Is my neighbour BU? Noise complaint!!

[Sweetheartyparty76]

Hi,
We a couple in our early 40's with an 8 month old DD. Almost 2 years ago we moved into a bungalow on a quiet, fairly upmarket all bungalow cul-de-sac. The vast majority of the inhabitants are 50+ and our direct neighbours are about 50-60.
I'm currently on ML but my partner works shifts so sometimes leaves at 5am (this may be relevant).
Yesterday we received a letter from the council stating that they have had a noise complaint report on 28th June and the claimant is keeping a record of noise disturbances and perhaps using an app.
That day my DH was on the early shift so worked from 5.30am to 5.30pm leaving at 5am. I was with my DD all day in the house as the weather was rubbish. We don't have parties obviously and our DD has her bedtime at 7pm so we're as quiet as mice after this. During the day we don't make an unreasonable noises. We have a dog but he very, very rarely barks.
I can only think that the complaint came from our nearest neighbours. My DH doesn't have a very good relationship with them and they have been mutually ignoring each other whereas I've been staying civil.
Not long after we moved in, they asked us not to park on our drive when DH is on earlies as it wakes them up (their bedroom window is a few feet away from our drive). They also asked us to stop using our gate as that is also next to their window. We politely declined to move our car but we stopped using the gate as much. Relations soured completely a year ago when we installed a fence a few feet higher than the original to give our garden some privacy. They came out and started shouting that although it was discussed they never agreed to it. The new fence was built on our land and the original still marks out the boundary.
That's it really. There is no proof that they were the ones who made the complaint but I can't imagine who else it could be. We are just a normalish family, how much noise can me make with a young baby? It all so ludicrous

Why should they move their own car out of their own driveway? Would you? Of course you wouldn't.

Why wouldn't I?

Makes no difference to me and if it means i won't be disturbing other people then yes, I would.
Why wouldn't you?

how do you know you wont be disturbing just a different set of people? what is the point in a drive if other people dictate when you can and cant use it?

Oh for goodness sake. No they shouldn't move their car off their drive!!! Is that really all some people have to worry about. Neighbours are

AndTakeYourHorseWithYou
I'm with you.
If you don't want to live near somebody who puts a car on their drive then live somewhere not near other people.

It's all a bit "you can't use the gate, don't put your car on the drive, you can drive but don't go anywhere between certain hours"

Put it this way, if in a relationship somebody said 'don't use that door, you can't put that belonging in that place, you can only come and go at certain times' we'd get cries of LTB because it's nuts.

Not only that but my insurance asks where I keep my vehicle overnight. I've put on the drive. I'm not putting question marks on my insurance because someone who chose to live near other people doesn't like other people.

For car insurance purposes having your car parked on your driveway usually leads to a lower premium than having a car parked by the roadside.

Should OP and DH absorbing higher car insurance really be seen as a fair compromise?

Maybe it's just me, but you can get used to 'regular' noise. We live out in the country, but there are train tracks that run probably 100 yards from our house on the edge of the property. There is a 'regular' 3.40am train and there is a requirement for them to toot their horn 4 times before the crossing. It woke us up for the first few weeks but now we don't hear it at all as our subconscious minds apparently know it's a 'normal' noise and it doesn't wake us up. Of course, if we wanted to be upset about it or create an 'issue' I'm sure we'd still be waking up.

Not to say your DH shouldn't be as quiet as possible, but unless he revs his engine, slams the car door, or turns the radio up your neighbours should be accustomed to it by now.

I am massively misophonic

but as long as your DH is just using the car normally - i.e. starting it, not revving engine, not banging doors etc - they are being mad. They cannot tell you not to use your driveway.

is he just, well, driving? I can hear people sneezing in the next town when I've got my ear plugs in but I don't make noise complaints unless someone's really doing something exceptionally stupid.

this is honestly the first time I've ever found myself defending the noise of ordinary life btw!!

also, he could move his car but where to, and who else might he disturb?

we used to have a rubbish collection at 6am, I wonder how they'd deal with that!

Whose house do they suggest the car should be parked outside of, OP?

Makes no difference to me and if it means i won't be disturbing other people then yes, I would

Sure you would. If I told you I worked nights and could you please not make any noise at 8.30am and put your car on the road and don't use your gate and close your door quietly.....you'd say sure thing, anything else?
You would in your arse.

PS also in the "things often aren't about what people say they are about" - why do they care they can't see your garden? Is the fence blocking their light in some way? Garden fences have height restrictions so as long as you are within those it's fine.

^Makes no difference to me and if it means i won't be disturbing other people then yes, I would.
Why wouldn't you?^

Where I live it'd be another couple of hundred on my car insurance for a start, plus increased risk of bits getting knocked off as other cars go by, inconvenience for me as I've often stopped at the shop on the way home with shopping etc.

