animals on right of way

[sellotape2021]

hi all, wasn't sure where else to put this but need some advice if possible before contacting solicitor.

parents have a right of way through a field attached to their house. the deeds state that basically they have a right to use the right of way whenever they want to via vehicles or walking.
this has been fine up to now as the landowner hasn't had any stock in the field and just used it for hay.
there was a gate on my parents property that led into the field where the right of way is. the gate rotted and my parents never bothered replacing it. it was their gate.

the landowner died and left it to his son who has now decided he wants to keep cattle on there and has told my parents that they have illegally removed the gate which leads onto the field and unless they replace it he has no choice but to erect electric fence (which would block my parents right of way access) so my dad will now have to replace the gate to prevent this.

the other issue is if there are cattle in the field and onto the right of way how will they be able to use the right of way when the cattle will be on there? they don't know anything about cattle and it would be dangerous to try and move them out of the way and what happens if they accidentally let them our whilst opening the main field gate?

can they insist the field is fenced off leaving the right of way empty even though the land doesn't belong to them?

Is the ROW their only access to their house?

The landowner can keep whatever stock he likes in his field and if your parents aren’t prepared to replace the gate then electric fencing is a reasonable option to stop cattle taking up residence in the garden. The landowner is taking appropriate measures to keep his stock in. It is possible to have electrified gates within the fence. Cattle aren’t inherently dangerous and lots of footpaths and rights of way go through fields with cattle in.

They aren’t inherently dangerous and yet they have caused countless deaths. I can understand your parents concern.

Cattle grid?

Looking online farmers can put cattle in fields. Not bulls over a certain age.
They need to replace the gate.
Owner is putting in cattle, they might not always be there, perhaps it is more hassle and he returns to hay.

An elderly client i know lives in a cottage in the middle of a field with the only access being through this field. This field at certain times of the year has cattle in it. The farmer installed a cattle grid at the entrance of the field by the road, she installed a cattle grid at the entrance to her property so cattle could not get in and she would not have to exit a vehicle to open a gate. Its worked for over 30 years. Farmer is allowed to put cattle in a field as long as they are fenced in, electric fencing is fencing.

What do you think the answer is OP? What do you think the land owner should do?

Well if it's a right of way the landowner can't legally block it with an electric fence

And if they want to fence cattle in , then the landowners would need to place a gate or cattle grid on their land to make it safe for their animals

But usually it's not worth getting in a spat with a neighbour

I would be concerned with cattle unfenced from the vehicle access however

Is it a proper road or a track that will be churned up by the hooves ?

As someone who owns land and livestock. I can put whatever stock in my field as I want other than a bull. I don’t have to fence off the ROW. If I put electric fence up I have to sign that it’s electric every 50m and put a gateway in for access. That’s the legality but it is possible to come to a good arrangement with the landowner.

Is your RoW your only access? In which case I would suggest purchasing a new gate ASAP. Where does the track run? Is it surfaced?

Cattle unless with young are not dangerous. I would get a good working arrangement with the landowner and come to an agreement as to how you can access and exit safely.

Round here there are various livestock on all kinds of rights of way road and footpath so I can't see this being illegal. They can go through in the car if they're scared.
The farmer has a legal responsibility for preventing his livestock roaming uncontrolled so yes, the space where the gate was needs filling and he is at least giving them warning that if they don't gate it he'll have to fence it.

Of course he can put animals in his own field. Your parents have right of way, not a right to the whole field. If they’re that bothered then tell them to offer to buy the field. If not, get a gate and stop being so entitled.

@RealisticSketch

Round here there are various livestock on all kinds of rights of way road and footpath so I can't see this being illegal. They can go through in the car if they're scared. The farmer has a legal responsibility for preventing his livestock roaming uncontrolled so yes, the space where the gate was needs filling and he is at least giving them warning that if they don't gate it he'll have to fence it.

as it's a right of way he must leave access

@User135792468

Of course he can put animals in his own field. Your parents have right of way, not a right to the whole field. If they’re that bothered then tell them to offer to buy the field. If not, get a gate and stop being so entitled.

They actually have offered to buy the field over the years - several times....and they are LEGALLY entitled (to use the right of way) its quite clearly written in the deeds they have access to it at all times and the landowner isn't allowed to prevent it

the gate WILL be replaced but there has been no communication from the landowner about it up to now, why could he just not have knocked and the door and said oh by the way there will be cattle going in the field, any chance you can put a gate there? rather than the shitty "you have illegally removed your own gate" message...

This is not the same as a public right of way, there is a gate to the entrance of the field and then a lane and a gate into the entrance of my parents property - the lane continues onto the rest of the field.
They are allowed vehicular access in and out of the right of way - i don't see how this will be possible with cattle up and down the lane.

I'm not saying he shouldn't have any animals in the field - that's not what im saying at all, i'm just trying to establish whether hes allowed to block the access with animals or whether he has to temporarily fence them off further up past the right of way.

Replace the gate. I don’t know why you would be difficult about that, to be honest. Yes the landowner could have been friendlier about it, but there’s no point dwelling on that or turning it into a fight.

As for animals blocking the access, just drive round them or honk at them till they move?

