Neighbours drain blocked and is asking us to pay

ThisIsWeird

D_Edwards said:

ThisIsWeird said:

DEd, what type of 'drain' is this? What job does it serve? Where does it lead or ultimately discharge in to?

Hi, it’s their own sewage drain. It’s old clay pipes that go down the side of their fence (about 4 metres) and join the main sewer across the road. I wasn’t aware they had their drain so close to the fence!

Thanks.

A completely misguided individual, then.

The facts: it's their private sewer drain on their land. Unexceptional planting on your side of the boundary - which you are fully entitled to have - and that wouldn't have caused any issue to any drain unless it was intrinsically weak, damaged or faulty. You have not caused this.

It is just about possible for drains to be damaged by the presence of large roots - say by a large tree in close proximity - but only by the presence of the growing roots first physically moving the drains far enough to cause damage to them, and then the roots can gain entry. So, their historic conifer could, possibly, have contributed to this issue, but your Buddleia certainty did not. Equally likely is that their drains have just reached the end of their natural life.

It's all moot in any case - the neighb has a less than zero chance of taking successful action against you. It's a ludicrous claim.

So, matter of fact - outline the situation; 'this is your drain on your land. Nothing on my side has contributed to the damage - but your old conifer may have done, we don't know. If this was my drain on my land, I wouldn't dream of asking you to contribute to it. You understand that, don't you?'

If he moans about taking action; "If you truly believe you have a case, then you are free to do what you like - but I'm not expecting you to get very far with it..."

outtatune

Also, don't pay him anything 'just for the sake of being good neighbours'. He will take this as weakness and you'll suddenly find that you 'need' to pay a contribution towards his roof repairs, guttering, and so on.

spannerzone

The sheer audacity of some people is staggering isn't it! - this seems like a no win situation, if you (rightly) refuse to pay, having read the previous excellent replies here, the neighbour will probably have issue with you from now on.... if you do pay, he'll think you a sucker and try it on, again and again I suspect. You need to be firm, calm and confident in whatever you say to him and show no weakness...he certainly doesn't appear to have any issues about having you over and clealry trying to get you to pay all the money he paid to fix the drains.

Mentioning tax evasion isn't something I'd go sharing with neighbours either   

Eldi_Dos

Think I would be taking a leaf out Ettore Bugatti's way of dealing with customer complaints, apparently when a customer called about a problem with a vehicle they had purchased they were told not to let it happen again.

D_Edwards

Eldi_Dos said:

Think I would be taking a leaf out Ettore Bugatti's way of dealing with customer complaints, apparently when a customer called about a problem with a vehicle they had purchased they were told not to let it happen again.

Never heard that before and that’s hilarious! Thank you for lifting my spirits!

D_Edwards

spannerzone said:

The sheer audacity of some people is staggering isn't it! - this seems like a no win situation, if you (rightly) refuse to pay, having read the previous excellent replies here, the neighbour will probably have issue with you from now on.... if you do pay, he'll think you a sucker and try it on, again and again I suspect. You need to be firm, calm and confident in whatever you say to him and show no weakness...he certainly doesn't appear to have any issues about having you over and clealry trying to get you to pay all the money he paid to fix the drains.

Mentioning tax evasion isn't something I'd go sharing with neighbours either   

Thank you for your help. He came to the door and was mildly abusive with his language to which I told him politely not to talk to me like that and he did stop and apologise but he did get my back up. I am realising he has put himself and the drain company in an awkward position of doing a cash in hand/no VAT deal. 

D_Edwards

Nobbie1967 said:

Another for telling him to do one. I suspect he’s paid £450 for the cash job and is chancing his arm at getting you to pay the lot. I don’t think he has a legal case since there has been no negligence on your part. Plants are normal in gardens and if their roots get into pipes it indicates faulty pipes which require maintenance by the owner, not their neighbour.

Thanks for this. This is exactly where I’m at with the whole thing. How the hell have roots got in! He must have been aware of his pipes and hasn’t once said he’s concerned about our plants close to the fence. I’d be be in a good position to argue negligence on his part!

stuart45

I've seen a few jobs over the years where this kind of problem with roots has cropped up. I'm no legal expert, but in some cases people can be held responsible for any damage to foundations or drains to next doors property.
It depends on the situation. For example if you had a couple of large willow trees near the border, and next door built an extension without adequate foundations it would be there fault. However, if the extension was there first, it could be seen as yours. Comes under the Laws of Nuisance.
In your case, the neighbour should have got a qualified tree surgeon as an expert witness to prove that the roots were coming from your plants. He also should have got a qualified surveyor to access the damage. 
As he has done neither of this, he doesn't really have a case.
Drains that were done with salt glazed pipes had sand/cement joints and were encased in concrete. Any ground movement can cause a fracture in the joints, allowing moisture to escape. Trees like the Willow have aggressive roots which seek out moisture and enter the drain, growing and opening up the joints.

D_Edwards

stuart45 said:

I've seen a few jobs over the years where this kind of problem with roots has cropped up. I'm no legal expert, but in some cases people can be held responsible for any damage to foundations or drains to next doors property.
It depends on the situation. For example if you had a couple of large willow trees near the border, and next door built an extension without adequate foundations it would be there fault. However, if the extension was there first, it could be seen as yours. Comes under the Laws of Nuisance.
In your case, the neighbour should have got a qualified tree surgeon as an expert witness to prove that the roots were coming from your plants. He also should have got a qualified surveyor to access the damage. 
As he has done neither of this, he doesn't really have a case.
Drains that were done with salt glazed pipes had sand/cement joints and were encased in concrete. Any ground movement can cause a fracture in the joints, allowing moisture to escape. Trees like the Willow have aggressive roots which seek out moisture and enter the drain, growing and opening up the joints.

Thanks for this, this has been the one thorn in my mind about causing nuisance but you and everyone are quite right in that he hasn’t come to us with clear proof other than “your plants look close enough to be the only cause of problem”. 

stuart45

If it was definitely your roots that caused the blockage, you would only be liable to contribute towards clearing the drain, as your roots didn't necessarily cause the joints to start leaking, and one of the roots came from his side. 
You've removed any plants from your side, so the problem won't happen again. 
You shouldn't have to pay towards the re-lining as your roots didn't cause the initial failure of the joints. The re-lining of the drain was needed because of the failure in the joints, and leaking drains can be a health hazard anyway.