To try and block neighbours pool water from emptying into our garden?

[Udford]

We live in a terraced house on a hill; our neighbours sit higher than us. They have a huge, bouncy castle type pool for their kids and when they unplug the power it starts to deflate and a mass amount of water drains into our garden. This isn’t helped by the fact that our neighbours have completely concreted their garden, with artificial grass on top so the water literally slides off their land and into ours.

They emptied it once yesterday and so far, it’s been 3 times today. Our garden is completely water logged.

We have had loads of issues with them in the past so this is not one of those ‘talk to them as they might not know’ kind of instances and they do absolutely know that this is what happens and they don’t care.

We’ve recently had a new fence with concrete posts and gravel boards hoping that would at least slow the flow but sadly it hasn’t. Now thinking about taking future measures however, my husband seems to think it’s illegal to prevent the flow of water.

Does anyone know if this is the case and that we will just have to live this?

If they’ve formed an area of hardstanding I’m pretty sure it should drain on their own land otherwise it’s contrary to planning/building standards. Speak to planning enforcement at the council.

What would they be repercussioning (??? what's the correct word here??) against? The fact they can't flood your garden, only their own? Fuck them!

A similar question here:

https://www.flowerpotman.com/how-to-stop-water-from-neighbours-garden-running-into-mine/#:~:text=However%2C%20there%20are%20two%20other,using%20a%20basic%20French%20drain.

I would try and tank your fence some more with some sort of waterproof membrane.

Op, they need to buy a sump pump and drain that down a drain. How utterly annoying!

Another one on team Stab It over here.

Yes that's what I was thinking

They need some sort of soak away on their own property

Like when you do an extension

I think there should be planning laws against Astro turf in back garden

They are inconsiderate assholes op. I have a large hot tub ( or as I call it heated kid’s paddling pool) which I empty using a hose i create a suction and put other end straight down drain. My garden is slightly slanted so any water would go down my drains anyway but I can’t stand the mess! Build a wall let them soak their garden

Contact your local environmental health department at your council. This falls under their remit.

You've been given a lot of mis information. You can actually sue a neighbour who allows water flow onto your property if it's not a natural sorce ie from pools, hosepipes, leaking ponds there's a huge list. So depending how far you want to go a solicitor would deal with this for you.

I recal reading there is something about not blocking flow of water from neighbouring properties (guessing to do with flooding risk or blocked drains).

A quick google search says 'There is a right of drainage that allows water that flows across your land to flow downhill naturally to your neighbour's land. But you are not allowed to artificially channel water in a way that will cause damage your neighbour's land'.

I really sympathise, it's rubbish your neighbours are willfully allowing water to damage your garden.

Is there anyway they could siphon it back over & into their own outside drains? I recognise this requires their cooperation, but worth a thought.

invested now. Please do let us know what happens after you build the wall. (Will the mortar go off properly if they are constantly flooding the area?) Hoping for properly pissed off CFs.....

I put in Astroturf in my back garden several years ago. I have a small, but structured garden and there is a small lawn (approx 25%). My garden is North East facing and there can be difficulties getting things to grow. Apart from the weeds which blow over from the neighbours paddock. It was the best decision I made ever. I bought good quality fake turf. It has warmed up the back garden; the cats love it; I love it; the kids loved it. We kept normal turf at the front - south west facing, on a huge slope, in the middle of a fox run (and poo run), and at the end of what seems to be a wind tunnel down the road. The grass is either totally parched, or absolutely like a jungle. Nightmare. I dont have the time to deal with that.

Now I would like planning laws against the fucking monstrosity of an extension that my next door neighbours built. Nothing could be done. Their builders moved materials over my land (on a crane grab); their scaffolders extended their scaffolding over my land. Apparently none of that breaches health and safety.

So we all want different things. And we can't get them. But these neighbours - that behaviour cannot be legal. It is their choice to empty the pool in that way. And it is causing issues.

Are they filling it up using a hose- are you in a hose pipe ban? If you report them for that they might stop?

They could and should use a pump to pump the water out into the nearest drain and not just deflate the water slide and let the water flood other properties.
We have a pond, sometimes it needs water pumping out if there’s been a heavy rainfall, if we were inconsiderate bastards we could let it overflow into next doors garden but we’re not so it gets pumped out, the excess water is pumped into our water butts for watering our plants.

The issue with blocking a flow of water relates to watercourses and riparian rights and obligations, which may be what your husband is thinking of.

Where I live lots of people have pools and backwashing is a part of pool maintenance. I'm sure our laws are different, but there must be some law there about this. For eg, here we may not backwash onto a road or even a stormwater drain. Only into the sewage system. Pools have chemicals in, you cannot just let that water run anywhere.

Does this pool sound like it's big enough to be treated with some chemical, a chlorine floater perhaps ? If so, that water is going to kill off plants and grass. I would get on to the council asap.

and thinking back an awfully long time to uni I think the relevant case law is Rylands v Fletcher about water escaping from land being an issue of strict liability (you can sue them for it). The difference is to do with something is brought onto the land (unnatural) or is natural.

Definitely speak to the council

Take pictures and video footage if possible
Speak to a solicitor and send them a letter enclosing invoice for repairs to damaged garden

Feeling petty if you could collect equivalent amount of water and dump it on their frontage - you are returning"their property " - sadly I wouldn't have the nerve to do this but I

If this inflatable water slide is like the one my grandchildren have it’s filled from the household water tap, no chemicals required. It stays up as long as the air pump is on, as soon as the pump is off it deflates, my daughter pumps the water out before deflating it. Which is what these neighbours should be doing.

Why do people comment without reading?

The OP hasn't talked to them about this because they are generally unresponsive:

this is not one of those ‘talk to them as they might not know’ kind of instances

Don't put up with it.

"however, my husband seems to think it’s illegal to prevent the flow of water."

He's right that you can't usually block the progress of water that flows naturally across the surface of the land. Sometimes the person who's downhill just has to accept the various rules around sequential rights of drainage, overflowing rivers and natural floods. It depends on specifics though.

And where neighbours have interfered with the natural flow of water by putting in hardstanding without proper drainage and you ended up flooded in heavy rain as a result the law can be a bit different. It can amount to a private nuisance although that means a civil claim.

But in this case it isn't even rainwater or natural run off, it's deliberate discharge of water onto your land from a bloody pool! Gits.

If you really can't speak to them directly about it I'd start with the environmental team at your local council.

What are these pools? I know fixed frame ones which you dont need to fill/empty very often, so use chemicals, and inflatable ring ones you blow up, but are small and don't require constant inflation.

One you need to have turned on constantly sounds horrifically wasteful.

We have had loads of issues with them in the past so this is not one of those ‘talk to them as they might not know’ kind of instances and they do absolutely know that this is what happens and they don’t care.

They know about this and they don't care.

It's not hard to comprehend, really.

Contact environmental health. The water won’t be clean and could potentially be a health hazard. Are you growing vegetables that could be ruined by this flooding. It’s selfish to flood your land. Surely they could empty it into the drain?