To ring my neighbour's doorbell every half hour

[Bellini81]

To make sure they are up? Back story is we have a house of "professionals" who live four doors along (no idea how many live there, but there is a few of them) and come the summer months they hold regular parties that spill into their back garden and keep us all awake, we knock when they wake our kids up but they are always so very pissed and it's like talking to a bunch toddlers when asking them to take the party indoors.

Last nights party went on till 3am, we went and knocked 4 plus more times before the noise settled down. I've got work today so I can't have a lie on go catch up on my sleep

Would I be unreasonable to go and ring their doorbell every half hour with a cheery smile to make sure they don't get to sleep off their hangover?

I've just lodged a complaint with the local council but I'm sitting here so tired and fed up.

Honestly, I think it's pretty childish to keep ringing the doorbell and walking off. It's bad enough to "ring and run" but to ring the bell then wait around for them to answer, you're just making yourself a target for their annoyance. It's one thing if you'd gone round first thing, rang the doorbell till someone answered and then wanted to have a discussion about the noise disturbance, but you've compromised any moral high ground you might have had for that conversation now by petty behaviour.

You keep going on about them getting a lie in, but after the first ring, the woman who answered the door was up, showered and apparently getting ready for work too, so your "spluttered" point that some people have to be up for work was one she was clearly aware as she was getting ready herself and all you were doing was interrupting her pre-work routine, not her sleep.

If you had time to go round there ringing the bell, you had more than enough time for a lie in - if it was the middle of the night and I was being kept awake by neighbours' parties, I'd be cancelling the early wake up and setting it to the latest possible time before I had to be at work. eg If I had to be at work at 10 - it takes 15 minutes to drive to work (including the stop off to drop DD off with whoever is watching her) and if necessary we can get from waking up to out of the door in less than 15 minutes (we shower in the evenings which helps too) so if I was still awake at 3am, that 7am alarm would have been cancelled and I'd have been setting the alarm for 9:15 at the earliest. Whilst it wouldn't have been the same as a proper night's sleep, two hours extra in bed would be much better use of time than 2 hrs traipsing up and down the road ringing doorbells.

I do like your style OP, but it is not without danger of escalation (have you seen the movie 'Bad Neighbours'?). I think I would get your other neighbours - who were also inconvenience by the noise - on side to take to these people too so that it doesn't look like you are one lone noise vigilante

'talk' not 'take'

I agree with others who have said find out if they rent - and if they do constantly complain to their landlord until something is done. I'd encourage your other neighbours to do the same if the noise bothers them too. Landlord will soon do something about it if he is getting constantly moaned at, and it avoids direct confrontation.

OP sorry to hear you're having this issue

I think you should talk with the other neighbours so next time there is a party a large group of you can go, either at the time or at 7am and really yell at them about how inconsiderate they are. Also tell the that you re collectively putting in complaints. Tell the council, in writing, that they are causing distress.

I completely understand why you are doing this but sadly the people you're dealing with can sleep through anything, go to work on no sleep, tons of drugs and alcohol so asking them to understand re no sleep won't get you far. If you can make them the subject of legal letters and generally make them social pariahs, do.

Also, if you get across the threshold can you hide a bag of prawns somewhere they won't find it?

No one should have to resort to this to get peace and quiet, I know, but the prawns are just to make you feel better.

I don't begrudge my neighbours having the odd party.

Yes, it's loud. Yes, it's annoying when your stuck listening but tbh if people want to relax have a few beers and make a bit of noise with some music every now & again I'll just suck it up and deal with it.

If it was a regular thing / once a week or more, I would feel differently.

God my neighbours attached, came back with a minibus full of people about 2 months ago and was up singing country western with some questionable guitar skills until the early hours. They're in their 40s, kids all grown and gone, both work.

I had to be up for a 15 hr working day but I just stuck some ear plugs in pulled the pillow up and fell asleep. Wouldn't dare dream of complaining to them for having a good time.

Thank goodness we have considerate neighbours. One of our neighbours down the street was having a party in the garden for their teenage daughter a few weeks ago. I arrived home the day before the party to find a note on my doormat explaining that the party would be taking place so there was likely to be some noise. There would be teenagers 'hanging around' but they would be told to be respectful of the neighbours and that the music would stop at 11.30pm. On the night of the party I noted that the music was cut dead at 11.30pm exactly (visions of teenager's mum/dad flicking the switch from the electric socket inside the house!) and all was fine. It is not difficult to be considerate of others.

OP these selfish neighbours of yours definitely need to learn a lesson about their behaviour. Do find out who their landlord is and persue it with the council.

I'm on the right path I think. I paid £3 for the land registry (thank you again for the link)
but all it had was two female names being the owners, no clues if it's rented out etc a google search of their names didn't bring up anything either.

