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Original poster

Forced to pay for neighbour's blown down fence

89 replies

Tarr · 10/03/2019 09:54

Earlier this morning I went over to my neighbour's house to discuss their fence which has blown down during the night. It runs along the length of my back garden. I know they own it as they only recently had it tended to. Thought it would be a straight forward conversation- I'm not really bothered as my elderly dog can be supervised closely. However, neighbour says I need to contribute to fixing it due to allowing some ivy to have overgrown which has compromised the "integrity of the fence". Is my neighbour trying it on with someone he hopes is young enough to fall for it? If I have messed up I will hold my hands up.

I have a long commute into London so don't prioritise gardening in the Winter. I normally pay for gardeners in summer, whereas my neighbour is retired and obsessed with his garden.

I was very friendly but my neighbour was very abrasive and quite frankly rude.

OP posts:
DontCallMeShitley · 10/03/2019 11:36

My neighbour let ivy grow to such an extent it broke the slats on the fence and it began to fall apart, bits blowing off, ivy can get heavy and push a fence over.

We don't know who owns the fences, there is no record of it, so we share the costs but I did explain that if the rest of the ivy wasn't kept in check the rest of the fence would fall into our garden. The problem is that when there is thick ivy on one side it looks fine, but the person on the other side of it might have the fence falling into their garden, like ours, it just leans over.

It might be weakened by ivy or not, and if the original ivy roots are on your side and none on theirs you might be better off sharing the cost and digging the ivy out.

JinglingHellsBells · 10/03/2019 11:38

The thing is, any overgrowing vegetation ought to be mentioned and dealt with long before there is damage.

runoutofnamechanges · 10/03/2019 11:39

There is a decent amount of ivy
due to allowing some ivy to have overgrown

Then probably he is right, the ivy is responsible. Ivy is very destructive. Is the panel completely covered in ivy? If it is, it most likely has damaged the panel itself (from the aerial roots) and the weight will be pulling it away from the fence posts. I have a lot of ivy in my garden and I have had it pull down (my own) fence panels several times. As PPs have said, legally you shouldn't be growing anything on the fence if it is his.

If the panel itself is damaged (split etc), then that almost definitely will be caused by the ivy and you should replace it. You will be able to see if stems/roots are going into the wood/gaps. If it has just fallen down, then it will probably be 90% down to the weight of the ivy too, 10% the wind.

Jam82 · 10/03/2019 11:46

We recently renovated our garden and asked our neighbour at the back if they’d be ok with us replacing some fence panels. They’re her fence panels, but our large rockery and loads of ivy had been up against the fence for years and when we removed it we saw the fence was completely rotten underneath. It looked awful from our aide but fine from hers. We asked if we could replace it and us pay for it as:

  • it was us not maintaining it from our side that had damaged the fence
  • the fence looked fine from her side

She said she would replace it and we didn’t need to pay as it’s her fence. She was very funny about it and wouldn’t accept any money. In the end I had to put money in an envelope through her door when she was out. She’s retired and I would have felt like we were taking advantage as yes it’s her fence, her responsibility, but it was our actions that caused it to need replacing.

If I were you I’d pay half if you can afford it, just to keep up good relations with your neighbour x

Itwouldtakemuchmorethanthis · 10/03/2019 11:48

I agree retract your offer or you are setting a precedent. Tell him you’ve “taken advice” and leave him to fix his own blasted fence. Should he become angry suggest that he should consider paying for the damage HIS fence has done to your garden and stop being ridiculous.

Jam82 · 10/03/2019 11:50

I’ve just remembered our neighbours on the other side went half’s with us when we replaced that fence that was our responsibility too. It seems to be pretty standard where we are

EleanorRigbey · 10/03/2019 11:53

Do you want a fence there? If so, either put up your own fence or contribute to your neighbors fence. You were probably well intended when calling to your neighbor this morning but to be fair to him he was probably still annoyed that the fence had blown down in the first place.

WhatToDoAboutWailmerGoneRogue · 10/03/2019 11:55

It was absolutely unacceptable of you to go round so early and so soon after it had happened, regardless of when you thought he was up.

You clearly are bothered about it despite your protestations as if you weren’t you wouldn’t have gone round.

Your ivy has contributed to the destruction of his fence, so yes, you should contribute to it being fixed.

Dippypippy1980 · 10/03/2019 11:59

Last year my fence blew down - I have to say I would have very annoyed of my neighbour had arrived at 9:30am to see what I was going to do about it😊.

You might have annoyed him and he lashed out with the ivy. It can rot a fence, my neighbours ivy is a big problem with my fence and I spend ages every summer pulling bits off.

Movinghouseatlast · 10/03/2019 12:00

Have a look on the gov.uk website for the law on fences. It is very clear.

