Parking Space Issue

[ParkingSpaceProblem]

Regular user, name changed as picture may be identifiable

Neighbour is chopping down trees in picture to make room for a fence. They told us they are planning on attaching it to the wooden posts of our parking space. This would leave us unable to open car doors once in there. They said they think we would have enough room, I disagree.

We are planning on moving the metal shed in the picture so the green car would be further back and the silver car door would need to open between he first and second posts.

Also the land on the right is not theirs but communal land so I'm not sure they even are able to erect a fence there - I think they are planning on edging it with fencing and making it into their garden as nobody else uses it.

Legally, are the posts ours and can we say no? Our deeds say the whole space is ours and the posts are on our concrete section. I'm so worried about it. I have issues associated with hyper mobility which means I cannot twist out in a small gap and also have car seats to contend with.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

I don't know who owns it, I was confused when I said it had been purchased, reading map wrong. Looks like it's just council. It's just a little triangle about 6x4 metres going to a point at the side of their house but outside their boundary

Thanks BlackAmericanoNoSugar I'll take note of that. I may be able to say it but writing it down would be more traceable and they couldn't argue it

Id approach the council to buy that land if your in a position to do so.
One similar bit near me was offered to someone for not a lot. But they couldn’t buy it at the time. Developers now own the other side and the little strip so they don’t have a say.

Your mk1 is a thing of beauty.

Loving the mk1 love! Dp is also cross as the trees shielded it from the weather, but that's another issue.

Hadn't thought of buying it ourselves. That would really create a massive row!

You definitely need to speak to the council urgently! I would consider buying it if you can do so without alerting your neighbours

If they trespass on the land owned by the council that is not something you can prevent. It is for the landowner, the council, to enforce their rights.

You can however fence up to the extent of your property. Part of the pergola overhangs the concrete base. would it not be sensible to erect your own fence, using the edge of the overhang as a guide? That way you prevent the awkward neighbours being the ones to fence off land that doesn't belong to them and thereby determine the precise location of the fence.

@Collaborate - maybe but we still wouldn't be able to get out of our cars without difficulty.

There looks to be far more space between your car and the outside edge of the overhang than you'd get in any car park I know.

Possibly right... I'll have a measure

But then I'll be the one putting a fence in council property. Dodgy ground I think

Who is to say where the actual boundary is? Presumably your pergola was erected to fall exclusively within the boundary of your land?

A friend of mine ended up buying a parcel of communal land from the council next to her home because of issues with her neighbours.

The communal land was generally used as a parking area for anyone on the street because it was only waste land and stopped the narrow street from being clogged up, but her neighbour decided to fence it off to try and claim adverse possession or whatever it's called after the set amount of time as being claimed.

My friend wasn't having any of it so she contacted the council and bought the patch of land.

She still has trouble with the neighbour, they are so pissed off with what she's done (even though they could have legitimately owned the land had they not been so underhand) that they've taken to vandalising her property. It's all caught on CCTV now though so just waiting for it to be sorted through the courts.

Some people are just arses!

Possibly, it was done by the original builders so I doubt the thought carefully about boundary lines. The plans just have a red line round the square and no mention of the detail

@MrsBlaidd - that's exactly my fear, the repercussions would be endless if I bought it. I'm not too fussed what they do with it but I'd prefer not to have my parking space ruined.

The land registry plans are a general guide only. What exists on the ground is the main thing. Get a fence in there quick. Post and wire is the cheapest option. Make sure a reputable fencer does it. You want it to last. Then take plenty of photos.

Collaborate I’m not sure that is correct!

Land Reg plans are the official copies of title deeds.
IME if what is on the ground differs, it can be right PITA involving solicitors, surveys and proof of adverse possession.

Apply to the council to buy the land.
My local council is actively selling off these types of small plots and will probably bite your hand off. It probably won’t be too expensive either if it’s just a small plot with no space to develop or build on.
Do it before your neighbours do.

How well do you get on with them generally? Could you arrange to buy half each?

@TheCrowFromBelow This is what it literally says on the Land Registry website. All title plans show general boundaries unless the line of boundary is shown as having been determined under section 60 of the Land Registration Act 2002.

See here www.gov.uk/government/publications/land-registry-plans-title-plan/land-registry-plans-title-plan-practice-guide-40-supplement-5

The width of a boundary line on the tile plan could translate in to a strip of land 1m wide. How accurate is that going to be?

Hmm I don’t think it means general as in you can just move it if you feel like it though- eg if the boundary on OPs plan is clearly a rectangle I don’t think she can just plonk a fence Outside it and say it’s hers.

Otherwise we’d all be at it

Maybe a conveyancer can come along and clarify!

Is the issue though that you open you car door over th communal land in order to get out the car?

Go on the land registry and do a free map.searxh to find out who owns the land then let them know what the neighbour is planning.

It may have been sold to the neighbours. They can't attach a ything to your posts but they might put a fence just inside which will still cause you problems if you need to open your car door.wider than your drive way.

Maybe a conveyancer can come along and clarify

Collaborate is a lawyer.

He is not proposing that the OP move the boundary on the basis that she feels like it. Given the relatively small overhang the Land Registry plans will not be accurate enough to differentiate between a boundary running along the edge of the concrete base and one running along the edge of the overhang. As Land Registry plans are only a general guide, what matters is what exists on the ground. In this case, in the absence of any other evidence, it is reasonable to assume that the pergola lies entirely within the OP's boundary.

This is very different from someone moving their fence because they feel like claiming a piece of their neighbour's land.

pr thank you and collaborate didn’t know your job. Is your speciality property law? Obviously Don’t have to answer if that is too revealing.

I always thought that it’s the land reg title plan that’s the official boundary. Interesting to hear otherwise!

Brilliant, thanks for the clarification on that. It sounds like it could be a good idea to get the fence in and protect ourselves. Dp is a handyman so watch this space