To not engage with this complete idiot?

[FTEngineerM]

NDN came round to get parcel and then said ‘just to let you know our dado rail in the kitchen is coming off it looks like something is pushing it from your side’ (we’re Victorian terrace and party wall is 55cm+ solid stone).

So I asked details of location and confirmed there’s nothing on the wall at all in that location let alone long enough to penetrate over half a meter.

Now NDN is threatening surveyors and their insurance company coming and assessing.

What do I do? I have so far just not engaged past this point but is that the wrong thing to do?

NDN can’t possibly know something is pushing through the wall it’s just speculation, to come around and wave around accusations without any actual evidence IMO is bonkers. But I don’t want to say or do anything that they can take and use if I take too much interest in helping resolve it.

Or am I overthinking it? And nothing will come of it.

Tricky one. It's all very well to laugh about their dado rail, but assuming that it would be due to something pushing it off from your side is erroneous. It could be damp, or subsidence, or something else.

If they want to pay for a surveyor then let them, is my advice. It may benefit you as well.

@CuriousaboutSamphire

Nope! It really shouldn't! If they'd been there for years and years then yes,, maybe a landlord would decide it wasn't fair! But 6 - 12 months in a property that was newly decorated at the start of their tenancy?

Nope! It is damage caused by negligence. Anything that ruibs against a wall and causes damage to the wall surface is over and above FWT. Minor marking, especially in doorways, narrow spaces, inside wardrobes etc, yes FWT all day long. But a 6ft long grey line along a wall? That is not acceptable! Nor is the gouge/indentation caused by the back of a chair being leant back on!

And the deposit schemes agree with me. I know this because I read their Case Studies every few months and their roundups every year!

Even Shelter, well known for skewing their interpretation of guidelines say Your landlord should not deduct money from your deposit for things like faded curtains, small scuffs on walls or worn carpets. my bold.

So no, I am not being mean!

This has reminded me of when we bought our first house - we'd been in rented for a few years, then bought a place and on the day we moved in, managed to scrape a curved line right through the paintwork, as we were manoeuvring a piece of furniture into position. We looked at each other and both said, "It's our house so nobody can charge us for that!" Such glee.

My ndn once complained that my washing line hook had cracked his plaster. As it was on the end of a group of houses converted from a 17 century barn made of solid stone, very very thick I just looked at him gone out and recommended he get a surveyor. It was the first of many chancy claims he tried on.

We have dado rails throughout our house, however its a victorian house, high ceilings, ceiling rose and original fireplaces. So wouldnt dream off removing them.

However I find it funny your thinks through a solid wall your pushing his dado...likely to be damp or something at his side given he has converted something that was outside before. Leave him to get his surveyor to check his property.

@Covert19 we did something very similar when we bought our house. Almost childish glee in the moment and not really a care about how long it stayed that way either

[quote CuriousaboutSamphire]Nothing wrong with dado rails. They do a pretty important job. If you don't believe me move your sofa away from the wall and see if there is a rub mark.

I've done 3 check outs today, all will be losing some of their deposit because chairs, bookcases, sofas, bedsteads etc have rubbed the paint - rubbed right through it in some cases!

Mind you rather that than bedhead grease staining

Just tell them you'll be happy to let their surveyor in when they've arranged it.

Any murmur of you needing to pay towards it is a big fat no.

But otherwise just let them get on with it. Minimal co-operation is all you need to offer, really.

I have seen some odd height ones myself, I looked them up to see what they might be. It appears that the taller ones are actually wainscotting and would usually have been panelled below. They were insulation for old brick buildings rather than wall protection.

I have to admit that such stuff is what keeps me doing this job! Every day really is a learning day. My work lexicon gets ever larger

Genuinely didn't know they were a period feature (unless late 90s Changing Rooms counts as period), but maybe they're a regional thing?

Dada rails became popular in the Georgian period. No, not a regional thing. Rather a grand thing though, so picked up by the Victorians who translated the grand of previous eras into their more domestic settings.

Dado rails obvs

@CuriousaboutSamphire You retain deposits because a sofa made a mark on the walll? That's so tight and surely that counts as wear and tear?

Not all dado rails go round the room at sofa height. In the Victorian houses on my street, dado rails tend to be much higher up and used as picture rails.

That’s because they actually are picture rails, not dado rails.

"That’s because they actually are picture rails, not dado rails."
You win the prize for best comment.

[quote FreekStar]@CuriousaboutSamphire You retain deposits because a sofa made a mark on the walll? That's so tight and surely that counts as wear and tear?[/quote]
Surely not, as I explained above!

Ignore. And don't take any more parcels for her either.

NDN might be an idiot, but might also have checked for damp, blown plaster etc, and found that the wall is moving. If it's the wall bowing pushing off the dado rail, they are not wrong to get a surveyor. Not their wall, so not their obligation or right to repair.

We had picture rails in the house we rented when we got married. I was quite sorry when they had to come down due to re-plastering.

Had to google what a dado rail is. I like them!

If it used to be an outside wall it is probably an issue with the brickwork or roof letting the damp in and causing the wooden dado rail to warp and bow.

I like decorative moulding. (No wallpaper, though.) I also do have lace curtains in a room or two. Nothing wrong with either of those things.

OP, I'd let a surveyor in, but definitely wouldn't pay for one.

We have dado rails in our hall, where there is no room to put a chair but all the ones in the rooms have been removed, along with the other original features .

Previous 50's home had picture rails, however they were slightly deeper than the older style ones.

What I find odd is the one on the stairs which serves no purpose at all.

So.. seems they’re not waiting until Christmas.

I can hear them (through open windows/back doors) shouting and ripping stuff off the wall “ fucking hell look at that” “oh my god” “whaaAAT”.

I’m not going to lie I’m sat here quite anxious at the thought of them coming round again.

It’s clearly nothing you’ve done, though, OP - don’t stress!

Well, if they built their extension without planning permission/building control and a party wall agreement, its more their problem than yours.
Do not engage if they come round again, and tell them to get a surveyor and if necessary involve your insurance at that stage.

OP, I'd check about planning permission, and wait for them to contact you. This isn't your problem, it's theirs, they're the ones who built the extension after all.