Hi all, just wanted your advice about my downstairs and a noise complaint. I’ll try to keep it as short as pos.
Our flats are made out of two converted houses. There is one door to the two downstairs flats, then next to that there is a door with the stairs leading up to the two upstairs flats. I live in an upstairs flat.
A couple of months ago a notice appeared in our hallway asking neighbours to please be quiet and considerate late at night. Fair enough I thought, but I went downstairs to ask my two downstairs neighbours what the problem was and if it was anything I’ve been doing. One set weren’t in, but the other set, directly under me said that it was them who’d put up the notice.
They said that the kids, next door’s and mine were banging about on the stairs, which is true. The evening before I’d kicked them both outside because they were messing around. They also said that they were being disturbed by a washing machine and a tumble drier late at night. I never do washing late, but sometimes my drier goes on quite late as it takes ages if there’s a big load. We agreed that I would have it on no later than 10pm, which I have stuck to.
Over the last few weeks my downstairs neighbours have been loudly banging on their ceiling, my floor, late at night. DS has been in bed and I have had the radio on quietly while looking at my phone. Sometimes I haven’t had the radio on at all, it’s been all quiet. Yesterday they woke me up at 6am banging.
Anyway, today I was making my lunch and the door buzzer went. There were two people from the council saying that they were here about a noise complaint. Apparently it was a washing machine or a drier late at night. I told them it couldn’t have been me because as I’ve already said, I don’t use my washer late, and the drier goes off at 10am as agreed.I told them that I’d had a chat with downstairs and we’d made an agreement that I’d stuck to so whatever they were hearing wasn’t coming from my flat.
I went downstairs this afternoon to talk to the woman who lives downstairs and she was insistant that it’s a washing machine and a tumble drier. I told her it wasn’t me as I’d stuck to the agreement I’d made with her DH about switching it off at 10pm. I told her next time they hear the noise to knock on the door and they can listen to the noise in my flat. She just shrugged and said she’d have to talk to her DH.
What should I do about this? Should I do anything about it? I have both conversations on voice recording, the one where the agreement was made and the one today. Is there anything I should do to cover my arse if they try to take it further?
Honestly, they could have come up and talked to me, I live upstairs ffs, and I’ve always been reasonable and friendly.