Neighbours' noisy building work - what can I do about it? Long!

[Sheila]

My neighbours have been building a ground floor extension for about a year now. I live in a terrace so their work has been astride the party wall boundary and has been very intrusive - at one point I wasn't able to get out of my back door because of obstruction by scaffolding, and the paving slabs outside my back door were pretty much destroyed.

They have paid to have the damage repaired and the external work is now done, but they are having a kitchen fitted, new flooring pout down etc , all of which is really noisy. This wouldn't matter if it weren't for the fact that they insist on using contractors who will only work at weekends, so no work takes place during the week when we're out all day but we (i.e. me and 9yo DS) have to put up with hammering, sawing and drilling at the weekends.

I've tried talking to them and asking them to have the work done during the week but they take no notice, and seem to think I'm unreasonable for complaining.

To come to the point, since polite requests have failed,do I have any legal options?

Thanks for reading this far - hope somebody can help.

If they are at the point of fitting flooring and kitchen, then the end should be in sight, shouldn't it?

I agree that the disruption and noise must have been a real pain, but am not sure what you'd achieve by legal action at this stage.

Dh has just read this over my shoulder and suggested you contact Environmental Health and make a complaint about the noise.

Also he says the fact that the work is being done at the weekends suggests it's being done cash in hand, on the fly. If there's a contractor's name on the van, then Inland Revenue might get involved too. It's possible that the workmen are turning up in their work van, but their bosses know nothing about it, and might also take a dim view.

Though it does depend whether you want to be able to preserve the relationship with your neighbours.

Sorry - dh keeps coming back into the room with more thoughts - he now wonders whether contacting the firm on the van (if there is one) to see if they know about this job, and if (possibly, and with his cynic's hat on) the work coincides with missing stock from work.

I though it was illegal to do 'noisy' work on a sunday?

Might be wrong though.