AIBU to object to neighbour using my garden as their main access?

[Deepblueokay]

Fully expecting to be told this is my own fault for not looking into it properly but need a vent all the same!

A year ago I moved into an end of terrace house. There is the usual easement arrangement with the adjoining neighbour that they can get access to their back garden via my back garden. I know that is pretty standard and I was obviously aware of it when I purchased. Since moving in however it's become clear that they use it as their primary entrance. They never use their front door. They have a sign on the front door telling post man/ couriers etc to go round the back. Again, wouldn't necessarily be a big issue except that there seems to CONSTANTLY be someone walking through! It's an older lady living there with her grandson. He is late teens/ early 20s maybe and in and out like a yo-yo, no exaggeration. Ditto her boyfriend, her dog walker, her cleaner, her food shop, couriers (she gets at least two packages a day!) .... The latter particularly pisses me off because they often don't close my gate behind them. I have an OAP dog and 4 children, the youngest of whom is 4. It'd take literal seconds to slip out of the garden without anyone noticing 😠 And frankly, now that its summer time it just feels quite intrusive. Strangers walking in and out while my children are playing. I stupidly feel awkward sitting outside to read a book even though it's my fucking garden!

Is it even a legal thing to say that they are over using their access?!

Should also add that I would probably mind all this less except that at the end of last year the handle of my gate broke. It was the week before Christmas and I didn't have time or money to fix it and it wasn't particularly a priority for me, but I told the neighbour I would sort it after Christmas, quite reasonably I thought. (I have a side door so actually rarely use the gate). Neighbour told me I had to fix it because it is "YOUR gate" and "a public right of way" (it isn't 🤣).Then proceeded to tell all the other neighbours that I was "refusing" to fix it because I didn't use it and that she "couldn't even get her food delivered" and would "rather die than use the front door"... After a week of hassle and harassment I ended up getting a friend's husband to fix it for free and neighbour has since apologised but... I don't know, it just left a sour taste.

Is there anything I can do? Do I just have to wait for her to move/die?? 🙈

The neighbour is just using her legal access which she is perfectly entitled to do. Realistically it’s the OP who is unreasonable for buying a house with a right of way when she needs a secure garden.

This seemingly goes beyond an easement use as she’s made it her predominant access (ignoring her own main front door). You’ve also got evidence that she’s objected to paying the maintenance cost from her increased and unacceptable benefit. Be canny - don’t position it as a ‘you pay you get access,’ rather ask her to pay for the gate lock and new slabs etc, and capture the objections.

Categorically do NOT consider giving up part of your garden for an alternative route path as that’s conceding to her right of way.

The requirement for her to pay a share acts as a built-in fairness check. If the neighbour increases their usage (for instance, by getting more deliveries), the path will wear out faster. Under the doctrine of benefit and burden, if they want to keep using the route, they must pay their agreed share of those rising repair costs. If they refuse to pay, their right to use the path can be legally blocked. Then seek legal advice to get a modification for the right to access. Keep thr paper trail.

Part A) points to reciprocity. Maybe enjoy some tours of her garden too.

you have read that the neighboutr has said "I'd sooner die than use my front door"?

If OP looks at her NDN's deeds, there might be an easement across it too.
If there is and it's been blocked, I'd get the NDN+1 to act.

Do you have a bit of yard outside the back of your house before the lawn part starts? If so, and this is the bit she walks across between the two gates, then I'd fence off the lawn to make an enclosed private space. Wouldn't stop the traipsing past your window, but would create a secure space for DC and dogs.
Lots of terraces are like this, with a long walkway directly behind the houses going from end to end, then each having a fenced off private lawn.

So what?

I reckon that the access will be something like this, where OP is dark green only. NDN and the other middle houses greeny-yellow + green +brown. Other EOT brown only.

This is only a guess.

Does that sound like a reasonable person to you?

I have said and better said already - yes, I hold my hands up. This is on me. I didn't do my due diligence. For reasons really outside of my control. But respectfully, how could I have known that the neighbour was using the easement in this way prior to moving in? It's far from the norm, as evidenced by the responses to this thread! I know my dog and children are my responsibility, of course I bloody know that. I just can't understand how her right to access supercedes the security of my property. But yes, apparently it does.

@Deepblueokay , have you looked at the actual deeds including the plans?

I'm waiting to hear back from the conveyancers.

I just can't understand how her right to access supercedes the security of my property

Unfortunately yes it does. A lot of the responses on the thread are from outraged people who can’t imagine that such rights exist, and we live very differently now than when many of these arrangements were created. I think maybe people who move in these days would likely treat the right of way differently than someone who’s been there for decades. That doesn’t help you though, because your neighbour isn’t doing anything wrong and it’s not incumbent upon her to consider your convenience. I found the Garden Law forum very helpful when my neighbours started trying to take liberties during their building work. They have knowledgeable people, including lawyers, rather than furious keyboard warriors and are very generous about reviewing paperwork and giving advice.

Rights of Way - Garden Law Discussion

And you’d have evidence she refused to pay with her complaining to the neighbours.

I’d check the house security point with a solicitor tbh. It seems incredible that you have to leave your garden open to basically the world ALL the time. Take no notice of people sating she shouldn’t have bought it. You dud what was best at that moment in time

Your last sentence demonstrates just how ignorant you are of very established law. Easements and rights of way have been around for hundreds of years. Yet you are clearly completely bemused by the concept.

My daughter's very similar easement was pointed out to her by the estate agent, at which point she researched it, searched the deeds, and questioned the conveyancer (and the owner) about it before proceeding. I'm really surprised that your sale proceeded without someone pointing it all out to you.

