Right of way V right of access

[purdypuma]

Hi

Can anybody on here advise as to differences between right of way & right of access? Right of access stated in deeds to my property.
Terraced house with no access from road to NDN garden from road. However parents to NDN live other side of me & my back garden is effectively being used as a thoroughfare between their 2 houses. They have just marched through my garden with my back door wide open (& me stood open mouthed!) Carrying outdoor furniture, not bothered to ask if it's okay etc.
I just feel as though I have no privacy at the moment. I do have legal cover on house insurance.

You can have an issue all you want, but you chose to buy a house that allows your neighbours to walk through it.

well, the garden anyway. The house itself would be worse!

There's countless houses like this. I've lived on one myself on a new build estate. Some people won't use the access. Some people will use it once a week for their bins. Some people will use it every time they come in or out.

I can understand why you don't want it happening, it must be very annoying.

I agree with building a fence within your garden to create a path.

Hanging on for a diagram. I know it’s not parking, but if it helps in my mind they are driving little cars across the garden so I think it counts………….

I cannot grasp this ... any chance of a diagram OP?

I think the biggest issue is that your neighbours either side are related. If they were not then there would be no need for all this wandering to and fro.

Check the wording of your deeds carefully.

But that's your opinion. Unless there are any restrictions on the right of access outlined in your deeds, they can go back and forth as many times as they want.

I have a cottage that has no access to the garden apart from via the house . The garden has a dog leg at the back , my guess is that it once had the right of way via the next door garden but at some point they gave them extra garden instead . Maybe you could do that ?

Yes, I grew up on a private road. Technically my parents owned the piece of road and the piece of pavement that was shown on the Land register as theirs but of course people had the right to walk and drive to their own homes.

They have the right to access through your land as many times as they like.

I think you need to look at the exact wording re access on your deeds and also the deeds of the adjoining 2 properties. I believe you can get copies from the Land Registry for a small fee.

It is usual for terraced properties to have right of access to the rear of the adjoining properties.

I have kept my mouth shut on many occasions, today was not one of them

You are a numpty to have antagonised them. Any change made to the arrangement is likely to be reliant on them wanting to do you a favour.

Did your solicitor not explain what the right of access meant, when you bought the property? If not, that it's him/her you should be getting annoyed with, not the people legitimately exercising their right.

You'll find yourself in a whole heap of trouble if start challenging your neighbours for using their right of way.

You need a solicitor to chck your deeds and advise you.
Having had several friends who have had issues with obnoxious neighbours over wayleaves, access, etc, over the years, I would now avoid any property that had anything of the sort. They can be fine, but they can also be a source of really stupid aggro when people are selfish, entitled, unreasonable, on a power kick, or are just short of something better to do.

Am I being really thick but isn't access for her neighbours house only to use not the parents who it has nothing to do with it and doesn't have the right to cross it ?

*have

Good point.

We are mid terrace and we and our RH neighbours have this right over our LH neighbour's garden. We hardly ever use it and neither do the RH neighbours.

Sadly it's probably the case that your neighbours do have the right but they are absolutely taking the piss.

I had exactly the same situation in a little village I lived in years ago, even the bathroom connection over a shared carriageway. Our neighbour had the same access across our garden to get her bins out, I hated it but I'm afraid there's nothing you can do about it. They can go back and forth as often as they like unless it says differently in the deeds.
I currently live along a track that is owned by my neighbour. In my deeds it says I can use the track for any purpose at any time.

It’s likely only one of the houses has “right of access”.
But having that right means they can use it as often as they like.

Your best option will be to make it as awkward for them as possible.
Think multiple gates, lots of large plant pots and bushes to go around etc.

But be aware that if you block their access too much they could legitimately complain and take action about it.

There's really no need for them to access their back garden through mine unless taking bins out or access for maintenance to their property

Do your deeds say that access is dependent on whether you feel they 'need' it @purdypuma?

You've had the answer multiple times now. I'm not really sure what you hope to achieve by arguing here?

isn't access for her neighbours house only to use not the parents who it has nothing to do with it and doesn't have the right to cross it ?

I doubt it. It's access to and from that house. No individuals will be specified on the deeds.

We need a diagram OP!

I used to live in a house exactly like this. Very common in the North.

Made worse in our case in that no one used their front doors as they went straight from the street into the (small) front room so we all used the back doors.

We were joined to LH neighbour entirely and then had a ginnel between us & RH neighbour (joined above the ginnel by the front bedrooms).

We all 3 used the ginnel to access our back gardens and LH neighbours had right of access our back garden. Right of access is for anyone to access the back of their house: LH neighbours themselves, their visitors, postman etc. If RH neighbour wanted to visit LH neighbour he had every right to walk across my garden.

It was disconcerting to see them walk right by my kitchen window, especially as they had dogs, but they were legally entitled to do so.

We never had an issue though. Once the teenage son of LH-neighbour drunkenly puked in our garden on his way home and his mother was mortified! She was out scrubbing it at 6am and sent him round later to apologise.

Sorry OP. They're in the right. You're wrong. Suck it up and check deeds more carefully next time you buy a house.

I didn't challenge them. They overheard a telephone conversation I was having in my own back garden & one of the parents in the left came into my garden arguing the toss. I told them that I would have appreciated it if they'd have knocked on to let me know that they were going to be going past my open door kitchen door & window numerous times carrying garden furniture & that they needed to respect my privacy in my own house & garden.

Worst.
Advice.
Ever.

You can't block access to people's houses with locks or pots.

They do not have to notify you that they are exercising their right of access.

Right of way means anyone can cross the land to continue their journey, right of access is used to access a specific property by people needing to get to that property. Unless your deeds and theirs specifically state that they have to ask your permission to exercise that right (which is suspect they don't) then unfortunately they don't need to let you know or ask permission.

Your solicitor should have notified you what this meant when you purchased the property.