Nutty neighbour boundary stuff

[BoffinMum]

Backstory: In 2013/4 some new people moved in next door to the house we rent out (we used to live there and plan to move back in a couple of years). They built a large extension against our garden wall, and put scaffolding all over our garden so they could do this. I don't actually remember receiving a Party Wall Notice (they might have sent us one, I honestly can't remember). The first I knew of things going wrong was when the tenants complained the scaffolding had been there, uncovered so dangerous for the tenants' kids, which was in our garden for six months. It took a couple of weeks after that for the scaffolding to be removed, at my very polite request, the scaffolders also broke some plant pots in the process and said they would pay for the damage but this didn't happen. Anyway, the building work was all completed and things have been fine since then; we didn't make a fuss as it wasn't really worth it. You've got to get on with people, right?

The other relevant thing to this is that according to their deeds, they are suppose to pay us a shilling a year for the right to fix a gate post against the side wall of our house. Again, this isn't megabucks so we haven't made a big deal about it. Life is too short.

Fast forward to 2020. Our next door neighbours have a rather neglected front garden, and let a load of plants grow up the side of our house to the point where the leaves completely blocked our first floor side window and roots damaged the wall. The plants had grown over our meter boxes as well. There is soil banked up against our house wall where they made a flower bed, and and it's made the wall damp and the plaster started flaking off on the inside. So we went around to ask if it would be OK to trim the plants back a bit and scrape back a bit of soil so our house wasn't affected any more. I went around, DH went around, and our gardener went around and asked what would be OK, and each time the neighbours were absolutely fine about it. So the gardener went ahead and did the trimming exactly as discussed.

Neighbour war then broke out. Mr Next Door Neighbour barged into our house while we were there doing some DIY and demanded to speak with DH. We think he may have stalked him on the Internet from what he was saying. He was so agressive I thought he was going to deck DH. He was extremely personally rude about our gardener in particular, which was sad as she is a lovely and very kind lady, very well trained and has impeccable gardening credentials. Our alleged crimes are:

1. We stood on their land by our meter boxes to cut back the shrubs. We are not allowed on their land ever, apparently, unless they give special permission and stand there supervising us at all times, which moving forwards means we can't read our meters any longer, the electricity and gas board can't either, and it's going to be difficult if not impossible to maintain parts of our house.
2. We cut back the shrubs and that meant the asbestos sheets and building rubble they had stacked up against our house wall further back since their extension build years were now visible from the road. Apparently our builders interfered with the asbestos sheets and took them out of their wrappers. (We had a plumber, painter and carpenter in to do some internal works, so obviously they wouldn't have had reason to do that).

I asked what remedy they wanted, eg us to replant for them with something that they liked but which didn't attack our wall, and Mr Next Door Neighbour refused to engage and just kept shouting at us about not going on his property.

A polite email was sent by DH after the Big Row, suggesting a calm compromise, and we have had a response. There are new alleged crimes.

1. We cut the branches of a magnolia bush that were hanging over our garden and this has misshapen the tree, we should have discussed it with them and asked their permission.

1. A window cleaner of ours stood on their roof (this makes no sense at all).

They have also said they are now going to run their front garden wall right along to our house wall so we can't access our meter.boxes. They have also indicated they plan to put a locked gate there (presumably using the gate post on our house they aren't paying us for).

I can think of nothing more tedious than exploding an immensely trivial boundary dispute up like this. They are people who do what they like, when they like, on our property and yet resent us reading our meters and keeping creepers growing over our windows. They therefore are, IMVHO, bonkers and not all that nice.

But in the meantime I am just not sure whether I need to be thinking about court orders or not, I would put nothing past these nutters now. All advice welcome.

I am also resisting painting a massive picture on the side of my wall making fun of them in some way (it's a conservation area so that is probably banned anyway, most sadly).

If nothing else get the council to inspect the asbestos - there are rules over disposing of it and I’m sure that covering it with plastic and stacking against a neighbours wall isn’t one. This is a health risk and will need immediate resolution. It might even be an offence not to dispose of it correctly knowing it’s asbestos?
Have they admitted it’s asbestos and do you have it in an email or text?

Get a property litigation lawyer and get some advice on the other issues your bulding insurance might cover the costs.
I suspect they’ve also can’t pile other rubble and builders waste against your wall if it breaches the damp course and they also can’t pile earth against your house such that it causes damp also the allow climbing plant to damage your house.

In addition if you have exterior meter boxes I assume that there must be something to grant access to utilities to read them - that might be in their deeds though.

The other stuff about the tree and your window cleaner I would ignore right now to concentrate on the issues that are potentially dangerous to your health and causing damage to your home.

I think this really needs legal advice or involvement. They don’t sound reasonable people and you need to know exactly where you stand.

I think you are both right but I do so hate a legal pile on. It's also really expensive. I've already spent £1.5k dealing with the previous tenants who just felt disinclined to bother paying their rent (very long story, not Covid-related).

House insurance have legal advice?

It's in their interest if the actions of the neighbours are damaging your house.

Bear in mind you'd have to declare all of this if you ever sell the house if it escalated further.

You should have some kind of easement to access your meters op. It would be strange if you didn't. I think before you go any further, just book a one off appointment with a decent solicitor to look at your deeds so you know your true position. Get them to put it in writing and pay for their time.

With regard to their hanging a gate from a post on your property well you can tell them to remove it again if they have not fulfilled their obligations. Again, you should get advice.

We had people in an adjacent courtyard actually drill into our dry stone wall and erect a large wooden sign. They not only didn't own the wall, but they only had a right of access to the courtyard. I wrote and told him to remove within seven days or I would do so and charge him storage fees until he collected.

I know you want to avoid disputes but they are bullying you. Sort your legal position and go from there. You clearly are intending moving back in so you need to make it clear you are not a pushover.

Whilst it is correct you need to declare legal dispute, I know of so many local neighbour fall outs that if everyone declared everything, no-one would ever move house. I objected to my neighbours hideous newbuild along with other neighbours and I would say so when I sold.

You've got a point, Elsie, about the declaration thing. People find it really hard to agree on property issues, don't they?

I have a copy of our deeds but not theirs - I wonder if these are just available from the Land Registry? How does this stuff work? Anyone know?

You might find it worthwhile to get some legal advice even if you aren’t going to raise an issue with the neighbours. I think the easement will be on the neighbours deeds as it’s them that needs to grant the access over their land to get to your meters.
You can download deeds off the land registry for a small fee - I think it was £3 not sure if it’s gone up. Not sure if this will contain the full deeds though.

In case there is nothing there do you know how long your house has had the exterior meter boxes? If it’s been a long time then there may be a way to get something registered - you might have to do a declaration - perhaps you might need the previous house owners from 2013. Again this might be something that you would benefit by speaking to a lawyer.

@BoffinMum I've been told you can download the deeds for any property from the Land Registry for a few pounds. Not done this myself so I don't know how it works.

Yes, you can download deeds from Land registry for about 3 quid. It's one fee for the plan of what they own - which might have different colours for bits you have access over or whatever, and another fee for the wordy bit that will explain what the colours are / any covenants etc.

Just make sure it's the proper land registry website - there's others out there that work as middle men and charge a lot more.

I did the title register entry for £3 but it doesn't give you the full title deeds with all the clauses on. That seems to be a different document altogether and I am not quite sure how to go about getting it.

In other news we were down there doing a bit of work in the garden yesterday, and Nutty Neighbour was in his garden, so DH made a point of saying hello in a civil manner. That rather threw him, apparently.