Why don't the neighbours move to a different room? I've often heard that suggested as a solution to people with crying babies - if mums net can expect a parent to re-arrange their house so a baby doesn't cry next to a neighbours wall, they can certainly suggest that some neighbours move their bedroom so that someone can use their drive and go to work in the morning!

Why wouldn't you move your car on the days your husband is on early shifts? I appreciate that you are doing nothing unlawful, but would it hurt to leave the car somewhere else those days?

I actually use public transport and make no noise whatsoever in the morning.

Sorry you seem so upset, Horse, i definitely didn't mean to upset you.

Horse raises a decent point.
Would the neighbour be willing to not use their drive, or gates, or mow the lawn or do any usual life things at 9am if someone next door was on the night shift so was sleeping?
Course they wouldn't.

Those type of neighbours are only interested in their own little bubble and bossing others around.

The way the council have to respond to every complaint is ridiculous.

I've had a letter too for playing 'loud and excessive music' when I rang up they had been told it was every day, daily without fail!

Nevermind the fact we both work 12 hour shifts 4 days a week each so music daily is impossible. I'd play music on the stereo maybe once a week or twice if we had people round. Never THAT loud unless we had a bbq (we've had 3 this year). But even then it's done and dusted by 6 because of the kids.

And neighbours on BOTH sides play very loud music / play musical instruments. I wouldn't dream of complaining.

It's ridiculous, it really winds me up.

Anyway!! The lady at the council told me it's just protocol they have to follow up each and every complaint and nothing really happens from here unless they get another complaint. After that idk, sound equipment and stuff I guess.

But the fact people can complain about anything (and lie!) which in turn puts you at risk of losing your home or a fine, I think it's horrible. I had sleepless nights that weekend until I could ring the lady I was so worried.

There are lots of things wrong about dealing with noise nuisance but unfortunately its the system we have.

there are invariably "experts" who tell you to ignore the letter, that there are times you can or cant make a noise, that if its ordinary noise from a household it cant be a nuisance but this isn't the case.

when dealing with a complaint you take into account the level of noise, the frequency, the time of day and the background noise levels. so a noise in the middle of the countryside at 11pm at night might be a stat noise nuisance but the same noise at the same time in the middle of soho might not be because the background level is so significantly higher.

of course people can lie but the person taking the complaint doesn't know this. that's why its so important to make contact once you receive the letter and explain what the situation really is.

and yes, I think if there is a noise complaint - either one you formally make about your neighbour or one that they formally make about you the sellers information forms say something like "complaints in the last 5 years". that's why I always advise people on this forum to try and resolve a complaint informally first because of this implication.

the problem with noise nuisance is that everyone wants it to fit into a neat box with noise levels and times etc but it just doesn't.

I have prosecuted people for a whole host of different noises including noise from caged birds in an aviary, barking dogs, a water fountain etc. The only one that I suppose is a bit of a sacred cow is the noise of children playing but believe me over the 20 years I worked in this field I must have dealt with 200+ complaints of the noise of children playing in the street or in the garden.

Thanks for your responses.
To add, our drive is concrete and as far as I am aware he doesn't rev the engine. However we live on quite a steep slope so that could generate more noise. Also, it's not every day. It's 4 morning's out of 10 although it's 4 in every 8 in the summer months.
To answer Chadonnay's points, I can see their point. The street is very narrow and quiet so it would probably upset others down the road. We would also have to declare it on our insurance which would increase premiums. The bungalows are all individually designed so why should we suffer because there bungalow is poorly designed.

Have a big fuck off all night party, show them what they could be living next to. After that a car door opening and closing won't seem so bad. Honestly, this has to be the most ridiculous neighbour complaint I've heard of. I live in a street of taxi drivers and boy racers, cars coming and going are just part of living , well anywhere other than very rurally. If they complain again I'd post some earplugs through the door.

Thank you for you advice Mummy, we will ring the council tomorrow and invite them round.
I've just learned that he used to work for the council so I hope that doesn't colour the case x

Sweaty "However we live on quite a steep slope so that could generate more noise. "

this sounds like my parents' street. But their neighbour goes to work at 5. I have to stay over sometimes to look after mum, I don't consider a car departing over a slope to be anything other than an ordinary noise.

bizarre. Good luck, let us know what happens.

Yanbu! Hope all goes well with the council
:)

Honestly, it's them not you .... unless your husband is doing over the top revving and skids etc to make purposeful noise! They need some ear plugs!

Just ring the named EHO and tell them it's a vexatious complaint. Theyre still duty bound to investigate so it won't halt the investigation but you can keep your own records (which may help
this case) and if the complainer persists you have evidence for harassment.

Ignore them. I assume the driveway was there when they bought there bungalow and they were aware of its location in relation to their bedroom? We can't all work 9-5, they're being unreasonable. They can use earplugs