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Neighbour using radio to harass us

135 replies

Bigpaintinglittlepainting · 26/01/2025 19:41

I'm going to preface this with that I know he is doing it to annoy us, the context is that we got cats this year and he hates them so much he shot at them with his shot gun. Police were involved and he hasn't shot his gun again (cats have stayed inside mostly and one occasionally goes out at night)

Since I reported him to the police he has put his radio on 8am-7pm every day and varying different levels. This doesn't sound that bad but I can hear it all through the house as he's put the speaker on the brick fireplace.

We live in a very quiet hamlet and you would expect peace and quiet here, it's just so upsetting. I thought it would be a lovely place to live and it's been awful.

I've reported to environmental health and I'm currently doing a diary, police spoke to him about harassment the other day and no change in the noise.

I'm sick to death of it, I was looking at other houses but the children don't want to move again, this was supposed to be our final move.

I actually hate him so much and it's really ridiculous, I know he's a massive misogynist and had bullied the lady next door to me. He has a history. I am going to ask the police again about how much the can do as they have somewhat accepted he is harassing me by doing this, I just feel helpless.

I am going to get someone in to soundproof the kitchen but as it's very bassey I'm not sure it will solve the issue.
Not sure why I'm typing this is just making me so stressed the incident with gun was last June so it's been going on so long.

OP posts:
TishHope · 27/01/2025 14:04

Just to say, many years ago I took out a very large loan and had soundproofing installed when I had my neighbours from hell. After reading the reviews of the company, I thought that I would be in blissful silence.

Reader, the noise from neighbours was as bad (to me) after soundproofing as it had been before. The soundproofing company came back at my request and took measurements of the volume of racket coming from neighbours and they pronounced that the decibel level had decreased, therefore the soundproofing had worked. Apparently, so long as there is some reduction in volume, it is deemed to be a successful installation. Maybe I was unlucky but in my case it was a waste of money. I would not recommend soundproofing.

DrNo007 · 27/01/2025 14:11

OP it’s been said before on this thread but DO NOT under any circumstances make ‘revenge noise’. If you do, your complaint to the council will be compromised and it could turn into a case against you. And your neighbour could even take you to court. I have been in your situation with vile noisy neighbours and the way to go is:

  1. council. If that works, great. If not, then
  2. Firm called Sanctum Consultants will give you inexpensive and effective advice on what to do next. It worked for me. They have a website.
eqpi4t2hbsnktd · 27/01/2025 14:24

Cradle of Filth...

Bigpaintinglittlepainting · 27/01/2025 14:33

DrNo007 · 27/01/2025 14:11

OP it’s been said before on this thread but DO NOT under any circumstances make ‘revenge noise’. If you do, your complaint to the council will be compromised and it could turn into a case against you. And your neighbour could even take you to court. I have been in your situation with vile noisy neighbours and the way to go is:

  1. council. If that works, great. If not, then
  2. Firm called Sanctum Consultants will give you inexpensive and effective advice on what to do next. It worked for me. They have a website.

Thank you I appreciate this advice so much

OP posts:
Lovelycupofcoffee · 27/01/2025 14:39

Put a loud porno movie on and then go out for the day 😂😂😂😂

ChonkyRabbit · 27/01/2025 14:44

Honestly, do whatever it takes to move. Neighbour wars are exhausting and, if you go down the legal route, hugely expensive.

There's only ever one party who wins and that's the lawyers.

Mum5net · 27/01/2025 14:46

Bigpaintinglittlepainting · 26/01/2025 19:45

I think he's a danger to women, I'm glad I reported him to the police so he's on their radar, but let's be honest until he shoots me they won't admit he's dangerous

I spat my drink out when I read this. OP, you are so right.
Have you a Ring doorbell or some sort of security camera beyond the measures to record him. He will definitely overstep,

imjusthereforAIBU · 27/01/2025 14:48

We used to have a neighbour who when we had a newborn, would bang on the wall every night when the baby cried.

