To not contribute to private road fund

[RoadFundRefusenik]

We live on a council-owned road that can only be accessed by crossing a private road. When we first moved here, the committee that maintains the road used to send a letter explaining that although we aren't on the road they would appreciate if we would contribute to the fund. For ten years we have ignored these letters.

Last year the tone of the letter was more pushy and implied that our contribution was not optional. This year in addition to this year's charge they have said that last year's demand is still owing and if we don't pay they'll register it as a debt that may affect our credit rating.

In the past we have chosen not to pay because as we see it we live on a council road and pay our council tax to cover these things. In addition, for the first several years we chipped in with our neighbours to pay for a gardener to maintain a council-owned patch of land between our properties and the private road that the council never tends to. Now we take turns with our neighbours to mow it, rake the leaves, take care of the trees etc. As part of this we also clear leaves from the private road and cut back tree shoots that overgrow that road so we do contribute, just not financially. Some of our neighbours contribute and others don't.

So AWBU to continue to not contribute to the road fund? And do they legally have the right to threaten our credit rating over this?

Julie as Kitti implied, I think someone probably did pay a hefty sum when our properties were built. A short-sighted agreement the current owners probably regret. The someone who should be paying for upkeep is the council, by adopting the road, but I don't think the will to lobby for that is there among the private road residents. If the aesthetic of living on a private road is so important to them, that's their shout.

Ringle I know it's petty of me. I try to be generous of spirit but I'm flawed. And I prefer the personal safety of walking down a well-lit street to the aesthetic of a lamppost that looks nice (in the daytime), especially if I'm being asked to pay for it.

LB not in SE London.

Kitti curiouser and curiouser. Our private road neighbours get bin collection and all.

Right. Battery running low on phone and body. Off to recharge. I'll try to ring the council tomorrow and update if there's anything interesting. Thank you all for your different viewpoints and for not ripping me a new one. I was well nervous about posting in AIBU

I have worked in a Council Roads dept. There is no way they will adopt private roads in the current financial situation. Councils can’t afford to pay for upkeep to the roads they already have to legally maintain. In addition to that, there are all sorts of considerations regarding the type and depth of asphalt, any hard landscaping, drainage, lighting etc - essentially, is there anything fancy and out of the ordinary that will cost a shit-ton to maintain? Is the road safe - are sightlines etc clear? The road would have to be brought up to adoptable standard (ie, repaired properly and probably upgraded) for the council to even remotely consider taking it on (that was our standard response back before austerity kicked in - and like I say, now they would laugh at the idea of taking on anything new).

My dad is trying to organise a right of access through neighbouring fields/development so he can build houses in his field. The developer has told him that he wants something like 30% of the sale price for each house in return for access through his bit. This seems to be a standard type of contract. I suspect the posh house owners got paid a lot to allow access!

Hmmm interesting one!
I am obviously placemarking for updates!!

As long as some of your neighbours are not paying, I would not either.

I would write up a formal abrupt letter informing them of your council tax payments for the maintenance of your road. Then print it a few times and get the neighbours who don't want to pay to sign in and send it also

This thread reminds me of a similar case
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1383986/Homeowners-win-right-of-access-fight-with-council.html

Your diagram suggests that your house was built on land that was previously occupied by a much larger property. If the deeds say you have to contribute, then you must.

Oner person will own the road and other will have a ROW over it (or there is a public ROW). No one can be compelled to repair it unless the deeds provide. So if anyone with a ROW want to repair it they can, but they can't demand others contribute.

Just carry on as you are. You've had ten years to consider the issue and despite the amount not being onerous, in your words, you have never contributed, although you clearly do benefit. Some people will do what the law will compel them to do and absolutely nothing more. To them right, wrong, morals, ethics, decency are an irrelevance. You are obviously one of these. To use a clichéd phrase, 'own it' and move on.

I doubt very much there is a legal obligation to contribute or they probably would have gone down the legal route by now. If there were just a few houses on your road it wouldn't be that much of a problem for the private road householders. The wear and tear wouldn't be that big a deal. But there are about 100 households so we're talking pretty heavy usage. If the private road is anything like the ones I know, with relatively few houses on them, the burden of maintaining the road per house will be really heavy.

Unless you are stupid you would have worked this out yourself so it is clear to me that all talk of AIBU is just to make you seem less mercenary. What you really want to know is whether you can be compelled to pay, nothing more.

4)I checked the deeds and there's nothing specified about contributing to maintenance of the private road.

That's good, but it's not the same as saying you have actually use it.
If there is no specific clause to say you have access over someone else's property, then you haven't.

Your solicitor should have spotted this and advised you when you bought it.

I reckon your best bet is to check whether anyone in the other houses has been living there for 20 years and had continuous access.

if you don't like the decisions they make then you have a case for being on their committee. you could tell them you'll pay, but you want your opinions taken into account.

as someone who's bedroom has 3 different street lights shining into it, bright street lights are a feckin pain in the arse.

To all those posting about the unfairness of OP using the road but not contributing, it's worth bearing in mind that a property burdened with the responsibility of repairing the road will cost less to buy than one without such an obligation.

Also, unless local highways authority gets involved, there's nothing OP can do to force those responsible to repair the road.

That's what you get when you buy a property bordering a road that is a public highway (which is what I presume this road is).

What IS the benefit of living on a private road? Is it just the caché of a naice road? Are council taxes lower?

