Can my neighbours do this?

[user1471867483]

Mum and I live in an end of terraced house where next door is an old extension and is leasehold (mum owns the land). It’s quite an unusual complex. Their bathroom is above our front door (don’t ask!!).

Anyway, they have decided to carry out building works which we appreciate need doing. They did tell us they were going to do this, but didn’t ask us, the freeholder, permission. We’ve just let it go and decided ‘they need to do repairs, so let them’. However, I only bought a new car 7 weeks ago in brilliant white. I held off weeks and weeks to buy one as I waited until their works were over, but they didn’t keep us informed about a start date, which they promised and failed to let us know. They have erected scaffolding about 1 metre from our car parked on our drive and is over our front door entrance. It’s like they’ve taken over the whole land and both properties. I asked them if I should move our car and he said he ‘didn’t think so’. Now, there is brown dust all over our new car and they have moved their own car onto the road. I told them our car is a mess and said I’d have willingly moved the car but reminded him he said I didn’t need to and told him quite brashly, “You’ve moved your car alright haven’t you from your drive”.

What I’d like to know is should I move the car onto the road (which I don’t want to really to as it’s new) or leave it where it is or what? Also he said yesterday the drilling would stop at 12 noon, but it went on after 4pm. We feel they’ve completely taken over.

(Hope I've posted this in the right category - I didn't know where to post it).

TIA.

Beside the point.

Were you in when the scaffolding went up?

Not beside the point. You have told insurer where it is parked overnight so it can go on the road while they are working.

Why didn’t you move your car on your own initiative?

It’s normally parked in the drive but no insurer will expect you to leave it in a drive almost under scaffolding for a short time while building work is going on. They would expect you to do the reasonable thing and move it.

OP, move your car away from the building work to a safe place for the duration.

Insurers know perfectly well that cars that are normally parked off road overnight will still be parked on the road occasionally, e.g. if you go away to stay with someone. They won't make a fuss about you taking sensible precautions to prevent damage from building works.

Its next door and split level.

OP they can’t not put scaffolding up because you refuse to move your car. The are repairing the exterior of their property which is above your mothers ground floor and her drive. The scaffolding can only go in one place, you can move your car during the day time and park it back on the drive if you’re that concerned about it being on the street.
It’s really a non issue, a minor inconvenience and part of life with neighbours.

No I wasn't.

I think this really calls for a diagram. I can't really work out where the scaffolding is in relation to your car. Can you still get your car out if you need it? If so move it to the road during the day then back at night.

I'm another one who would be more concerned about the building works and the scaffolding rather than the car
Scaffolding can't just be erected on someone else's property. It needs discussion and paperwork at the very least. Is a party wall agreement in operation/needed?

If your DM is the freeholder, is she not responsible under the terms of the lease to maintain the exterior of the building? Assuming these are external works as there is scaffolding.

And was a wayleave agreement arranged before scaffolding was erected?

Your car is the least of your problems imo.

@user1471867483 insurance wise it’s totally ok to put your car on the road for the duration of the work. I would do that asap as otherwise the risk of it being knocked/pain damaged etc… is too high.

Im 😵‍💫😵‍💫 they out the scaffolding around you car. Well I can see why they did that (they would have had to wait until you came back otherwise) but it clearly increases risk of something happening (not just dust).

Your NDN aren’t helpful though.
They should have told you when they were going to start, where scaffolding was going (seeing it affects the entrance of the house) and when they will finish.
Seeing how they are behaving, I wouldnt trust any date or time and work around protecting your belongings.
So car away on the road until there is no scaffolding.
Assuming work will go on all day etc….

When I had a car about 11 years ago and it was parked on the road, it sustained a large dent in the side of it and to this day I never knew who did it, hence I'm scared to leave it on the road.

You are taking more risks with your car under the scaffolding though.

Another solution is for to leave your car on someone else drive. (Family, friends etc…)

If it hasn't moved from your drive in two weeks just buy a tarpaulin to cover it if you don't want it left in the road.

You are being very awkward.

Tbh if you're scared of marking that car, you shouldn't have gotten that car. It is going to get marked. You'll park under a tree and something will land on it. You'll park in a car park and someone will open a door into it. You'll drive down a narrow road and a hedge will scratch it. It's madness to leave it parked under scaffolding and think it won't get marked. And drive the thing! You'd be surprised how fast a car battery goes flat from not being used. (Unless it is an electric car. I have no clue about those.)

It sounds like there is a flying freehold/leasehold for the bit over your property - not uncommon in terraces etc.

If nothing else there should be a party wall agreement. Leasehold - dependent on the type of leasehold - can do works but as you say they need the agreement of the freeholder, has your Mum been given any documents etc? It should all be formal and in writing. Builders should not be going ahead with the work without these documents in place really

What’s the worst? Dust from the drive. Or parking on the rosd

then choose the one with the least amount of damage.

Buy a car cover? It would come in useful in the future too, to keep your car clean.

These things happen. It's just life. Otherwise you'd never take your car to the supermarket or any kind of car park.

@user1471867483 you don't tell your insurance company everywhere you park your car do you ?

But that means you'd never go anywhere. It could get damaged in Tesco car park , at work , at the cinema absolutely anywhere.

Ive owned a large scaffolding firm for the last 18 years. You only need verbal permission to erect scaffolding on someone else's land. A quick, "Is that OK?" "Yeah fine" kind of thing. You don't need contracts or party wall agreements of any sort. In 18 years we have only ever had to have something in writing and that was when bridging across the boundary of a famous gardener's property and they were worried about their plants.

Believe me when i tell you it would have been a massive ball-ache for the scaffs to have to put up the scaffold with your car in the way. They would have preferred it to be gone. I also don't imagine the NDN would have known the time and date the scaffold would be going up as the renderers would have been the ones organising the scaffolding, not the householder.

The brown dust will be from the renderers wire brushing the front of the property as prep for the render. It will wash straight off.

Can i just ask though, is there monarflex on the scaffolding? Its like white sheeting that covers the scaffold and should stop a lot of dust. If not and there is a scaffolding company sign on it, i would ring up and request some "scaffold sheeting" be put on as you are worried about things being dropped. Also make sure they have put foam on the uprights near your front door so you don;t walk into steel tubes in the dark.

Wow, I can’t help wondering if this post is for real!