I was obviously already trying to stop the baby crying - not just for the neighbours sake, but our own. But banging on the wall next to the babies room obviously always really helped the baby calm down. If during the day the baby cried, the neighbour would bang on the wall and whack up her music loud. And if we used our garden, the neighbour would be outside without fail mowing her lawn or playing loud music. She was just a nasty bitch.

One night, after months of this behaviour, when the wall banging started again after our baby had cried once (yes literally once!), my husband took a piece of wood and a hammer. He put the wood against the party wall and bashed it with the hammer repeatedly for about 5 mins.

Surprisingly she never did bang on the wall again.....

I do hope you get it sorted OP and that Environmental Health can help. Your neighbour sounds like a genuine terror. He can be served with an ASBO if the right evidence can be collected by EH and the police.

Fraaances · 27/01/2025 14:52

On YouTube there is a 24hr long version of “Pink Fluffy Unicorns Dancing on Rainbows.” (That’s literally it, set to music - on repeat.)
Not suggesting you do anything with it, but just knowing it’s there might offer you comfort.

BettyBardMacDonald · 27/01/2025 14:56

Obviously he's an arsehole, but I have to say, people's cats in my garden give me the rage, too.

You can't exactly claim the moral high ground if your pets are invading a neighbour's private property.

mossylog · 27/01/2025 14:57

We haven't shown anything at all to him, just reported him

I know he's an ass, but have you actually asked him politely to not play the radio so loud all day? That would have been my first move.

mossylog · 27/01/2025 15:01

BettyBardMacDonald · 27/01/2025 14:56

Obviously he's an arsehole, but I have to say, people's cats in my garden give me the rage, too.

You can't exactly claim the moral high ground if your pets are invading a neighbour's private property.

I don't understand how someone can get mad about something so normal. There have been free-roaming cats in every neighbourhood in this country since before you were born. This is like getting annoyed by pigeons or the rain.

Ttcpph · 27/01/2025 15:17

OP your neighbour sounds awful and I have no advice re resolving the loud music.

re the cats @mossylog im guessing you're a cat owner? I have a dog, and a fully enclosed garden. That doesn't stop cats climbing over the fence, shtting in the garden and my dog eating it. Then coming in, chewing on his toys and then there's cat shit everywhere. So, it is incredibly frustrating to have cats coming in to my garden. They never sht in their own gardens, always other peoples.

I do feel I should be able to let me dog out in our fully enclosed garden without the worry of him eating cat crap. It makes him ill and it's also a health hazard due to toxoplasmosis. I'm currently pregnant so even more of a worry.

it wouldn't be acceptable if I let my dog crap in people's front gardens and didn't clear it up, yet it's somehow ok re cats?

don't mean to hijack the post, but just trying to explain OP, How perhaps the cats are really causing a problem for him. His reaction is obviously completely out of proportion and unhinged.

TheRadiatorLady · 27/01/2025 15:19

Ttcpph · 27/01/2025 15:17

OP your neighbour sounds awful and I have no advice re resolving the loud music.

re the cats @mossylog im guessing you're a cat owner? I have a dog, and a fully enclosed garden. That doesn't stop cats climbing over the fence, shtting in the garden and my dog eating it. Then coming in, chewing on his toys and then there's cat shit everywhere. So, it is incredibly frustrating to have cats coming in to my garden. They never sht in their own gardens, always other peoples.

I do feel I should be able to let me dog out in our fully enclosed garden without the worry of him eating cat crap. It makes him ill and it's also a health hazard due to toxoplasmosis. I'm currently pregnant so even more of a worry.

it wouldn't be acceptable if I let my dog crap in people's front gardens and didn't clear it up, yet it's somehow ok re cats?

don't mean to hijack the post, but just trying to explain OP, How perhaps the cats are really causing a problem for him. His reaction is obviously completely out of proportion and unhinged.

