Had Drop Kerb done without planning permission

twopenny

I went through something like this when I tried to get a driveway.
Others had dropped the kerb without asking and was told it wasn't permitted but weren't going to follow it up so long after and the house had been sold. No idea how the sellers got away with that one.

My buyers asked for the permission 15yrs after installation! But the were awkward all round.

Usually a reputable company doing the dropped kerb won't do it without the permission in place.

So I'd agree, leave it alone and make sure every other requirement are right such as visibility etc.
It will look worn in after a winter of rain and dirt.

I wonder why they have the 5 mt rule? See if you can quietly find out.

silvercar

twopenny said:

I wonder why they have the 5 mt rule? See if you can quietly find out.

Probably preservation of grass verges to avoid excess water run off. 

Section62

silvercar said:

twopenny said:

I wonder why they have the 5 mt rule? See if you can quietly find out.

Probably preservation of grass verges to avoid excess water run off. 

Also long drives across verges often get used for extra parking.

Although neither is likely to be a lawful reason to refuse to provide a crossover.

Ezzbis2023

Hi all to clarify the road is C category road with lots and lots of houses have greater than 3m of pavement depth especially all my neighbourhood. the kerb has been installed and I'm not looking to sell the house in any near future. The refusal which I discovered later does not mention any other reason of refusal expect the 3m rules? How did my neighbour got through them, also there are lots of neighbours who have dropped kerb right on the junction or sharp turn. I suppose they have not had the permission, It would be very unfair if council decides to put the kerb back up. I always had the driveway and used the kerb (dead grass verge with lots of deep holes) to park my vehicle on drive, This is now in much better looking state. 

WIAWSNB

Yes, it does, on the surface, appear to be unfair. However, if the council has a rational reason to prohibit such kerb drops under these conditions, then the fact that others have got away with it is just that - they have (edit - 'possibly') breached regs. 

I suspect (but don't know) that an indemnity policy won't be as effective as one would hope, since - if legitimately challenged by the council, and the homeowner's counter fail - the policy would presumably only cover the cost of kerb's reinstatement. Not really satisfactory.

A glimmer of hope is that the council has possibly made an error? So, I suggest both 'keep schtum' as far as what you've done to your property, but investigate what the true regs in place are. 

Not sure how - could you ask a surveyor to anonymously check this for you? Do you have friends or relatives on a similar road, perhaps in a different ward - ask them to inquire of the council the relevant regs? 

Section62

WIAWSNB said:

Yes, it does, on the surface, appear to be unfair. However, if the council has a rational reason to prohibit such kerb drops under these conditions, then the fact that others have got away with it is just that - they have breached regs.

Probably more likely the other crossovers were installed when the council had a different policy.  If so, that doesn't help the OP.

Important to note these aren't 'regs'.

The OP needed planning consent to form a new vehicular access to the highway.  This is covered by local planning policy.

They also needed permission to install a vehicular crossover in the highway.  This is governed by Section 184 of the Highways Act 1980.  The council has published "guidance" on when they will and won't agree to a crossover, but this is guidance, not regulations.

If you install a crossover without the consent of the highway authority then it is a Highways Act offence, not a breach of regulations. Likewise, creating a new vehicular access without planning consent (where required) would be a Town and Country Planning Act offence.

WIAWSNB said:

A glimmer of hope is that the council has possibly made an error? So, I suggest both 'keep schtum' as far as what you've done to your property, but investigate what the true regs in place are. 

Not sure how - could you ask a surveyor to anonymously check this for you? Do you have friends or relatives on a similar road, perhaps in a different ward - ask them to inquire of the council the relevant regs? 

Most councils publish their rules/guidance on their website.  This is South Gloucestershire's.  The site is a 'beta' one, but appears to be the official one.

https://beta.southglos.gov.uk/static/692382825b6bc9dc8f26c9e88a8285a7/Guidance-on-how-to-apply-for-a-vehicle-crossing.pdf

But again, these are just rules/guidance, not regulations.

onomatopoeia99

Section62 said:

 This is South Gloucestershire's.  The site is a 'beta' one, but appears to be the official one.

SGC's website has been "beta" for years. Possibly pre-pandemic. It shows no sign of ever going to "production" status.  They are my local council and I'd be amazed if they had time to worry about a dropped kerb considering the absolute traffic carnage they are creating with road closures and or temporary lights to put in a cycle lane on the A38 at the same time as road closures due to utilities work meaning both main and alternative routes are closed at the same time, and the HA deciding to resurface the M5 overnight and directing traffic along the A38 with all its restrictions.  It's brilliant living here at the moment, unless you want to drive or take a bus.

Ezzbis2023

Is anyone aware of when the south glous rules changed for crossovers? On the my application assessment document it says:

 ''Depth of open space/verge + pavement in total required for the crossing? Total must be less than 3m for approval, refused due to depth measuring 5.2m''

How come all neighbouring properties were granted permission with the same dept, like somebody mentioned above it might have been different rule then thats why interested to know when this rule changed? 

another key factor I'd like to mention is my road does not have street parking. Can I argue to the council (only if I get caught) that having to use pathway itself to get in to driveway was not good idea therefore i had crossover done i assumed i had applied for permission and it has gone through. Only later i found the permission wasnt granted? I'll try to cooperate with the council and possibly pay the fine. 

Section62

onomatopoeia99 said:

Section62 said:

 This is South Gloucestershire's.  The site is a 'beta' one, but appears to be the official one.

SGC's website has been "beta" for years. Possibly pre-pandemic. It shows no sign of ever going to "production" status.  They are my local council and I'd be amazed if they had time to worry about a dropped kerb considering the absolute traffic carnage they are creating with road closures and or temporary lights to put in a cycle lane on the A38 at the same time as road closures due to utilities work meaning both main and alternative routes are closed at the same time, and the HA deciding to resurface the M5 overnight and directing traffic along the A38 with all its restrictions.  It's brilliant living here at the moment, unless you want to drive or take a bus.

This is why they might take an interest -  councils like this generally want to make it difficult/impossible to own a car, not just use it.  Hence them applying policies that effectively prohibit crossovers, even though the lawfulness of the policy is questionable.  Therefore if someone is going to have a problem with the council for installing a crossover without permission it is more likely to be an authority which has these restrictive policies.  Someone living in the middle of nowhere in a rural shire could have less to worry about.

I'm not saying the OP will have a problem, just that assumptions the council won't care might differ from the reality.

moneysaver1978

Could you go on the council website and look for planning applications? On my local council, I found a few neighbours have had applications approved (or denied) for driveway, extensions, outbuildings, etc.