Noise Abatement Orders

[YearingPlugs]

Can an Unreasonable Nosie Abatement Order infringe human rights?
If so what human rights are they infringing?
thank you

It would have to be some excessive noise for an order to be served .

Have you been notified beforehand of any reports or nuisance noise from your property

Don't they need to record noise levels first?

They wouldn’t have served the notice on the say so of the neighbour.
The initial letter you got informing you of the complaint will say the methods they may use to evidence the noise (diary sheets, recording equipment, onsite monitoring etc).

They obviously believe they have collected enough evidence to prove a statutory nuisance - that is you are unreasonably affecting someone’s enjoyment and use of their own property.

Did they explain the evidence to you at any stage of the investigation?

Are you sure it's genuine?

It is has been on-going for a long time
I have received several letters of complaint and explanation etc...
It is only in the last 6 months that I have realised because the only device being used was a tablet and I monitored the nosie level myself that I realised that it must be the wall between the properties that it so defficient

which is why if the noise being played is not unreasonable then it must the connecting wall

it is an old property with a number of chimney flues also, which doesnt help

it is the fabric of the wall which offers insufficient sound insulation so that even a tv cannot be played without complaints

the solution is to abate all noise from one side or to insulate the wall from both sides until the sound insulation is adequate to allow a tv or a 10.5 inch tablet to be played without complaint

?

Take a deep breath.

When was the order served? What previous communication have you received about this. You should have had letters informing you that noise monitoring (starting with a noise diary for the neighbours and then escalating to either recording equipment or human officers).

The insulation is neither here nor there. Either the noise reaches the threshold for a nuisance or it doesn't.

Decibels are only part of a story here.

Have you engaged with the officers?

JuneOsborne

deep breath is good advice for sure
issue is noise insulation I think
because I have tested the tablet behind a stud wall and you cant hear anything
so that same noise is not unreasonable against a reasonably insulated wall
my point being playing a tv in a japanese room (paper walls) -would be unreasonable as an extreme example

and that is my point it is that the nosie from the tablet is not unreaosnably loud against a normal terraced house wal (having reasonable sound, insulation); nothing extra-ordinary; just ordinary normal sound insulation iaw modern building standards

so it may reach the threshold of noise nuisance, but I dont know what that is

thanks

In nuisance law it doesn't matter about the insulation you are fixed on the wrong thing.

You will have been written to. Multiple times. Did you ever call the officers? Have they spoken to you?

Even with an order served of you are not making enough noise that it would constitute a nuisance you have nothing to worry about.

However, gently, I suggest that the problem is bigger than you think.

You need to be very clear for us to help you.

You also need to speak to the officers.

Lay it all out, in steps, what the timeline of all of this is.

Usually, yes. My sister had an epic saga to get one against her nuisance neighbours. You could feel the bass line of the music through your feet in her house. It still took almost a year, measuring equipment and so on.

JuneOsborne

thanks for teh clear advice

There is no way they will have got that order issued without official council specialist recording in the other property. It has to show that on repeated and frequent occasions at unsocialble hours that noise was above the accepted levels.

I suspect the TIME you are using the offending noisy tablet is most relevant here.

is 8pm or 7pm an unsociable time?
and again a 10.5 inch tablet?

Excess noise is a plague and a real anti social behaviour. It's the drip drip and it must be bad for someone to be able to get the order . Just be quiet and have some consideration.

I agree wrt excess noise

but what is excess noise

there is also unreasonable intolerance too

nuisance is subjective and so it should be defined to be more objective wrt to levels and socially acceptable times

Nuisance is subjective, yes, which is why they will have been monitoring the noise with equipment and measured the decibels. You're focusing on the wrong things. The insulation doesn't matter, the size of the tablet doesn't matter, the noise levels and frequency do matter.

Just turn it down, you're obviously being a menace to someone for them to have got this against you. They don't hand them out like toffees.

I would consider 75dB if a regular and continuous noise to be unacceptable. From the information provided so far.

A Council taking noise issues seriously seems a rare event.

I’m only here to comment on the usefulness of sound insulation I’m afraid 🫣 My neighbours bathroom wall adjoins my youngest sons wall. My son is autistic and very sound sensitive. The neighbour isn’t the quietest, bashing around in the bathroom etc at all times…his prerogative in his own home. I mentioned to him a few times in a gentle manner that we could hear everything, literally can hear him peeing in to the toilet. 😬 Eventually I decided I would just soundproof that wool with rockwool soundproofing insulation and plasterboard over. It has reduced the loudness of sounds 10 fold. It’s now not enough to wake him essentially. Which I think is amazing because both rooms are about the same size, and essentially box rooms. It’s a tad drastic, to do the whole house, but needs must of the tablet user won’t turn the sound down or use headphones. If that’s all it is, I’d just suck it up and encourage headphones tbh.

Measuring the sound with the affected home doesn't pre suppose anything re the sound insulation. If it too loud in the other person's house it's too loud regardless of the reasons for why.

Yep this. And you seem very focused on the wall and the impact on your, rather than the fact you've obviously made someone's life so difficult they saught legal help. Reflect on that?

Is this the only problem with the neighbour?

You seem to have made the assumption that it is the tablet that is the problem.
Documents you should have been sent by environmental health will spell out exactly what the issue is.
Ie. My friend's neighbour had a noise abatement notice served on them and it specifically states about dogs barking, howling and whining.

Whatever noise you are making needs to be stopped, it really isn't fair on your neighbours.

Also, you don't mention the noise you hear from them.
Surely if they can hear your tablet/TV, you can hear them. If you can't, then you're definitely too.noisy.

Your letters from the council will of set this all out. They will of told you what level and for how long would count as an issue.

Your human rights to listen to your tablet do not override the human rights of others to not have to listen to your tablet in their own home. That isn’t some kind of sneaky get out clause. Because that’s what your looking for, not to actually fix the problem but to get to do whatever you want knowing it’s impacting your neighbours.

Getting this abatement order will of taken a long time, diary’s and sound recording equipment it’s incredibly hard to get one actually put in place so quit with the it’s only a tablet and stop being a bad neighbour smh. If you know it’s one certain room or item then don’t do that exact thing by that particular wall. It’s simple.

These are comparisons to your noise level you indicated. That is one hellova good speaker on that tabletand how theheck can you dtand that long time

I work as an antisocial behaviour officer and so I can categorically tell you that to get an abatement notice the council will have recordings which evidence a breach of statutory noise nuisance regulations.

Usually they start out with something like The Noise App and then progress to calibrated in home noise monitoring systems, something like a matron system.

A tablet is unlikely to be the cause, but not impossible.

I would suggest turning your tablet down, or using headphones. Breach of a noise abatement notice is a very serious offence, with serious consequences. I'm not sure from your post if one has been issued, or if you have received a letter from the council about noise and they've warned this is the possible legal recourse if you don't stop the noise. If its the latter, it's simple....stop the noise. If it's the former, you would have been in court to witness the evidence.

As others have said...the source of the noise you are making is irrelevant! The facts are, you are regularly (and apparently without and kind of remorse!) exceeding the acceptable noise level!