How’s this for a whole new level of cheeky fuckery - someone has token our allotment!

[YaMuvva]

Moved into our new house in January. Bought off a lovely lady who was a widow and something of a popular figure in the street (relevant).

We were pleasantly surprised to find that in the deeds it came with a garage across the road (which we’d seen at the viewing but it wasn’t clear it belonged to the house) and an allotment plot. We’ve actually been on an allotment waiting list for years so it was nice news.

We’ve already had aggro with the garage - when we got the keys we went to open it and found that it was rammed full of full boxes! I called previous owner directly as she gave us her number (as assumed they were hers) and she said she allowed our next door neighbour for years to use it. He was most put out when we told him to clear his stuff as we needed to use it. This was 3 months ago, and only last week did he finally clear it out, and only did so when we had to get shitty with him and say if he didn’t clear the garage we would do it for him (don’t want to get off an a bad foot with the neighbours but he was taking the piss).

Anyway we have never checked out the allotment before now (it’s not far about a 10 min walk from here) just because of time constraints and illnesses and crappy weather but decided to finally today go and find it as the sun is shining here.

Anyway, when we got there we looked on the sheet of paper we’d been given and found the plot - and a person sitting next to a full and lush patch sitting on a chair having a cuppa! There is also a shed full of tools coffee cups newspapers etc in it too . We asked the person if we’d got it wrong as we are new owners of number 8 on X Street and thought this was our new allotment.

Apparently she is our neighbour down the road (never yet met her) and yes whilst it is the allotment belonging to number 8, the previous owner (a “very dear friend” of hers apparently) let her use it, she’s been using it for 10 years.

My DH, still stinging from the garage debacle, said well I’m afraid your very dear friend doesn’t live in no 8 any more we do and we are reclaiming the allotment, thank you for looking after it but it is OURS to enjoy.

She bloody said no! And that she’s cultivated this patch for several years, she grows all her veggies here and it’s her sanctuary so if we want it we will ‘have to fight for it’! She also said she paid for the shed.

DH said that’s fine, expect a fight then, and we shuffled away in shock. I then rang the old owner and she said “Oh yes it’s Barbara’s plot really she was good to take it off my hands and it would be awful to take it off her”. To be clear - the plot has NOT been sold to Barbara.

I just can’t believe the piss takery of this. DH thinks we should just go and take down the shed, leave it at her front door and dig up everything and chuck it all in a bin.

I feel like the neighbours just took the piss out of the old owner and think they genuinely have a claim to the stuff she was kind enough to let them borrow.

This is what you have to do

Of course she doesn’t think that. She lives there. She knows the set up. You really believe that she thinks her friend paid rent for an allotment she didn’t even use, just so Barbara could have it for free? Then her friend sells up and leaves… but continues to pay rent for Barbara to have it for free still? No. Barbara knows exactly what it is.

Growing season has barely begun, I personally wouldn't want to wait, though it would be the 'kind' thing to do. I'd wait and see if Babs was going to show any kindness.

Well it's an allotment in that it is allotted to Op's house!

She may have been shocked but she was also rude.

I wonder if owners are required to keep it in some sort of order?

Is there a big age difference between you and Babs/vendor? There is a reverse ageism at my allotments as the retired people who go for pristine and every inch cultivated look down on anyone still working age or has set aside a toddler mud patch with a few straggly carrots and the odd sunflower from a kids seed packet. They see anyone who hasn’t been there for 40 years as a fly by night who’ll soon get bored so Babs is possibly thinking you and husband will be one season only types . But naked or not, DH will get respect from the other gardeners when he gets stuck in. You can take sweet revenge by dropping off some of your inevitable courgette glut on Barbara’s step or even worse sending some of your allotment green tomato chutney down to the previous owner as a gift 😅

The Allotments Act can covers private agreement to use land for growing vegetables. OP needs proper legal advice, not well meaning people who dont know the law. I dont either - but I know enough to know when to speak to a lawyer.

