Does anyone know about the rules around rainwater discharge?

[StaplesCorner]

Neighbour at the rear of us has rigged up the drainpipes on his garage so that it only drains directly into our garden, into the back of our garage in fact, and floods it.

This must have been going on for years but when we finally realised what he'd done last summer, we asked him to come round and have a look and check out how he could move the pipe slightly etc. We asked twice, second time with a brief note, gave our phone number, no word. Then one day we found that he had leaned over the back fence (he may have even climbed into our garden) and actually capped off his drainpipe on his side to make sure that there would never be any chance it could drain into his side!!

We now want to install a new garage but the concrete base is constantly soaked. Is there any bylaw or legislation we can use? I am sure there is something about not allowing rainwater to drain onto your neighbours' land?

My parents neighbours did this and made them change the drain pipes. I believe that he cannot do this and you can force him to rectify it.
Try looking on garden law

Sorry my parents made them move the drainpipes

It's complicated as it's based in case law. Basically your neighbour has the right to drain water on to your land if you are downstream of him (this is called the sequential right to discharge), in the same quantity as was received.

if this was a ditch or stream alterations may come under s23 of the land drainage act but is unlikely to apply in this case.

You would therefore probably have to take out a civil case. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

Thank you both - will check out Garden Law too.

fluff that's interesting, as rear neighbour's land is about a foot higher than my garden, no one at fault that's just how it was all built many years ago. However, he has deliberately caused the flooding in the garage by the way he has rigged up the drainpipe - everyone else in this road has the same lower garden but we are the only ones flooded - all the other neighbours at the back have their drainpipes with downpipes coming into their own gardens with soakaways or butts.

Does this difference count, or are we still subject to the 'sequential right' rules in your own opinion?

Sequential right would be based on the natural condition- so if it would naturally soak into the ground (i.e. sandy soils) then piping water on to your ground would increase the quantity/ rate of flow to your land. I come from a public authority rather than legal background so hopefully someone else can advise on whether it matters when it was done.

Have you checked your deeds or your neighbour's deeds to see if there is any mention of drainage arrangements?

Does the sequential right to drainage allow for runoff collected and channelled from a roof or is it supposed to cover surface flow from rain falling on the ground or groundwater flow?

Do you have legal cover under your home insurance? I do wonder if you could claim that he is causing nuisance as he is not allowed to cause harm to your land but you really need proper legal advice.

This website might help too.

Actually that website has answered the question about sequential right of drainage - no, he can't channel the water from his property onto yours.

So, I'm not a solicitor, but I am a civil engineer working in flood risk management.
fluff is right about the sequential right to discharge, but I think this only applies where the upstream person has n't done anything to the water i.e. Rain falls onto the upstream land and runs downhill into the next garden/field etc naturally. There are local land drainage bylaws too.

But - in this case the neighbour is deliberately collecting water and piping it onto the OP's land, causing damage that the rainwater would not cause naturally. The ruling in Rylance v Fletcher says that that the claimant had the right to enjoy his land free of interference from water, and that as a result the defendant was guilty of trespass and the commissioning of a nuisance.

Now, as I say, I'm not a lawyer of any sort, and in Rylance v Fletcher the defendant didn't know that his works would cause flooding beforehand. In this case, the OP's neighbour is clearly piping the water deliberately to get it off his land!! This is very "foreseeable ".

I am mire than happy to be corrected by legally trained people who know, understand and interpret the law better than me though.

Well that would seem to answer the question thank you everyone, that website is very helpful Randomly - thank you all I know where we stand now.