What is the law re boundary fences and access...

[gillybean2]

I have returned from holiday to find that my neighbour/her builder boyfriend appears to have been in my garden and shifted my plant pots about and removed fence panels.

Several pots have clearly been moved on the patio (I know because I had moved them all to sweep under the week before and had put them all carefully back onto feet and they are now all wobbly and not properly on their feet). Also a couple of plants had been damaged and I couldn't work out how or why when I first got home but now suspect it was them moving stuff about.

It appears they have done this to remove 2 of the fence panels (which again I know have been removed as they were a bit the worse for wear after 12 years but still functioning and I had looked at replacing them and felt they had a year or two left in them at least).
There are now bits of wood from the bottom of the panels strewn in my flowerbed and a noticable gap at the bottom of one panel with the bits of wood which have fallen off left on my plants.
Plus the trellis I had on one panel had not been put back on and the clemetis climbling up it had simply beep dumped on top of other plants. Fortunately the trellis is not attached to the fence panel and can be removed (with care) to paint behind etc.

Anyhow the panels were removed so they could clad the wooden structure they had build around the gas bottles she has put right up against the fence. I can see the thing has been cladded and her garden is full of offcuts of the stuff.

Ok so my neighbour does have right of way across my garden and one other to access her garden. I don't have any issue with her using that. But I don't think that includes moving my plant pots (which were not blocking the gate) or trespassing furthe up my garden.
And I understand that access can be asked for to repair walls/fences etc. but she didn't ask!

She's not been home since we got back but she came home late this evening. I knows she's probably hoping to have got away with it.

It's not the first thing I've had an issue with her over (I posted a while back about her builders starting work at an unreasonable time of the morning on a sunday and she has completely ignored all third party wall rules when putting her central heating in).

I think she has gone too far and that it is rude to say the least to not even ask or mention to me she has done this. I am fed up of her taking the mickey like this and am tempted to ask a solicitor to write a strongly worded letter reminding her of various things to include that she only has access via my garden and to ask for permission in future if she wishes to access the fence or move things in my garden for access. I also want to point out the third party wall act so she has no excuse to ignore it in future.

Where do I stand legally re her entering my garden to move stuff without asking me first?

Sorry longer than I intended. Guess I needed to rant a little too!

Is that really necessary? How much damage has actually been caused? Wobbly plant pots? This could escalate badly.

It is escalating badly from her previous ignoring of the law re third party wall, builders starting work on a sunday before the legal times allowed and some other matters. She is bang out of order and I have spoken to her before about some of this and ignored others.

But why should I put up with her (as I see it) blatent disregard of the law of trespass and what will she stoop to next I wonder!?

I'm fed up of simply having to put up with it and her thinking it's ok to behave like this and to ignore the law and her neighbours rights.

It is NOT ok for her to wander into MY garden and shift MY stuff, remove MY fence and not even think to mention it to me let alone ask for permission.

What I'm hoping for here is that someone here can clarify what the law is in regard to trespass in this situation so I have my facts completely straight before I approach her.

She wasn't accessing her fence (the fence is mine anyhow). She was accessing a structure that she chose to build right up against the fence. Even if she was accessing her own fence my understanding is she would have to ask my permission to be in my garden to do that.

Ok so she has right of access to walk across my garden to access her own garden. That isn't the same as the right to stop and move my pots, remove my fence panels, and do some building work from my garden. There is no way they could of clad the back of the thing without being in my garden to do it. The broken bits of wood from the panels, moved pots,and damaged plants are all proof of that imo.

OK then.

The law of trespass says you can get an injunction restraining future trespass, and damages.

Damages are to cover the cost of damage to property - in your case I'd suspect they would be tiny.

As for whether it was trespass, it depends. The CAB website says:

There may be a right of entry specifically for the purposes of inspection or repair in the property?s legal documents. If there is no such right, or no agreement can be reached, the law allows you as the person wishing to carry out repairs to apply to the county court for an access order allowing you to enter your neighbour?s land to carry out the repairs. There is a fee for the application.

Check the deeds to your property. Presumably they didn't apply for an order.

The point I was trying to make was that if you send a solicitor's letter you can probably expect relation with your neighbour to deteriorate further.

Well she's been home for an hour and hasn't come over and avoided being in the garden when I was, although I hovered outside hoping to catch her.