@saraclara sounds like it's the norm around there though so unlikely

This is completely the vendor’s fault. She was asked to confirm on a legal document that the land was vacant, and she lied. You have to sign stuff when you sell a house saying you understand that there are consequences for lying or withholding information. She made an active decision to do that, probably because she thought the time it would take to transfer ownership of the land to Barbara would lose her the sale.

There’s no way she would have thought that she had legally transferred ownership to Barbara already, her solicitor would have set her straight on that.

It's a piece of land the OP owns, not an official allotment.
But has it been described as amenity land?
In that case, not sure the shed should have been put up anyway.

Yes, I wouldn't give up an entire season to appease her. She has time to shift to container gardening or find another patch.

OP, any idea if Babs has a house with its own garden?

It only adds value if it doesn't come with a built in Barbara.

It will be interesting come July with your seller's whole family come to stay for the summer as "that's what we've always done".

Admittedly I don't know the law but surely you can't just work on and declare land as being yours because you've worked on it for 10 years? This would result in lots of squabbles?

Good luck with getting it sorted. I hope it goes better than you think right now and Babs goes quietly and quickly.

Not sure if it's been mentioned or if it would work but would the What3words app give you the GPS?

I kind of feel sorry for Barbara too as it's a shame for her but she's had free use of land for ten YEARS!! She's done pretty well out of it to have a sanctuary for free for a decade. She can't keep having it just because she loves it. Otherwise I'd be able to let myself into my old garden and go sit at the bottom and admire the view like I used to for ten years but it's not mine any more!

Ok I'm invested.

Firstly you need an estate agent out to give you a house value with and without the allotment, I think that may focus your minds.

Then back to the seller with this information, maybe she could provide you with a letter stating the plot should have been vacant (I suspect she will throw "Poor Barbara" under a bus when she realises the legal ramifications for misselling.

Then utilise your legal insurance cover to reclaim what is rightfully yours.

I'm cross on your behalf and your poor DH.

She's not a CF. She's an old lady who has cultivated some land and didn't realise she would be booted off. Take your land back- but don't be a dick about it.

Maybe Barbara is the type to play you at your own game?! Could be a hell of an allotment war. I'll look for you guys on the Daily Fail.

This is completely the vendor’s fault. She was asked to confirm on a legal document that the land was vacant, and she lied

Absolutely - but unfortunately her lies have now made this OP's problem

From a quick skim, it seems to only apply if they are a tenant. There are requirements that have to be met for something to be a tenancy, one of which is the payment of rent. From the OP’s description it sounds at most a licence. But regardless, the OP has already sought advice from her lawyer.

Another shameless place mark to see the outcome!

She's 60 years old. As a woman the same age, I dispute that Barbara is some sort of vulnerable "old lady."

Her words about fighting for it are off-putting.

I would disagree; the Allotments Act only applies:

"Where land is let on a tenancy for use by the tenant as an allotment garden or is let to any local authority or association for the purpose of being sub-let for such use..."

Allotments Act 1922, Section 1(1)

There is no indication at all that the previous owner entered into a landlord/tenant relationship with Babs. Babs was simply allowed to make use of the land without any sort of payment (either in cash or in kind eg veggies).

If Babs were to assert that she was a tenant with a verbal tenancy and that she paid the rent in veggies then all it would take would be a quick conversation with the seller to determine if that were true.

Also, if it were indeed true, then the OP would be in a very strong position to seek redress from the seller as this was not disclosed during the sale.

100%

We have no idea about her mental health, her physical health, her reasons for growing veg.

She said she treasures this space and has done for 10 years.

She may be using it to save money. She may be using it to stave off depression. She may well have friends there.

Yes the OP now legally owns the allotment but the way they’ve approached things is just to put a bomb under things.

Not classy negotiation. A complete lack of compassion also. Just shaking your fists.

Ah well. Enjoy your new neighbourhood!

@Vive42 completely agree.