Then I rang a local estate agent who lets properties in my area and they said they remembered going to view it (they thought) but they didn't end up letting it out, but he found out on zoopla for me a letting agent they think did, I tried looking for the same info but couldn't do that so I don't know where he found it?

I rang those agents but no one answered when I rang several times and they then shut at 3pm. So I'll try again Monday and chase up the local council too. I won't go back round there at all, I'll just keep going through the official channels.

Council won't care if a one off. They will tell you to keep a log. They may send a standard letter to them depending on where you are. If they have a decent LL you may get somewhere though. But, if their LL is an arsehole then you may not. A lot of LLs don't give 2 shiny shits unfortunately.

When I say LL I mean letting agency that manage the house.

Do not feel bad. They didn't care about disturbing you and you family and neighbours last night.

Would Environmental Health Dept help if they are producing too much noise (noise pollution)?

Are there laws about causing a disturbance in a residential area between certain hours? If there is you could call the police and log your complaint so you have an official record for the council.

Does your neighbourhood have a residence association? If the problem continues, it may be worth having one to 'fix' the issue.

Would they be on the electoral role, I think you can see it free online.

You could try posting a letter to the land registry named owners at the party address. When we rented we had to pass on mail for the landlord.

Are you 12?

Seriously?

Lets say you find the landlord now, and you tell him they are being noisy, and he rings the tenants:

"We've had a lady complaining about the noise you were making the other weekend"

"Is it Mrs X from so and so house? She's a bit unhinged, the other week she kept knocking on our door and just smiling at us asking how our evening was and not really seeming to want anything or to make conversation. She did it about 4 times in one morning. Its a bit creepy/weird."

"oh how strange. Try and avoid her then I guess and if it gets serious keep a log incase you need to go to police"

If they are unreasonable people, you've massively increased the chance that after a few beers they might consider doing the same to you, at 3am. If they are reasonable people, you've missed the chance to have a calm sober discussion with them. Because if I was them next time you or your husband came round I'd shut the door in your face.

Also you were still at home at 9:30, so the earliest you started work is like 10 and it looks like you were done before 3? Not exactly a day down the coal mines.

Obviously it was unreasonable of them to keep you up till 3 but you sound like such a martyr.

YANBU and while you are on the phone to the council ask them at what time you are allowed to start mowing your lawn of a morning. Notify all the other neighbors and then the whole street should go out mowing, grass blowing, and doing noisy car maintenance at the earliest time in the morning you are legally allowed to. Mowing should take at least an hour or so.

Whatsinausername10 Last night's party causing a disturbance and keeping everyone awake until 3am was not a one of. It has happened before more than once before. They were nit sober, they were hungover so no point having a reasonable discussion with them.

The op is not being a martyr. She has children who couldn't sleep/were woken up and she had to work today for whatever length of time. The op has been very reserved. I would be hiring a Kango not ringing doorbells (their ears might bexpect ringing though). They'd be getting the message loud and clear.

You're far more considerate than me, OP. I'd have thrown a load of firecrackers through their letterbox at half hourly intervals.

Also you were still at home at 9:30, so the earliest you started work is like 10 and it looks like you were done before 3? Not exactly a day down the coal mines.

Bit unfair, my job is manual and if I had to do 4 or 5 hours of it on next to no sleep I would be pretty pissed off.
When I lived next to noisy people I wish I had had the gall to ring the doorbell early on.

Op you need 2 things here. A mini battery vacuum with a blow setting. And a tub of powdered glitter/talcum powder/flour. Fill Compartment with hard to clean up, yet harmless substance, stick nozzle through window or letterbox, switch to blow and cackle insanely as you press the button. When arrested, plead hormonal imbalance and sleep deprivation.

The Op does not need to be having a bad time from anyone on here. She isn't the nuisance neighbour! Op, as someone who has had way more than my fair share of absolutely awful neighbours - I salute you!!

I wasn't done by 3 at work, we have these amazing things called a computer and phone at work and I was able to use them in my break, shocking I know. But I'll hop down a coal mine for 12 hours if it pleases you

You could put up a notice on nearby bus stops 'Free beds and furniture being given away due to moving house. All nearly new condition. Local pick up only. Sunday morning 07.00-10.30am. Address xxxx"
See the people arrive and knock on their door nice and early on a Sunday morning

Dominithecat
So what if op had only done those hours? My old job i was on my feet all day. If id had no sleep id have been exhausted, even those hours!
When you've had no sleep work is a killer!
Ignore op

don't go round though, they're not going to care about keeping people up, they're inconsiderate twats.
You'll simply look like you're harassing them.
Chase up the council.
Keep a diary of everything, every single noise.
Hopefully they'll be evicted.