Someone has cut my hedge

[MeltingSugs]

I got home yesterday to find that half of my hedge has been cut

For context, the garden has needed a tremendous amount of work here. I do not proclaim to be a super gardener, but the hedge has improved a lot since we've been here with the right pruning - I am always out in the garden. This year, I have been letting the top of it grow up to even out the height ready for cutting in the autumn. To get home and find (half) of the top of it has been cut right back, and wonky, has made me quite cross.

Neighbour on the opposite side has no idea what's happened, neighbour on the side with the hedge is (so far) ignoring my text.

So as not to drip feed, the hedge is entirely on my land, it is not 'on the boundary' and therefore on my neighbour's land. The half that has been cut actually protrudes into my garden as it grew wonky, meaning my neighbour has some of my front garden. Prizes for guessing how long it's going to stay like that now!

Providing it is the neighbour, how do I be firm but fair in discussing this with them? I want to make it very clear that they are not to do anything on my property ever, but I don't want to fall out. This neighbour has told me that they felt out with the people who lived in our house before us. I think the friendship is definitely dented now though

Record it. Evidence of what your dealing with.

Don’t worry about adverse possession. In order to claim adverse possession she’d have to notify you and give you two years to rectify the situation (simply writing a letter permitting her to use the land until you say otherwise will do).

What did you write to her?

Start keeping a diary. This is most likely going to escalate. Seek legal advice about your loft from your house insurance bods.

Never got round to updating this.

I forget exactly where I left it, but essentially the police got involved and told her she had criminally damaged our hedge. Also confirmed the CAB state the hedge belongs to whoever's side the roots are on, and that would be our's according to the deeds.

Anyway. She had asked the police to say we have to give her a week's notice for access to maintain the boundary, having seemingly accepted this. In October we got the works we had planned done to stabilise the ground level. All fine. Will attach some photos to show it.

Yesterday, out of nowhere, she's sent us a letter kicking it all off again 🤷🏽‍♀️ I'm tempted to cut the bloody hedge down just to piss her off now.

The concrete bit is her driveway. We had the wooden posts put in to hold our ground up, because whenever her drive was done however many years ago, they reduced the ground level and didn't bother to stabilise it.

And here's the letter that was crumpled on the doormat when I got home yesterday.

I think I would get a lawyer involved now. Try to put this to rest once and for all.

Solicitors today op.
We had batshit ndn and fence issues.
We spent ££ on our boundary fencing. Mad bint started attacking it with a claw hammer trying to pull it down!! Few solicitors letters and she stopped.
Other harassment issues also but fences and boundaries give people The Rage ime.

I'd just put a proper fence in on the boundary line. a) to piss her off b) to firmly mark where the bloody boundary is and c) so I wouldn't have to look at her anymore!

Glad it's not just me feeling immature like I want to rip the hedge down! I was planning to put a bin store adjacent to the wall along the boundary. Might just cough up and do that this weekend.

Have stuck this through her door.

Hopefully that will be the last of it.

I remember this thread originally, slightly crazy lady...

Wow. Glad you are getting legal advice. I really loved your last paragraph by the way

Well done op.
I would take her letter to CAB and ask that they clarify whether any of what she claimed they said is true.

Just signed into my old account and remembered this.
What happened in the end @MeltingSugs , has it been resolved?

She’s batshit!!

Update please.

I used to work for RICS chartered surveyor who worked as an arbitrator in boundary disputes. He gave me some advice when when my horrible former NDNs were trying to co-opt part of my garden to straighten up their fence. Where you have terraced houses the boundary between gardens usually follows the line of the internal the party wall from the houses to the pavement/street, if it's shown as a straight line on the title plan. It sounds as though the neighbour has assumed she owned whatever was on her side of the hedge.

I’d love to know if there’s an update on this. I remember following it from the start