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Original poster

How can I sabotage my neighbours life..?

36 replies

PurpleDahlia · 23/12/2019 03:11

Drastic title I know but I'm desperate, tired and hormonal.

Long story short, I live in a HA house, middle house in a block of three. Neighbours to my left are fab, no problem with them. Neighbours to the right...neighbours from hell.

Had ongoing noise/music/antisocial issues. Mum with two teen daughters aged 16 and 18. I've posted about this before. Mum is never there (stays with boyfriend) girls are left to their own devices. They sleep all day and party all night while getting high and drunk.

Lots of tooing and froing, the HA are going to be issuing a legal written notice in the New Year and the plan is to get them evicted.

Mum has been pre warned about this notice and has done fuck all. Girls have friends/boyfriends round. DH and I have decided to not knock on doors anymore because their ignore us or shout abuse so have a noise recording app that we record everything on which gets sent to HA for evidence. I am also doing the same with environmental health.

This is what I have done so far in order to get the noise stopped:

Sent neighbours a letter
Knocked on the neighbours door and spoke with mum- she said she would get the girls to stop music at 10:30 every night 🙄🙄🙄 that's never happened and now parks her car away from the house on the rear occasion she does come home to avoid us
Raised case with HA
Raised case with EH
Called police when noise starts, get redirected to EH. My LA do not have response officers to come out and shut parties down (no provision just log sheets)
Called children's services, they say to contact police not a SS matter
Called the colleges they are supposed to be attending to raise a safeguarding concern to find out both girls have dropped out, so girls are going nothing all day
Reported mum for benefit fraud as I have found out she is staying with boyfriend
Mum has blocked me on her phone, WhatsApp and Facebook so I've no way of contacting her.

I am 37 weeks pregnant with a DS who is 5, luckily he isn't disturbed. DH and I are miserable and extremely stressed, the thought of having a newborn into this situation is causing our anxiety levels to rise as you can imagine.

I've used every resource I can think of, please wise MN, give me your ideas of what you would do to make this music stop.

Sorry my short story is not that short!!!

OP posts:

Horehound · 23/12/2019 03:14

Move

Original poster

PurpleDahlia · 23/12/2019 03:17

Forgot to say, moving isn't really an option right now. I have a secure tenancy that's an affordable rate especially as I'm about to go on maternity leave.

We love our house and the area we live in and feel like we shouldn't be the ones to have to move away...

OP posts:

00100001 · 23/12/2019 03:19

"Move"

As if it's that easy....
But I suppose you could ask ha to relocate

hopefully ha will evict them if you can wait it out,?

Mintjulia · 23/12/2019 03:24

Then you’re already doing everything legal and will have to wait for the housing association to deal with it. Anything drastic is likely to give them a counter claim for your “unreasonable behaviour” and drag the whole thing out for longer.
Your 5yo is not bothered so concentrate on yourselves, white noise, ear plugs at night etc.
Not long to go until the new year. 💐

PlanDeRaccordement · 23/12/2019 03:36

Frankly, you don’t sound like a good neighbour either. Just wait until you have a rebellious 16 to 18 yr old or two on your hands. You seem to lack any empathy for a single mum struggling with teen daughters.

The noise complaints are all well and good but calling the police, SS on the girls for playing loud music and going after the mum for benefit fraud because she’s sleeping over with her bf. And then saying you want to sabotage the mums entire life because of two teenagers being typical teenagers is over the top vindictive to me.

Aridane · 23/12/2019 03:39

🙄

Original poster

PurpleDahlia · 23/12/2019 03:41

Hmmm bit harsh. I would say it's bad parenting from the mum who is never there and chooses to spend it with her boyfriend rather than ensure her girls are in college at least trying to get some decent qualifications to get a decent start in life.

I'm feeling vindictive because this is the 8th night they've played music until 4am and I've had very little sleep as a result (and that's with ear plugs and white noise)

OP posts:

runabath · 23/12/2019 03:48

Make sure you make plenty of noise in the morning and get the 5 year old a drum kit for Christmas. Sleep deprivation is the worst, I sympathise with you.

Original poster

PurpleDahlia · 23/12/2019 03:51

Thank you. I suppose I just wanted sympathy and some light hearted ways to ease my suffering but forgot to say it in my sleep deprived state!

I'm also nervous as I have a growth scan tomorrow as baby's measurements did not change at my 36 week appointment and I'm just feeling totally overwhelmed and stressed.

OP posts:

FredaFrogspawn · 23/12/2019 03:52

She’s an appalling mother who is not taking responsibility for her tenancy. Or her daughters. I have no advice I’m afraid, other than to keep on at the HA, but wanted to register my sympathy. I hope it is sorted too.

MrsKittySmith · 23/12/2019 03:52

Hi, I'm a noise and asb officer for a local authority environmental health ( private rented and owner occupier) I've also previously done noise and asb for local authority housing.

