Can they really put scaffolding on my property?

[2Cats1Dog]

One of the flats above us (leaseholders like us) have got permission from the freeholder to convert their loft and to do this they need to put scaffolding on our property, which would mean months and months of misery for us. Surely, they can't be allowed to do this??? I mean, it's not like it's necessary maintenance work, it's purely to improve their flat, it's not essential work! Has anyone else been in this situation? Help please!

@RockinHippy Thank you very much, will have to investigate more 2morrow. (only heard about all this on Thursday)

@HailEdmundLordofAddersBlack Thank you!
I know some people say I shouldn't believe the freeholder when he says it will be 8-9 months, but he says it's based on what the builder says. But this all new to me, so will try and find out more 2morrow. Thank you everyone for your helpful comments and support! xx

@2Cats1Dog
People’s opinions and experience really are useless in the absence of having read your lease. Which will set out your rights and your neighbours rights.

Op, what you've been told cannot be right. It's that simple. A loft conversion is really about strengthening the floors, and putting a stair case in etc, The external work, is normally restricted to to thr addition of a window or two, it's days worth of work, a couple of weeks, even, but it's not eight to nine months works.

So either this is not a loft conversion, or it's not eight to nine months of external buikding work.

The sheet cost of having builders in for eight to nine months just working on the exterior, and the scaffolding costs, would run into hundreds of thousands. Literally.

So it's really important you find out what work is being done, because it cannot be a loft conversion with external building work for nine months.

It's like saying you're going to have your twelve foot by twelve foot lawn re turfed and you think the gardeners will take six months to do it.

They are probably partly saying 8-9 months to manage expectations. If they said 6 weeks and it was up for 12, it would be very annoying, but if they said 16 and it was up for 12 it would be great! However 9 months sounds too high even for thinking of an estimate and doubling it....

Hey. I had this exact situation. I signed a party wall agreement in good neighbourly faith. They assured me the scaffolding would be up for six weeks. It ended being up for NINE MONTHS. Front and back of house. It was absolute hell with the noise and inconvenience. All day, every day for nine months! They moved out elsewhere while the work was being done. I couldn't use my garden, couldn't get my bike out the front door. The builders were creepy to have around. When it did come down they left a terrible mess. So I would get written guarantees (with penalty clauses) from both them and the builders. It's not just a little thing. It really ruined my quality of life for nine terrible months. They took P*ss. Don't let it happen to you.

@JoeyPark As this was 5 years ago I would think all has been resolved!