boundary fence or hedge

[redcaryellowcar]

we currently have a low chain link fence and hedge between ours and our neighbours garden, the hedge has got a bit carried away and grown through the fence so fence is a bit of a mess now, its our fence and hedge so we need to take responsibility for maintaining it, but just wondering if its ok to remove the fence and use the hedge as a boundary or if its best to replace the fence to ensure there is clarity on the boundary?
any thoughts gratefully received.

Depends on what your deeds say, and whether or not you are the original house buyer. Have a look at your deeds and post here what they say about you having to maintain the fence. That's called a positive covenant, and generally it's only enforceable against the original party to the deed.

i will have a look. no we are not original purchasers, tbh i am more concerned about maintaining our boundary so our neighbour doesn't 'creep' over into our garden, it is 'our' fence on deeds, but not sure what it says about maintenance.
thank you for your reply.

If it is your fence, there is no automatic obligation on you to maintain it. You can do with it as you please unless the deeds contain what's known as a positive covenant for you to keep it in good condition. The thing about positive covenants is that they are only enforceable against the original party to it, and that is why successive sales of the land contain a promise by the buyer to the seller that the buyer will observe the covenant and indemnify them if there is any breach. All a bit messy to enforce.

So is the fence yours and the hedge on their side ?

You could replace the fence with a cheap chain link one, particularly if the hedge means you can't see it. The primary purpose of a fence is to mark the boundary. If your neighbours don't want to look at it they can always erect their own fence on their side.

the fence is ours and is a cheap chain link one, which as you say we are kwwn to keep in place to maintain a clear boundary, the hedge is on our side of the fence too, so in order to repair/ replace the fence we need to access from neighbours side. she is being very reasonable about it, but think we will reinstate the fence just in case she sells and someone with less morals moves in!

further development is that after speaking to neighbour and saying i would speak to our fencing man about repairing it, she (or her son) have taken down the fence and chopped back the hedge. the chopping back irritates me because we had blackbirds nesting who i assume have abandoned their nest as i have not seen them today, but removing the fence was unecessary as only needed a repair.
not really asking for advice, just updating really.