Urgent! Planning Application objection question.

[meloncolic]

We just belatedly found out that a planning application has gone in to build an 11500 sq foot house on the acre plot beside us .

Mail should have been forwarded to us but wasn’t so now we have 24 hours to object.

Actually the house, for a hotel sized building, does look nice, but we have a right of way that is supposed to be 18 feet wide along the back drive which is currently encroached on by a fence and overgrown hedge (currently about 3.7 m wide).

New development looks like they are planning fence along the lane which would be a permanent narrowing of the ROW.

18 feet is specified in our original title deeds of 100 years ago - but if the existing lane has been narrower for ages have we lost the extent of our ROW?

Can we object and say the plans have to leave the lane wider than 3.7? How wide does it need to be for eg emergency services?

Get the objection in and get a right of way solicitor on the case now to restore the RoW before development.

I found this page useful in forming planning objections: planninglawblog.blogspot.com/p/how-to-object.html

The good news is regardless of whether they get planning or not, your legal rights regarding the access are unchanged.
The bad news is that that planning law doesn't care at all about rights of way, just about planning policy, so objecting on those grounds will be not relevant. For example, you can apply for planning permission for something on someone else's land living miles away, and get it granted, but you would be unlikely to be able to build it!
In practical terms you might be able to get in touch with the planning team tomorrow and discuss what objections you can make and what information they need.
Regarding the right of way you would need to take your own legal advice and action but I'm guessing it would involve letting the other side know you intend to enforce your rights, and then doing so if necessary. Good luck.