Perhaps he did knock and they were out
Perhaps he wanted to socially distance
Perhaps he's still upset about the death of his father

no one is being difficult about the gate they WILL be replacing it, infact someone has come around this morning to measure up to get it sorted, that was never an issue, it was the fact that they didn't even know about the cattle and were accused of doing something illegal.

So they need to access their property via this gate and they’re concerned that as the field now contains animals the animals may escape while the gate is open and they drive through? Do you think the new landowner is trying to force them out? Make life as difficult as possible so they sell up?

You just open the main gate into the field. Drive through, stop. Close gate. Drive across field. Open gate to house, drive through, close gate. Cows are unlikely to try to bolt through while you’re driving through. I don’t think you need to worry about that.

It will be more faff but thats always the risk with shared access/rights of way. Things change when ownership changes, and life can get more difficult. The presence of livestock doesn’t block your right of way so the farmer is doing nothing wrong really.

@justanotherneighinparadise

So they need to access their property via this gate and they’re concerned that as the field now contains animals the animals may escape while the gate is open and they drive through? Do you think the new landowner is trying to force them out? Make life as difficult as possible so they sell up?

exactly!

I think he is trying to make it so difficult so that they won't end up using the right of way - unfortunately he is known in the area (he owns other parcels of land) and has bullied other property owners in the past which is why i'm thinking hes purposely being antagonistic.

My parents just need to know if they have a legal leg to stand on before contacting solicitors as they are both retired and don't have unlimited funds, they need to know if it will actually get them anywhere before spending the money.

For example, if they wanted to use the ROW one day and the cattle escaped - they aren't particularly quick on their feet anymore so if one happened to get past who would be to blame if they did attempt to try and move the cattle back up the lane?

op the cows will move, my client has a similar set up, a track/Road runs directly up the middle of the field from road to her property (she has a cattle grid) we regularly have to toot horns to move cows from this road, they do move, some are a little stubborn though. My client is now in her late 80s and has never had to deal with an escaped cow in the 30+ years she has lived in her property.

@Phillipa12

op the cows will move, my client has a similar set up, a track/Road runs directly up the middle of the field from road to her property (she has a cattle grid) we regularly have to toot horns to move cows from this road, they do move, some are a little stubborn though. My client is now in her late 80s and has never had to deal with an escaped cow in the 30+ years she has lived in her property.

thanks thats reassuring!

The cows will move. Promise. I'm petrified of the things, but they WILL move.

the gate WILL be replaced but there has been no communication from the landowner about it up to now, why could he just not have knocked and the door and said oh by the way there will be cattle going in the field, any chance you can put a gate there? rather than the shitty "you have illegally removed your own gate" message...

As for this - I can see why it's rubbed you up the wrong way, but it sounds like they've had advice and followed that. It might have been nicer to come and talk to you directly, but perhaps they were concerned about why the gate wasn't there, or still upset about their father, etc.

I'd try and put that out of your mind. Your parents have benefitted from gateless entry for some time - now they're putting the gate back, and there will be cows, but there's really nothing here to be too upset about. It's just change. It'll feel less uncomfortable with time.

I’m trying to see the problem here, and I can’t, other than it would appear that 2 parties have started off from a position of both being bloody-minded and now the situation needs de-escalating so that they can both get on with their lives. If the OP’s parent’s property opens onto a field, it is common sense to ensure that their property is correctly contained, as the farmer has a right to put whatever they want in their field, at any time. However, I agree that a quick ‘we are putting cows in the field and we notice you do not currently have a gate’ message might have gone down better without the ‘illegal’ bit. Having said that, the farmer may have come across people before who would argue with him about whether he can graze livestock in his own fields and feels he should get a preemptive strike in to show he is not someone who will be persuaded not to go about his livelihood on the land that he owns.

There are well known places near where I live where there are cattle roaming on land that a public road passes over, and the biggest issue is calves being hit by careless drivers. I think anyone who bought a house on this stretch of road who argued about the farmers’ rights to graze cattle would very rapidly find themselves on the front page of the local newspaper being laughed out of the area.

It is in the best interests of the OP’s parents to perhaps forge a better relationship with the landowner, and to maintain their perimeter properly if their lack of maintenance impacts on the livelihood of someone they could vaguely class as a neighbour.

Even if your parents had a legal leg to stand on, I wouldn't recommend solicitors. He could argue the whole way through until they couldn't afford to continue a case. The worst boundary dispute I've seen involved a neighbour who stubbornly argued all the way up to the court of appeal. He lost and was ordered to pay 400k in costs to our client but our client nearly went bankrupt during the six year process and had to sell his two buy to let properties to stay afloat. I wouldn't wish that kind of stress on anyone.

Ask the farmer to make a catch pen at the gate, big enough for the car. It'll mean opening one more gate but it'll also remove the risk of any animals escaping.

@Lolalovesmarmite

Is the ROW their only access to their house?

The landowner can keep whatever stock he likes in his field and if your parents aren’t prepared to replace the gate then electric fencing is a reasonable option to stop cattle taking up residence in the garden. The landowner is taking appropriate measures to keep his stock in. It is possible to have electrified gates within the fence. Cattle aren’t inherently dangerous and lots of footpaths and rights of way go through fields with cattle in.

As above.

For ease of vehicle access your parents could if owner is happy with that option put in a cattle grid instead of a gate to your property. It's something fairly common on farms around here. No idea re costs though.