Is this neighbour being unreasonable

[myboysmum]

Bit of back ground - we live in a semi detached bungalow and my partner and I moved here nearly 2 years ago. Our neighbour's on the side that is not attached to us are elderly, I've only seen the husband once as think he's housebound but the wife goes out daily in her car. Their driveway is directly next to our front door on the side of the house (we don't have a driveway) but there is a 6' fence between so nothing can been seen. She never speaks to me and if I see her and say Good morning she just grunts. She has spoken to my partner a couple of times.

Not long after moving in, our outside porch light broke. It was only 2 weeks ago that we decided to replace it. Our new one is bigger and brighter than our other one but it is not a security light so does not come on automatically when it detects motion. We put it on as and when we need it but this is only when somebody knocks on the door or leaves the house and if my partner goes outside to smoke so it's maybe on 3 times in an evening for 5 minutes at a time.

On Thursday we received a letter from the council saying our neighbour had complained about a bright light coming from our house. She had not bothered to knock on our door to mention it, if she had we would have happily replaced the bulb with a lower wattage. I replied to the council explaining it was our porch light and wasn't on very much at all, I haven't received a reply from them yet. Since receiving the letter 2 days ago we have only switched it on once when my sister left the house after visiting so it was maybe on for 30 seconds.
Today we have now had a visit from the police about the light 😯 saying it was shining in their bathroom and they did not have a curtain.

Why would they not have a blind or curtain at their bathroom window, is she running to her bathroom every 5 minutes to check to see if the lights on.

Is this harassment ? Does anybody know if there are any laws regarding lighting on your own property.

I have sent another email to the council informing them of our police visit and suggested they tell her to get a curtain.

They also have a light outside which comes on when it detects motion and that actually shines in our kitchen window. It also has a constant red light as there is a camera attached I think, it isn't bright but can be seen from our window

So what should I do - continue using the light as I do now or not. Should I put a lower wattage bulb in ?

Is it council properties?

If she's feeding seagulls that's classed as anti social behaviour and the council will take action on that.

Write to your town council and also CC police and environmental health detailing everything here and say they are wasting police time.

They are elderly and do not know you. They do not know if you are reasonable or not. Put in a lower bulb and show you are reasonable.
Knock on their door and introduce yourself. Calm the situation and show you are good neighbours. He may be household and fearful.

I don't have a blind or curtain in my bathroom 🤷🏻‍♀️. It's frosted glass though no one can see in... so I don't think that's unreasonable of them. Your light probably is really annoying, and I don't think you should expect them to talk to you first, it's confrontation and not everyone wants to do that.
However the police coming round because of it?! Is there nothing more to it than a porch light?!! Just get a low wattage bulb.

“ Your light probably is really annoying,”

A light to see your driveway? And the people complaining have a motion activated brighter light?

OP you say you have cats. I could be way off mark but just a thought, could your neighbour be a cat hater?

This all seems to have got way out of hand over a simple bright outdoor light. If your (or my) home has a street light/lamp post directly outside then the light shines in and can be annoying but it is not grounds to have the light switched off or removed. You just have to live with it.

Are you sure there are not other things this neighbour is unhappy with since you moved in? Lack of communication from both sides can cause awful rifts and what starts out as small can escalate into full on fueds.

Neighbours at war programme on tv tomorrow night, now that is one scary set of people and I am NEVER moving home as my neighbours are ok. I have been here quite a few years and never had a fall out thank goodness.

@toastbutter Our neighbour over the road has frosted glass. When it's dark and the light's on, you can see everything! Yuk!

Not dissing you OP, but I would have thought that issues like this are civil matters, not criminal. I cannot believe the police would call for a light shining!

But there may be more to the story.

She probably embroidered her porch light complaint with other stuff (said you were aggressive or something) or why would they bother visiting? Change & photo the bulb & keep a diary. She sounds unhinged. You could also try a solar power garden light or two that you stick in the soil or a plant pot near the step.

She had not bothered to knock on our door to mention it, if she had we would have happily replaced the bulb with a lower wattage.

So why didn't you just do that when you had the letter from the council, rather than cause more grief for yourself?

I'm guessing the police didn't turn up owing to a bright light, but rather the neighbours reported a peeping tom shining a light into their bathroom.

YANBU OP, but your neighbours are. The reality is there is nothing they can do about your light hence why they have resorted to other means if you don't have a relationship with them, I would continue as you were.

YANBU and your neighbour is a nutjob.
I'm a petty person - I'd keep that light on from dusk to dawn every night. Just to make my point that IDGAF what they say/do/think!
My neighbours have motion sensor lights and they are bright! Wouldn't dream of going to complain about something like this.

Maybe it is the cat's (I have 2) that's the problem as I have seen them coming from her garden. I'm guessing she phoned ther council and police with a list of smoking, cats and light and that is the only thing she was told they could possibly look in to.

She has never spoken to me although everytime I see her I am always friendly and say hello but she usually ignores me but my partner has had a couple of friendly conversations with her and even offered to put up new fence panel for her that had come down in the wind.

We privately rent so not council. We used the bulb that came with the light but will change it to a lower wattage one. Our light is brighter than theirs but it still shines in to ours when on.

I didn't realise it was illegal to feed seagulls so yes maybe I will now pursue that.

Contacting the council regarding the light is one thing but to then call the police too is way over the top and I'm surprised they even entertained it. That was ther only thing they mentioned when they came round, they didn't say anything about smoking or cats so as far as I know there is no other issues.

The smoke could get in their house without the windows being open. Our neighbour smokes and it comes in our air vent. Can he smoke out the back instead?

@GiveHerHellFromUs we only received the letter Thursday morning and only used the light once since on Thursday evening when my visitor left the house. The police arrived Saturday at 5pm when it was still daylight so how is that causing more grief if the light had only been used for 30 seconds on one occasion since ???

Most bathrooms have a door.
From your description they seem quite stressed.
Op, I wonder if you replaced your outside light
with the exact same model that they have, it would
bring an end to official involvement?
.or pir lighting at ground level?

I would wonder who they are, or were,
to garner such attention to a non-problem.

And I'd be SEETHING

The peeping tom thing wouldn’t make sense

They switch their own bathroom light on and you see outlines through frosted glass.

Also, do you know what sort of terms
they are on with your landlord?

She should have spoken to you first, but you need to change the light - she should not have to pay out for a curtain because you've installed a bright light.

Knock on their door and ask them about it

I wonder if it's your cats setting off her own light that is annoying her 🤔

heck this like the puddle thread poster with the batshit neighbours and how that took off [not trying toderailyour thread OP]

Goodness in which wonderful utopia of zero crime do you live that allows the police to visit people about their bright porch lights? I’d actually put in an official complaint to the police about that and include their most recent crime stats questioning how they can possibly justify this attendance.

At 5pm on a Saturday too!

Juan probably the same area Harry Miller lives in!