Renaming house

Annisele

Section62 said:

I've not come across a prosecution for adding a name though, and I doubt anyone would be too bothered* unless a name was added which was obscene or caused confusion (e.g. giving your property the same name as another in the locality). (*provided any number was still displayed and used officially)

Well that sent me down a Google rabbit hole - I'd had no idea that I might be legally obliged to display the number of my house!

Of course I'm going to display the number anyway; not doing so would cause far more hassle to me than to anybody else. I've obscured the number before, with scaffolding etc, but I reckoned the postman would see the numbers on either side and work out that I was in the midde. Maybe I'll add a cardboard sign next time I have to do that, but as you say it's very very unlikely anybody will care either way.

tealady

Well that sent me down a Google rabbit hole - I'd had no idea that I might be legally obliged to display the number of my house!

Of course I'm going to display the number anyway; not doing so would cause far more hassle to me than to anybody else. I've obscured the number before, with scaffolding etc, but I reckoned the postman would see the numbers on either side and work out that I was in the midde. Maybe I'll add a cardboard sign next time I have to do that, but as you say it's very very unlikely anybody will care either way.

Wouldn't rely on the postie! Near me is a street where for about 6 houses the numbers suddenly go backwards (eg 17, 19, 21, 29, 27, 25, 23) I did a double take the 1st time I saw it.
Also on my estate there are no number 13's.

housebuyer143

When I bought my house the owner had taken all mentioned of the number away and had a house name. I can't understand why as surely it's super confusing for the postman and deliveries.
First thing I did was take it down and buy a house number. 
I guess you can do it, but please keep the number as well if you do.

ThisIsWeird

Annisele said:

Section62 said:

I've not come across a prosecution for adding a name though, and I doubt anyone would be too bothered* unless a name was added which was obscene or caused confusion (e.g. giving your property the same name as another in the locality). (*provided any number was still displayed and used officially)

Well that sent me down a Google rabbit hole - I'd had no idea that I might be legally obliged to display the number of my house!

Of course I'm going to display the number anyway; not doing so would cause far more hassle to me than to anybody else. I've obscured the number before, with scaffolding etc, but I reckoned the postman would see the numbers on either side and work out that I was in the midde. Maybe I'll add a cardboard sign next time I have to do that, but as you say it's very very unlikely anybody will care either way.

If the number will remain your postal address, and will also be displayed, then fill your boots. (There may be pedantic reasons why some form of registering 'may' be required, but unless you actually intend to use it as your postal name, then the chances of it being an 'issue' for anyone is infinitesimal.)

T'Mils added a name to their last house, and this was displayed alongside the house number. They never used the name in correspondence, and it wasn't - and never would become - an issue. If it did, then most of the rest of the estate would have a similar headache.

A house we considered buying had only a name, and a hellish one at that, so we looked into changing it, which turned out to largely be a process that involved the PO. I don't recall other interested parties, but it makes sense that the council would also wish to know. And, since the house name was shown on maps, I guess Land Registry would also be involved? I don't know.

But, when keeping and using the number for correspondence, insurance, banks, etc. surely no issue.

Section62

ThisIsWeird said:

If the number will remain your postal address, and will also be displayed, then fill your boots. (There may be pedantic reasons why some form of registering 'may' be required, but unless you actually intend to use it as your postal name, then the chances of it being an 'issue' for anyone is infinitesimal.)

Not "pedantic", it would be enforcing the law.

There are good reasons why naming and numbering is controlled.  One of the more obvious ones is so the emergency services can get to the right property as quickly as possible.  You can imagine the situation if the ambulance service were called to "Weird Towers" on "Any Street" and someone else had decided they liked the name "Weird Towers" and had unofficially put up a big sign on their front door saying "Weird Towers".  Although the use of GPS has reduced how much of a problem this is, there remains an issue that seeing an unofficial name on a door or gate could cause delays to the emergency services getting to the right property.

The same applies to things like deliveries (albeit without the urgency), so if there is duplication of names it is likely to be a lot more than an infinitesimal chance of it causing an issue.  And in rural areas where many roads have no signed name the issue is even more significant.

ThisIsWeird said:

A house we considered buying had only a name, and a hellish one at that, so we looked into changing it, which turned out to largely be a process that involved the PO. I don't recall other interested parties, but it makes sense that the council would also wish to know.

It wouldn't have been the PO.  The local authority (unitary or 2nd tier) is the street naming and numbering authority - they are the only organisation with the powers to decide/allocate names and numbers to streets and buildings.

Part of the street naming and numbering duty is to consult with other affected parties (e.g. emergency services, Royal Mail) and then to inform Ordnance Survey of the final details.  OS then add the information to the UPRN database.

Organisations such as the emergency services and Royal Mail (not the PO) will then pull the updated information from the UPRN database.

ThisIsWeird said:

And, since the house name was shown on maps, I guess Land Registry would also be involved? I don't know.

Ordnance Survey are responsible for producing 'official' mapping, not Land Registry.  LR produce plans based on the OS mapping.  AFAIK LR wouldn't necessarily update the registration until the next time a registration event happened (I assume they would just need evidence that 'New Name' is the same property as 'Old Name'), but any of their records based on the UPRN database should be updated automatically.  If anyone needs to know for sure then we know who to ask.

ThisIsWeird

So, to sum up, as long as your number is retained, and this is what's used, then fill your name boots.

Section62

ThisIsWeird said:

So, to sum up, as long as your number is retained, and this is what's used, then fill your name boots.

Not quite.

In some areas you would have to get the consent of the LA to display a name in addition to the number.

In other areas you are still obliged not to use a name which is already in use elsewhere in the neighbourhood - one of the easiest ways of finding out whether the name is in use is to ask the council.  If you live in an area where the council adopts a "nothing do do with us" approach then the name you've chosen has no legal status and there is nothing stopping your neighbour (or anyone else) from giving their property the same name.

Whatever name you choose, if you display it on the building you are still subject to various other legal restrictions, such as obscenity, defamation, planning control, trademarks, copyright etc etc.

ThisIsWeird

Fair do's. Not quite. But damned close.

Now, that's a good address.

lincroft1710

Decades ago in a village street with no numbers, just names, I was looking for a house called "Fairview". Drove up and down the street, no such name, Eventually found the property, the new owners had renamed it "Nebjon"!


Above the door of my parents' first home, a very modest small Edwardian, direct to pavement, end of terrace, was a faded wooden board bearing the name "Senrad House" (the house's builder had been a Mr Darnes). Parents never ever used the name just the house number.

ThisIsWeird

Rue Ssot comes to mind for these two.