Neigbour issues - want to move

[Wiggles2894]

Hi all,

I’m looking for some advice on a situation with my downstairs neighbour and whether it would be reasonable to ask housing to move me.

Over the past year since i moved in there have been several incidents that have made me feel unsafe in the block. On one occasion, both the front and back doors were broken, leaving me and another neighbour unable to get into our homes. There have also been windows smashed in the flat block and smashed bottles of alcohol left in the communal areas. While trying to get in, 2 men who appeared to be under the influence of drugs approached us and my child, asking about my neighbour and circling the block.

In January, just after midnight, someone knocked on my door and was talking through the letter box. It later became clear that this person was connected to my downstairs neighbour as i heard him come out afterwards. At the time, I thought it might be a misunderstanding and he just got the wrong door as people do.

This morning at 7:30am, the police attended because my neighbour had given my address instead of his own. I live alone with my young child, and he is aware of that. I’m not even directly above him in the block, which makes me even more concerned that he may be giving my address out specifically because he knows i’m probarly most vunerable i will say due to my age and me living alone. I’m worried that anyone he angers might believe he lives at my house rather than his own, which makes me feel even less safe.

I could be really being paranoid but i am just genuinely worried after these incidents he is sending people to my door instead of his own, so if any incidents happened in which he got on the bad side of anyone AGAIN i would expect them to be coming to my door instead of his. I no longer feel secure in my own home and am concerned about further incidents. Would you consider this a reasonable reason to ask housing for a move, or is this likely to be seen as a stretch?
I have wrote a complaint but there has been a few complaints sent in about him and nothings been done to remove him from the flat up to now, i have also now requested to go back on the housing list.

Any advice would be really appreciated.
TIA

I think from what you've written here, I would definitely ask to be moved. You're not unreasonable at all to be worried about yours and your child's safety.

thank you very much for your reply, i am going to mention it to them

You can ask, but with the current housing crisis I wouldn't hold out too much hope sadly.

Make a formal complaint to the landlords about his behaviour

Keep complaining

If no action

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/anti-social-behaviour-asb-case-review-also-known-as-the-community-trigger

Really helpful should be the one moving out but unlikely the Council would be able to get him out. You can only ask. Have all the information ready when you speak to someone.

No harm in asking, just read/ show them this post.

I would be hugely surprised if they would move her for the incidents she's described.

You haven't given much detail about what's been going on. I found it difficult to understand from your first post what all the issues are - even if this neighbour is directly harassing you - that doesn't mean the council will remove them - I am speaking from experience here. They'll only move you if there's somewhere else for you to go to and even that's not guaranteed.

If you have an anti social task force - talk to them and get a councillor involved and if there are incidents that make you feel really unsafe you need to call police

But the housing won't evict someone because of a couple of smashed bottles of alcohol and door damage

I have been through similar - it went on for years. All you can do is keep reporting - and you do have the right to request a move - but that could take time

The reason that you need to involve police when an incident happens is because the police will then have an incident number to pass onto housing. You can also request that the housing look at Cctv if there's cameras in the block but I believe they only keep the footage for a couple of weeks.

If you have an anti social task force then phone or email them - but sometimes they'll advise you to go to police as your first point of contact

thank you for all your replies!. scottishgirl69, i will take that on board thank you, i have reported to housing in the past and its just today obviously the police came searching my house and banging trying to get my door open (which is understandable with their job) and after i explained he lived downstairs they said he told them that this was his address, there’s also been occasions that he has sent his friends/people to my door thinking that was where he lived as i could hear them in the communal block. I am already a bit unsettled here due to my ex partner knowing where i live ( was abusive and has just lost custody of our child so he is angry) as him and also his friends keep threatening me so when obviously when the neigbour is possibly on top of that sending people who i know are associated with crime etc to my door it just makes me feel more uneasy than i already am. I am just wary if he is knowing that i am living alone, with my little boy and willing to send the police and people to my door i wouldn’t put it past him to then also if there is any bother it be aimed at my flat as that’s where he is telling people he lives. I probarly sound OTT but i would just hate for something to happen when i am obviously home alone in the middle of the night with my little boy as obviously i am only a teenage lass, i have emailed the housing people and i’m going to see what they suggest, again thank you for your reply

It's scary, but apart from the police turning up today, there's nothing very tangible to make it about the neighbour and you specifically, so I wouldn't feed your fear by assuming he's targeted you personally. The doors/bottles are general vandalism and as you say the letterbox could have been a mistake. Also if he's given that address as his own as per police call, it would be a problem for whoever lived there so the solution wouldn't be to move you out and move someone else in who'd have the same issue. You can ask and it's good to get back on the housing list, but unless there's decent availability in your area (which is rare), I wouldn't hold my breath for a move as it's not as urgent a threat as say people fleeing domestic violence, so might not be a high priority. Worth trying all options, but sounds like having those police go and have a chat with him about not using your address might be more effective short-term.

yeah totally understandable thank you very much

x-posted - okay well the risk from your ex sounds like it might be an effective element to raise the priority level with this, so I wouldn't limit it to the neighbour situation, more the impact/risk of all this for a young single mum and her child. That said, if they've placed you in such a home, it might speak to a lack of availability so you might want to consider moving areas which could be a good thing given the ex situation.

You need to try and escalate this given what you've said about your ex and him losing custody. I would give Shelter a phone in the first instance and ask police for some advice about making your house safer - panic button - spy hole if you don't have one

If your ex is threatening you -police. Same with his friends. You need some legal advice to get some kind of order so that your ex can't come near you

Also - it's unfair that you need to live like this but don't answer your door unless you are expecting someone (also speaking from experience).

thank you very much, will do these definitely :)