Yes, I love cats, but there's one here that does all of the above, plus has taken out one dog's eye and seriously injured another. I don't know what the answer is because cats have the right to roam, but I can see how some people get annoyed. I have to supervise my dog in the garden every second she's out there now.

Obviously, none of this makes it alright to shoot at an innocent animal or terrorise your neighbours!

Kokomjolk · 27/01/2025 15:21

BettyBardMacDonald · 27/01/2025 14:56

Obviously he's an arsehole, but I have to say, people's cats in my garden give me the rage, too.

You can't exactly claim the moral high ground if your pets are invading a neighbour's private property.

She absolutely can claim the moral high ground over someone who fired a shotgun at a pet.

BettyBardMacDonald · 27/01/2025 15:27

Cats are not part of nature; they are domesticated animals that are very destructive when allowed to be outdoors unsupervised.

In my opinion it is long past time to end the right to roam. Indoors cats or those walked on leads, or with catio enclosures , can have perfectly healthy lives. And don't get run over by cars.

Read the statistics here about how environmental destructive they are:

www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/aug/14/cats-kill-birds-wildlife-keep-indoors

Again, I don't condone the neighbours actions but I understand the umbrage. Legal or not, letting one's pets invade others' property is an antisocial and enraging thing to do.

mathanxiety · 27/01/2025 15:40

2dogsandabudgie · 26/01/2025 21:17

How could he lie about the gun. If you reported him to the police for firing a shotgun at your cat they would have asked to see his shotgun licence and they would have a record on their computer of the guns he owns.

If he didn't have a license, he could easily have denied owning a gun. The only way to prove he shot at the cat would be to find a spent shell in his house or his garden or to find the bullet that missed the cat and match it to the gun it was fired from. They would need a warrant to search his property for the gun and the bullet and any other evidence connected to the gun.

mathanxiety · 27/01/2025 15:45

Ophy83 · 26/01/2025 22:12

I would instruct a solicitor to write a letter before action telling him that if the nuisance/harassment doesn't stop you will be asking the court to make an injunction

Definitely do this.

Also, contact your MP and your local councillor.

heyhopotato · 27/01/2025 16:17

You should be able to buy a small radio jammer to interrupt the signal.

Springflowersmakeforbetterhours · 27/01/2025 16:27

Sadly given he worked for the council you won't get anywhere ime.
Our council were corrupt twats. I am on sleeping tablets because of an ex council employee.. We moved recently... I hope he dies a sad and lonely death when his time comes...

oakleaffy · 27/01/2025 16:34

@Bigpaintinglittlepainting
Rammstein Du Hast
👍

oakleaffy · 27/01/2025 16:42

heyhopotato · 27/01/2025 16:17

You should be able to buy a small radio jammer to interrupt the signal.

Would that work for DAB? And the non dab 📻?

selffellatingouroborosofhate · 27/01/2025 16:55

mathanxiety · 27/01/2025 15:40

If he didn't have a license, he could easily have denied owning a gun. The only way to prove he shot at the cat would be to find a spent shell in his house or his garden or to find the bullet that missed the cat and match it to the gun it was fired from. They would need a warrant to search his property for the gun and the bullet and any other evidence connected to the gun.

Shotguns don't fire bullets. They fire shot, which is lots of little bits, or else slugs.

Flossflower · 27/01/2025 16:59

BettyBardMacDonald · 27/01/2025 14:56

Obviously he's an arsehole, but I have to say, people's cats in my garden give me the rage, too.

You can't exactly claim the moral high ground if your pets are invading a neighbour's private property.

They give me the rage too but I just go out with the super soaker.

selffellatingouroborosofhate · 27/01/2025 17:02

Flossflower · 27/01/2025 16:59

They give me the rage too but I just go out with the super soaker.

I am more than happy for people to use water and other harmless deterrents to keep CatOfHate off their lawns. I have myself used a bucket of water to break up fights between cats to prevent bite injuries.

Shooting at an animal that isn't either vermin or food is not on, even if it has wandered into your garden.

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