You are doing all that you can at the moment. Keep gathering evidence on the app and making dairies, I tell my customers to hammer the app and make as many recordings as you can, also log all incidents with the police for reference, they don't need to attend but ask that it's noted so the HA and EH can then use this as evidence. Has the HA or EH got noise equipment, you could also also ask for this as the equipment makes longer recordings than the app so you could probably get some further more in depth evidence. The more evidence the better.

Housing association will need lots if evidence before eviction. Environmental health do have powers to seize any noise making equipment if music is frequently being played at an unreasonable volume but they need a warrant from the court to do this. It's easy to do if they have the evidence. They also have the power to temporarily close the property down so no one has access to use it (put steel shutters on etc) - Google closure orders. However this is only temporary and not a long term solution, would also require you to submit witness statements and possibly attend court in order for the local authority to stand a good chance of securing this.

I would say do not stoop to their level - don't approach, engage, retaliate etc as you are the HA and EH star witness and if it did go to court you wouldn't want to be seen as an unreliable witness (as bad as the neighbours ).

You need to keep pressing the HA and EH for what they are doing and just keep on submitting loads of evidence. I know it's awful and I really feel for people like yourselves in this situation, I've had awful neighbours myself in the past.

Please see there is light at the end of the tunnel.

PlanDeRaccordement · 23/12/2019 04:07

Exactly this is what I was tryIng to say. Sorry I was too blunt. I am not very eloquent this time of day.

Original poster

PurpleDahlia · 23/12/2019 04:20

Really good advice Kitty. I really don't want to get in a tit for tat situation. My DH is struggling to stay calm, it's very tense at the moment and we're both constantly on edge.

I know how hard it is to evict HA tenants for anything other than rent arrears so may have no choice but to look for somewhere else to live which really is my last and final option 😢

OP posts:

Skittlesandbeer · 23/12/2019 04:23

Spray some Liquid Ass under their door randomly but regularly.

Show them what ‘antisocial’ really looks like. Anonymously, of course. And without letting your 5yo know about it.

Might not change their behaviour, but it’s guaranteed to make you and DH feel a little better while the legal approach plods on in the background.

Sometimes ‘being zen’ and ‘waiting for karma’ doesn’t exactly cut it. Unless you’ve been subjected to this kind of incessant noise and abuse torture over months, you just don’t know. I know.

Original poster

PurpleDahlia · 23/12/2019 04:29

Just looked at the liquid ass spray reviews on Amazon...I may resort to it when absolutely desperate!

I'm also hoping a crying newborn will give them a taste of their own medicine!

OP posts:

sobeyondthehills · 23/12/2019 04:32

When you have the baby, take the baby to the nearest wall when its crying.

Or even better just outside their door and say the baby settles better in the hallway

Or do what my neighbour does which is sing to his newborn, would be very sweet, but he can't hold a note and does it at the top of his lungs. will say though that baby is quiet within 3 minutes

slipperywhensparticus · 23/12/2019 04:40

Poundland sim cards WhatsApp her ten thirty nightly ask her to turn the music down nicely everytime and keep reporting and put a baby cot by the party wall make sure you settle said baby by the shared wall especially when they are asleep in the day

Record baby crying play it on repeat when your not at home

overnightangel · 23/12/2019 04:55

“Frankly, you don’t sound like a good neighbour either. Just wait until you have a rebellious 16 to 18 yr old or two on your hands. You seem to lack any empathy for a single mum struggling with teen daughters.”

Have a full pack of

yorkshireteaspoonie · 23/12/2019 04:56

I totally sympathise! In my twenties I was driven to distraction by my downstairs neighbour, I had a 9-5 office job and the girl in the flat underneath mine had no such schedule and used to stomp/ run up and down the stairs back and forth to the pub across the road, slamming doors and playing loud rock/ metal... god we had some shouting matches. This kind of thing wears you down massively.

Fast forward ten years... she now works for the same company and I've recently had to be in meetings with her and listen to her talk and be all 'professional' I HATE her as much now as I did then and can't even look at her. I'd still love vengeance!!

I'd be tempted to go with the liquid ass... stink bomb the inconsiderate shits

Southmouth · 23/12/2019 05:33

Why should the OP move?

This sounds awful, I truly sympathise after living next to similar. I think it looks like you’ve done all you can at the moment. Nothing to add but hope it gets sorted soon.

eaglejulesk · 23/12/2019 05:44

Did you read the post? Mum is never there, how is that "struggling with teen daughters"

JolieOBrien · 23/12/2019 05:50

Have you thought about contacting your local Conservative or Labour Councillor? That is what they are there for.

ProseccoSupernova · 23/12/2019 05:51

Plande.... are you serious?! This is not normal behaviour and just because she’s a ‘single mother’ the OP should not have to put up with it! Ridiculous!

CupoTeap · 23/12/2019 06:15

I understand I used to have noisy neighbours and agree re the official recording equipment.

The problem is it be becomes almost obsessive, your waiting for it to happen and it's like torture. There were a few times I lost it and banged the living room door maybe 20 times in a row

Fleetheart · 23/12/2019 06:27

Yes I think contacting your local councillor will help. Sorry for what you’re going through.

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