Fencing Boundary Issue

F37A

Hi 

I am putting up new fence in garden. Do I need an agreement with neighbour to ensure we are building fence on correct boundary of property? The neighbour's property is rented so may be a pain getting an agreement with neighbour = landlord. 

E.g is a party wall agreement required?
How can we protect ourselves from claim from neighbour that we not built fence on correct side? is such a claim legally enforceable? in this case we would have to rebuild costing us thousands.

Thanks

swingaloo

Is there an existing fence in situ now?

tacpot12

You only need a Party Wall Agreement if the fence is to straddle the boundary between your land and your neighbour's land. This is why many fences are built to one side of the boundary, so they it only sits on the land belonging to the land owner that is building the fence. 

You don't need their agreement to build on your land, but if it isn't clear where 'your' land starts, then they could challenge where you have built the fence. 

You should look at your title plan to see if it clear where the boundary runs. This requires a fixed and identifiable feature at each end of the boundary line. 

Any previous fence on boundaries might help, especially if there is certainty that the fence was erected when the properties were built. A more recent fence might have been built in the wrong place so some care is needed. 

Contacting the landord and engaging them to make sure you don't encroach on their land should not be too difficult. The landlord's details are likely to be available on the title deed from the Land Registry. Cost for this is £3.

ThisIsWeird

F37A said:
I am putting up new fence in garden. Do I need an agreement with neighbour to ensure we are building fence on correct boundary of property? The neighbour's property is rented so may be a pain getting an agreement with neighbour = landlord.
E.g is a party wall agreement required?
How can we protect ourselves from claim from neighbour that we not built fence on correct side? is such a claim legally enforceable? in this case we would have to rebuild costing us thousands. Thanks

Hi F37A.

As said above, do you know where - exactly - the boundary line lies? For instance, if your houses are terraced or semi, then this should be very straight forward to determine; it's in the centre of the dividing wall of your houses. If detached properties, then it's potentially more tricky.

Q - what's there currently? Q - can you determine where the invisible boundary line runs with some certainty? 

F37A

swingaloo said:

Is there an existing fence in situ now?

Yes half of the fence is there. The other half has come off. There are some bricks and a brickwall which line up with the fencing roughly.

F37A

ThisIsWeird said:

F37A said:
I am putting up new fence in garden. Do I need an agreement with neighbour to ensure we are building fence on correct boundary of property? The neighbour's property is rented so may be a pain getting an agreement with neighbour = landlord.
E.g is a party wall agreement required?
How can we protect ourselves from claim from neighbour that we not built fence on correct side? is such a claim legally enforceable? in this case we would have to rebuild costing us thousands. Thanks

Hi F37A.

As said above, do you know where - exactly - the boundary line lies? For instance, if your houses are terraced or semi, then this should be very straight forward to determine; it's in the centre of the dividing wall of your houses. If detached properties, then it's potentially more tricky.

Q - what's there currently? Q - can you determine where the invisible boundary line runs with some certainty? 

Apologies for the delay life got busy!! our house is a semi detached house and the wall does not join with the neighbours. We have one wall of bricks separating 50% of the length of the boundary with the neighbour. We have rough idea of the boundary but don't want to spend money on the fence only for landlord to kick up a fuss and ask for it to be moved.

F37A

swingaloo said:

Is there an existing fence in situ now?

swingaloo said:

Is there an existing fence in situ now?

Yea there is fencing there. 

ThisIsWeird

F37A said:

ThisIsWeird said:

F37A said:
I am putting up new fence in garden. Do I need an agreement with neighbour to ensure we are building fence on correct boundary of property? The neighbour's property is rented so may be a pain getting an agreement with neighbour = landlord.
E.g is a party wall agreement required?
How can we protect ourselves from claim from neighbour that we not built fence on correct side? is such a claim legally enforceable? in this case we would have to rebuild costing us thousands. Thanks

Hi F37A.

As said above, do you know where - exactly - the boundary line lies? For instance, if your houses are terraced or semi, then this should be very straight forward to determine; it's in the centre of the dividing wall of your houses. If detached properties, then it's potentially more tricky.

Q - what's there currently? Q - can you determine where the invisible boundary line runs with some certainty? 

Apologies for the delay life got busy!! our house is a semi detached house and the wall does not join with the neighbours. We have one wall of bricks separating 50% of the length of the boundary with the neighbour. We have rough idea of the boundary but don't want to spend money on the fence only for landlord to kick up a fuss and ask for it to be moved.

Sorry, I cannot follow your description.

You live in a semi? But it's not with THIS neighbour that you are replacing the fence, but the other one, who is detached?

You have confirmed that your deeds state, in the map and - importantly - in the text, that you have responsibility for this fence?

There is a fence there currently, and all you'd be doing it replacing it, following the exact same line?

Where is this brick wall? Who do you think the wall belongs to? Does the fence continue from this wall, in line?