My mum lives on a private road of 5 houses that’s a dead end tucked away near the back of her village /town. No one else uses it so the 5 households pay into a pot for all of the upkeep of the road, wall, trees, greenery etc.

The only advantages I can see is that her road is actually nice and private as it’s not a right of way and the houses could throw a street party and drink in the street if they wanted (we’re in Scotland so no drinking in public allowed). They still haven’t thrown a street party though much to my disappointment.

If you use the road, why wouldn't you pay towards the upkeep? I can see why the residents are annoyed.

I wouldn't pay unless I had a legal liability to do so. I'm intrigued as to what arrangements were made between the developers, the highways authority and the owners of the properties in the private road though.

Cases like this make lawyers rich. When I started work at one LA, there was a case along these lines under way. It had already been going on for several years, earning it the nickname "Jarndyce v Jarndyce". When I left that job 10 years later, it was still going on! Two very big RoW/maintained highway cases had been started and finished in that time, but this case, which was about a 30' stretch of road, was still rumbling on.

This is such a simple black and white matter I’ve no idea why you’re posting.

Check your title deeds. You’re either legally obliged to pay or not.

I live up at the top of a very long private drive. There is a covenant in my deeds which says I have access and I need to pay a small mainenance fee. I do so happily. Just check your title deeds.

Enjoyable diagram op - professional.

Your using a private road, you have to pay for it. Why are you expecting other people to pay for your usage? Its called free-loading and gets my goat up. The owners should put a toll gate up and charge people to use the road.

If the owners gave right of access in exchange for a specified sum, fair enough. But if they didn't, why should the residents of the adjoining maintained roads pay money they don't have to?

People who live in "private" roads are presumably happy to pay for the cachet of doing so. Why should anyone else have to pay if they already have a right of way for free?

We once lived on a private lane that was owned by someone which had been passed down through the generations. The road was in a terrible state. One house tracked him down and he had no idea he owned it and refused to repair it. That was fun!

How much? Did op say?

This is a tricky one. There's a similar situation in our area with a private road that now provides access to over a hundred homes. The council refuse to adopt it, and half the home owners refuse to pay for up keep.

As a result, the road is now in a dire state, which means that the repair bill is now astronomical (over £100k). Of course, this means that many people on the road are now in the situation where they can't afford to contribute to the repair.

Meanwhile, the road just gets worse and worse. And the value of their homes slowly deteriorates because of the poor quality of access.

There's a danger with these matters that you can cut your nose off to spite your face. Contributing now might stave off a future situation where you face a huge bill for repair or a road that is frankly a disaster.

One house tracked him down and he had no idea he owned it and refused to repair it. That was fun!

With a private ROW unless the deeds specify the owner cannot be compelled to repair it, but may do so. Similarly those with the benefit of the ROW may repair it if they wish, but at their pwn cost.

Well, if your deeds don't say that you have to contribute then you probably don't. If the council aren't terribly helpful (I think some may be more helpful than others), it might be worth contacting the Citizens Advice Bureau.

Very good diagram OP - may you be an example to others! 😉
Seriously though, there is what is legally the situation (which your title deeds should clarify, I know you say they don't mention any contribution but do they say anything about access to your property?) and there is what is fair and reasonable.

In your original post you said you had to 'cross' a private bit of road which made it sound minor, in fact going by your diagram, virtually the entire length of access to your property is over this private road (which has to be maintained using private funds) Why on earth should you enjoy using a maintained road and not contribute to its upkeep? Your council tax is irrelevant - it doensn't go toward maintaining this road!

Of course the road committee are pissed off - they presumably are financially contributing while you are benefitting from their investment and time.

I detect a lot of inverse snobbery about the 'people in the big posh houses' who you seem to believe are there solely to facilitate you - you benefit from the use of the road therefor it is only fair you pay a (small) share towards it!

Agree with many previous posters. Firstly, look at your deeds. If you are responsible for the upkeep, it will say so. If you aren't, then there is no legal obligation and you would almost certainly get an easement....

BUT as others have said:

1. There is a long term benefit (and value to your property) of having the access maintained. There can be a large cost in it being poorly maintained in terms both of property prices and day to day damage to your car.
2. There is also a long term benefit on being on good terms with your neighbours. Things happen, things need sorting out. That's a hell of a lot easier if everyone thinks everyone else is a good egg. For example, one of our trees was leaning onto a bit of our neighbour's land. She was having work done on her land and dealt with it. The marginal cost to her was basically zero as she had the tree people out for two days and we are all on good terms. She would, however, have been well within her rights to have dealt with all her trees, left ours and insisted it was dealt with at our expense. If they are asking for a reasonable amount of money, then I would chip in, especially as you are actually making use of it. It's the polite thing to do and, quite possibly, a strategy which will work to your advantage in the long run....

If you use the road, why wouldn't you pay towards the upkeep?

Because one takes the view that whoever is legally obliged to pay for the road is also morally obliged to pay for it?

Surely if the people who are legally obliged to pay are trying to spread the cost by making unenforceable threats against others, they're the one's being immoral?

If no-one is legally obliged to pay for it, then that's a different kettle of fish.

I use public roads, I wouldn't send the council a cheque if they asked for a voluntary contribution to their road fund. I'd tell them that's not how important things are funded, and to raise the money properly according to law. The same logic should apply to a private road, if there already is someone with legal responsibility for maintaining it.