you describe. Are these still present, or has the neighbour removed them? You need numerous photos and actual, provable, tape measurements of ANYTHING that still exists but could be removed. Measure from immovable objects - house walls, pillars, outbuilding corners, etc.

But, man, I fear you may have missed the LP boat, but could be wrong - call them up NOW and ask. It won't cost you anything 

Le_Kirk

drjohn67 said:

One homeowner decides to build an extension and wants to erect a fence.
Conditions of planning specifically = to consult planning dept any groundwork prior to commencing to avoid damage to existing protected tree roots.

1. The consultation did not occur - the council did not care.

If the terms of the planning consent were not adhered to, did you contact the planning dept. and if so how (telephone, letter, e-mail)?  If they "do not care" how has this manifested itself?  Have you spoken to or otherwise contacted your local councillor, I am sure they would be interested in the planning department not doing their job thoroughly!