@saraclara , OP's circumstances were not the same as your daughter's. OP admits she made an oversight.

Your post is patronising, mean, and not helpful in any way.

@Deepblueokay The key thing here is that an easement gives your neighbour access, but it doesn’t give her the right to turn your garden into her main entrance or a delivery hub.

What’s reasonable is her walking through when she needs to reach her garden. What’s not reasonable is couriers, cleaners, dog walkers, boyfriends and randoms traipsing through all day because she’s decided she “doesn’t use her front door”.

Whether you can challenge it depends entirely on what your deeds say. Most easements only cover access for the occupiers, not third parties. If yours is like that, you’re within your rights to tell her that deliveries and trades need to use her front door.

Even if the easement is broad, she still has to use it in a reasonable way. Forcing your gate, propping it open, and refusing to close it behind her isn’t reasonable. You’re entitled to a secure garden, especially with young kids and a dog.

The next step is simply getting hold of the deeds and seeing exactly what the wording is. Once you know that, you can set boundaries based on facts rather than her “public right of way” nonsense.

You’re not trying to stop her accessing her garden. You’re trying to stop her treating your garden as an extension of her house, which is fair enough

I actually think we have a right of passage for the person who lives at the end of our garden as it were. Ie their property backs onto ours but their actual house is behind our bottom fence. I understood it’s only if they need to repair their roof or something. Thankfully in the 20 years we’ve been here it’s been used once.

I really hope there is a solution for this it’s terrible what she is doing/ has done. I am with the poster that said get a lock that is a pain to deal with- maybe something that is stuck on the gate that comes with a guarantee (in case she breaks it)

I hope there is a nice surprise in some of the deeds where you are able to just shut her out or something.

SYour deeds say that they have a right to access.. the green shaded area?
it also says they have to contribute to maintenance of that area.

so on the deeds which area is shaded?

You clearly don’t know what you’re talking about and shouldn’t comment as though you do. The easement is for the benefit of the property, and the owner can invite whoever she chooses to come to her property via the right of way unless the deeds say otherwise. There is no such thing as excessive use of a right of way.

@CotswoldIdyll , you are twisting the pp's words to suit your own agenda.
The neighbour can authorise people to access the rear of the property via the easement but it isn't a "public right of way", which is what the NDN is saying it is.

@Deepblueokay , the wording on my deeds say specifically 'access to the rear of the property' and maybe that could be in your favour. Deliveries of most things could be accepted via the front door.

From the wording in your image, this is describing rights (easements) that affect your property. In plain English:
“Rights over the Property (Which other people will have over your new property).”
This means your neighbours have certain legal rights over parts of your land.
The two points mean:

1. “A reciprocal right to those noted above.”
2. Earlier in the document (the part not shown) it probably lists rights you have over your neighbours’ land (for example, to access a shared path or services).
3. “Reciprocal” means they have the same rights over your land where appropriate.
4. “You will give a right of way over the land coloured green on the plan dated 1989 subject to their contributing towards the maintenance and repair of the same.”
5. If a section of your land (shown in green on an attached plan) forms a path, driveway or access route, your neighbours have a legal right to pass over it.
6. They can’t necessarily park there or use it for anything they like—just for the purpose of access, unless the deed says otherwise.
7. They are expected to contribute towards the cost of maintaining and repairing that shared access.

What this means for an end-of-terrace house This is quite common. It often means:

• The side path alongside your house may be shared so neighbours can reach their rear gardens.
• If there’s a shared driveway, neighbours may have the right to drive or walk across it.
• You generally can’t block the access with gates (unless they can still use them) or permanently park in a way that prevents them using their right of way.
• Maintenance costs for the shared access are normally shared between those who benefit from it.

To know exactly what it means The key document is the 1989 plan referred to in the wording. That plan will show:

• exactly which strip of land is coloured green,
• who benefits from the right of way,
• and whether it’s pedestrian access only or includes vehicles.

If you have the title plan or the page before this one (showing the rights “noted above”), upload it and I can explain exactly how the easement affects your end-of-terrace property. @Deepblueokay

@Deepblueokay

The key question is what the legal right of way actually allows. A right of way is usually for reasonable access, not necessarily unlimited use or use in whatever manner is most convenient.
Based on what you’ve described:

• If the deeds give your neighbour a right of way to access their rear garden, they are generally entitled to use it regularly.
• There is usually nothing in law that says they must use their front door instead. So using the rear as their main entrance isn’t automatically an abuse of the easement.
• However, they should exercise the right reasonably and without causing unnecessary inconvenience.

The gate is a separate issue If they’re repeatedly leaving your gate open so your child or dog could get out, that’s something you can address. You could:

• Speak to them and explain the safety risk.
• Put a self-closing gate hinge or spring on the gate (provided it doesn’t obstruct their right of way).
• Install a latch that automatically catches when the gate closes.
• Consider a polite sign on the inside saying, “Please ensure the gate is closed - child and dog.”

Deliveries Having post, parcels and takeaway deliveries brought through your garden is a bit different. If the right of way is simply for access, it’s arguable that:

• the neighbour can accompany delivery drivers along the path,
• but repeatedly directing third-party delivery drivers through your garden may go beyond what was originally intended, depending on the wording of the easement.

Unfortunately, courts often interpret rights of way broadly if it’s simply people accessing the property. What I’d suggest First, get hold of the full wording of the easement (or the 1989 transfer referred to in your document). It may say something like:

• “on foot only,”
• “for access to the rear garden,”
• “with or without vehicles,”
• or who is permitted to use it (owners, occupiers, visitors, etc.).

The exact wording matters a lot.