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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To ask our neighbours to put their fence posts on their side of the fence.

67 replies

ClaireyFairy82 · 04/02/2010 09:21

We live on a hill and it's often very windy. The fence between my neighbours property and ours was installed very badly before we even moved in so it was no surprise to us when it blew down at the beginning of November. In fact it was so windy that the fence post snapped.

We kept asking them to replace it as on the deeds it indicates that it is their fence and I was sure it would be more to their benefit than ours as they have three cats and a pet pig and we have a dog. It?s taken since them months to replace it but finally while I was out yesterday the new fence was erected. The original fence had posts in between the panels, so the new fence is of a much better quality. But to my surprise the fence posts are on my side, meaning that they have a lovely flush fence and we have the posts. I was always under the impression that the fence posts were put on the side of ownership, as they need to be on your land.

I don?t know what to do. Should I mention it to them? AIBU to want them to take the fence out again and install it with the posts on their side. Or should I just lump it?

OP posts:
Original poster
ClaireyFairy82 · 04/02/2010 19:07

Lal123, the reason why we haven't paid for a new fence is because it clearly states on our deeds that we are responsible for the fence to the right of our gardens. This fence is to their right so they are responsible for it.

They have had since beginning of Nov to replace it and we have only been ?pestering them? because, I don?t think their pot bellied pig and 3 cats mix well with our lively labrador.

The original fence had posts and fence down the middle on the boundary lie, but the fence was too crap for the high winds we get. Then when they do replace it the posts are on MY LAND! If the posts were in line with where the old ones were I wouldn't mind the posts as much. But if it is damaged again it looks as if I?m responsible for it and I?ve lost land and have crappy posts.

OP posts:
StewieGriffinsMom · 04/02/2010 19:12

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

MrsC2010 · 04/02/2010 19:19

I thought this was an age old courtesy, I'd be too embarrassed not to abide by it. We put up fences in our old place after a storm, and gave the neighbours the pretty side.

Didn't cost us £1.5k though, what an amazing price for a fence!!

ImSoNotTelling · 04/02/2010 19:27

Our insurance doesn't cover fences etc as I found out to my cost after some high winds...

Crapweasel · 04/02/2010 20:01

MrsC2010, it was me that mentioned $1.5K - and believe me we got several quotes. It is a fairly long garden and we went top spec though - concrete posts, featheredge etc. The bloody thing had better outlive us!

You can get cheaper fences - but they still ain't cheap!

usualsuspect · 04/02/2010 20:04

If I was paying for the fence I would want the good side

pointydog · 04/02/2010 20:19

If they've paid for it, I really wouldn't complain even if there was some bit of legalk writing that said the posts were meant to be on the other side.

pointydog · 04/02/2010 20:20

I'm surprised they got it on the insurance. We weren't able to do that.

lal123 · 04/02/2010 20:25

Good fences make good neighbours and all that I suppose [hmmm] TO be honest I think life is too short to worry about who's got the pretty side and losing a couple of inches of land...

MrsC2010 · 04/02/2010 20:29

Thanks for that CrapWeasel, I suddenly had images of the husband running off spending £1.5k on a fence without me having any clue!

NotAnOtter · 04/02/2010 20:31

op is RIGHT

i have put up many a fence and I have to have nasty posts

thats the law

RustyBear · 04/02/2010 20:50

We don't actually own the fence on either side of the garden, just the one at the end, because the house on one side faces the road at the back of us.
When that house was converted to flats the developer put up a new fence - the posts are on our side, but we don't care, as it's a really nice fence and even the 'bad' side looks a lot better than the flimsy panels and sagging wire netting that was there before.

northernfriend · 04/02/2010 21:01

I would just lump it. They have replaced the fence and antagonism with the neighbours isn't worth the hassle.

DoNotFeedMeBiscuits · 04/02/2010 21:11

this is interesting. my parents put up a new fence in their front garden, a low one (only about 3 feet) to demarcate the boundary between them and the strange old man who lives next door, previously there was no physical boundary. it's on their land and they were fed up of him leaving the grass clippings from his front garden in their flower bed. My parents paid for it and it was one of those fences where the posts are in between the panels rather than on either side. there is apparently a good side and a bad side to the panels, and the fencing company put the fence up with the good side to my parents. It has made both front gardens look much smarter.

In the middle of the night, without speaking to my parents first, he went out and turned round all the fence panels. My parents didn't know what to do about it, as he doesn't speak to them any more (we think he's dementing, as there has been no fall out, and he used to keep a key and take in the post for them when they were on holiday etc.!)

If he had complained about the way round that the panels were, they would have probably moved them anyway - but what a strange thing to do in the middle of the night! They've left them the way he changed things to by the way - easier life!

LibraryLil · 04/02/2010 22:26

Strange though, isn't it - whoever pays good money for the fence has to give the nicer-looking side to the neighbour!

Our neighbours replaced their fence last year and all the posts are on our side; we never thought anything of it. Besides which, if we need to fix anything to it, e.g. some nice little pot holding trailing plants, we have some nice big posts to fix them to, whereas we probably wouldn't have done that to 'their' fence panels.

LifeOfKate · 05/02/2010 10:57

Hmm, am I strange to admit that I actually prefer the side with the posts? I'm looking at our fence now (we have post side) and I quite like the way it looks, the posts and cross wood bits all break up the long planks of wood nicely

sg271828 · 25/11/2014 22:25

Since the storms of last year, prices are even worse: we've been quoted £2500 and £1800, so far. I was talking to the second chap about having to put the good side on our neighbour's side and he said it's just courtesy. He also said nowadays most people keep the good side for themselves. There's a practical reason: you repair a featheredge fence from the good side. If you fall out with your neighbours you can't maintain it if they've got the good side. That's sealed it for me. Our current neighbours are great but who knows who we'll have next.

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