Legally you are not supposed to grow or attach anything to someone else's fence (or wall) Of course in practice, people do this all the time. However, someone can ask you not to grow plants up their fence and legally you have to comply.

In order to get the money for the fence from you he really does have to prove the damage was caused by the ivy. In court this would mean providing a surveyors report or expert witness.

Fences cause a lot of problems with neighbours. I am moving house because of a stupid fucking fence.

Have a look on the garden law website as well.

TwoRoundabouts · 10/03/2019 12:02

One of my brothers' contributed to a neighbour's fence years ago in cash. The neighbours about 8 years later replaced the fence and my brother contributed nothing. The neighbours didn't ask.

If you give a contribution do it in cash and say clearly it is to maintain good relations as I am not liable in anyway for your fence. Then do as PPs said about not growing things on, right next to or attaching items to the fence.

Original poster
Tarr · 10/03/2019 12:03

My beautiful daffodils are currently under his fence so I didn't want him to worry/stress over it- what my own dad would do work himself into a bit of a state.

(very embarrassed of that image)

Forced to pay for neighbour's blown down fence
OP posts:
TwitterQueen1 · 10/03/2019 12:05

Nobody is forcing you to do anything. Just say 'No'.
My neighbour said the ivy growing up his fence (on my side) was keeping it up!
We don't share costs - it could potentially lead to more trouble! eg "well old neighbour paid half last time...." do you pay for half of one panel or the whole fence?
"You've got ivy." "Well your shrub is pushing it." "It wasn't put up properly."

The whole point of ownership is to do away with all the arguments!

John470322 · 10/03/2019 12:09

Why not phone your insurance company and tell them your neighbour will be claiming against them. They will quickly check if they need to pay.

Original poster
Tarr · 10/03/2019 12:09

I'm just offering as I'm quite honestly clueless. The few people I asked in RL (e.g brother, architect ex who used to live here) have told me to ignore him.

OP posts:
JinglingHellsBells · 10/03/2019 12:13

Why not phone your insurance company and tell them your neighbour will be claiming against them.

it's highly unlikely that a fence is covered by insurance.

I had cause to call our home insurance company today - not about fences- and, owing to the weather I assume- they have a recorded message saying do not expect to be paid for your fences if they have blown down as they do not insure fences.

Dippypippy1980 · 10/03/2019 12:13

Fences usually aren’t covered in house incurance.

JinglingHellsBells · 10/03/2019 12:14

Ignore him.

He'd have to prove your shrub did damage- that would cost him a civil court. he's not going to do that. he ought to have spoken sooner so you had a chance to rectify it. If he is such a keen gardener he ought to have foreseen this damage coming, if it is your ivy.

diddl · 10/03/2019 12:17

He's not necessarily trying it on at all.

If you don't want to share costs with him tjough you could always put up your own fence...

PersonaNonGarter · 10/03/2019 12:19

You sound a very nice neighbour (which is basically your first problem as well as the solution).

You don’t need to pay for the fence if you don’t own it.

Were the fence standing, you would need to pay for any damage the ivy did to the fence.

In this case, that is moot since the damage was done by the wind (?). However, if you believe the ivy damaged the fence enough to bring the fence down in the wind, you need to pay for that % of damage.

Frankly, the ivy issue seems complete bullshit and your neighbour is a grump.

Chocolatedeficitdisorder · 10/03/2019 12:49

Legally, nobody has to have a fence - a piece of string would do the job of marking the boundary.

Fences tend to be paid for by those who want them most.

CantStopMeNow · 10/03/2019 18:53

Neighbour had the whole thing taken down at the beginning of Summer and had it straightened/reinforced
So HE had no issue with the ivy at that time and knew that it DID NOT contribute to any problems with his fence.

If you're 'clueless' enough to pay him even a penny he will use that as an admission of guilt and accountability on your part - which leaves the door open for him to go after you for more.

Ignore him and don't play the 'clueless' game when you know none of this is your fault/responsibility.

SynchroSwimmer · 10/03/2019 20:45

I would suggest being nonchalant and saying you actually quite like the new open aspect....and you actually aren”t bothered about having a fence.

Willing to bet they soon deal with it!

PestyMachtubernahme · 10/03/2019 20:51

If you want a fence covered by insurance, go to M&S,

If I had had a neighbour come to my house at 9.30 this morning (mid storm) they would have been categorised into the fecking bonkers group.

Cherrysoup · 10/03/2019 20:57

There’s no way the ivy wrecked the fence between last summer and now. We put up trellis last summer to cover a gap in the fence and trailed ivy over it, it’s still bloody empty! Nothing grew last summer, everything died. If he took down the fence and renovated it, it’s probably the work that’s done for it if he didn’t replace the posts. Do not offer to pay. What else will he ask you to pay for next? Retract any offer you may have already made.

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