I popped in to get something for ds, went back out to see her washing had been taken in and the back door shut! Coincidence?
I figured she was going to vanish off again without speaking to me because no one would close their back door in this heat and so knocked on the front door and asked to have a quick word about the garden...
"What about the garden"?
No straight out with yes sorry or oh I was going to come see you...

So I had to explain that it was obvious they had been in my garden moving things. "Oh yes they moved your pots out the way and took out the fence panels"
Her excuse is that her son turned up on Friday without warning to do it and I wasn't here to ask.
I pointed out that it was still tresspass and she needed my permission 'But you weren't there to ask' she says again.

I said that she could of given me warning of the possibility of this happening so I was aware of the possibility because she must have know it would at some point even if she couldn't be specific on the date. I also made it clear that it is my fence, my garden, and my pots and she needs my permission to move things and be in there and should of waited till she got it.

"But they put everything back and I told them to be careful"

I explained there was minor damage, the trellis had been left on top of plants and a couple of things had been broken, nothing I was going to moan specifically about. She said she'd come over and help me move the pots and pay for any damage. I said I didn't actually want her in my garden and that I would move them and that I would rather have moved them myself in the first place.

More of the "you weren't there so I could ask you" to which I pointed out that the neighbour on the otherside knew where I was and has my mobile number so I can be contacted if there was ever an emergency which putting cladding on her gas bottle house is not

I also pointed out that I knew she had spoken to the other neighbour to say they'd be bring materials through the right of way but that she hadn't put a note through my door to advise me what had happened or tried to come and see me since and it felt like she was trying to get away with it. "No not at all", she says, "it was all such a rush". Well it's wednesday now and it happened on friday. Considering we got home friday evening she wasn't in so much of a rush to let me know now was she!

I said I have no problem with you using the right of way, you don't have to ask for that, but you do need to ask to move things in my garden.

Finally she apologises (but only because there's nothing else to say really is there). It wasn't sincere and I don't think she meant it as in I won't do it again and she certianly hasn't accepted that she was in the wrong imo. "You know I wouldn't want to upset you, we do have to live next door to each other..." Not an I was in the wrong and I should have been in your garden without permission and I won't do it again.

I told her communication was the key and that I had said that to her before. That I would have probably said yes, but she should have asked me. "OK" she says.

I think I need to follow up with a letter still as she clearly doesn't get it. Being in a rush is not an excuse for trespassing or ignoring your neighbour's rights. I do feel I need to be strong about this now or her son and boyfriend she will just keep walking all over me.

If it was the first things then ok let it go, but it isn't.

I will add that the reason they started the building work at 7am on sunday morning was because they were in a rush then too. Does being in a rush mean you can ignore manners/neighbour's rights/the law!?

And breathe........

I think you are over reacting about this incident because you are still annoyed about previous events.

From a distance, it does sound like a storm in a tea cup...(crouches in anticipation of flak).

storm in a plant pot you mean!

Yes possibly I an over reacting because of her previous form.
BUT the reality is she has broken the law and trespassed on my property. She seems to have a total disregard that there are rules, laws and manners when it comes to neighbours and she can't just do what she wants because she is in a rush.

She NEEDS my permission to enter my property and do what they did. There are rights for access to her boundary fence, but this isn't what she was accessing and the fence is mine anyhow!

She didn't obtain permission to do this and didn't come and say anything before or after the event.

Should I just lie down and accept this?
If she walks in my house next and starts moving things around in here should I simply accept that too?!

She trespassed on my property and that is against the law. I want her to realise that because right now I don't think she gives a shit does.

Sorry Gilly, I mean this in the nicest possible way, but .

If she'd ripped up all your plants, set fire to your trellis then defecated through your letterbox then I'd agree with maybe forking out for a strongly worded solicitor's letter, but setting your plantpots askew?

You have made your feelings clear to her, I don't think there's much more needs to be done to be honest.

I think it is difficult when you live somewhere where others have a right of access. I have the same but fortunately have a lovely neighbour who doesn't abuse it. Contrast that with my other neighbour who is an utter nightmare. I posted here a while ago when a fence panel was demolished - probably by him as it had been done from his side - then he sabotaged my attempts to have it repaired. I ended up having to pay for the work to be done twice because of his antics.

It is easier to get on with neighbours than not so if I were you now she has apologised I would let it go. In my case my neighbour was verbally abusive and went out of his way to blame another neighbour for demolishing the fence (I didn't discuss with him who may have done it as I didn't see it happen).