Can I send my roof water to my neighbour's gutter?

[timsk3]

I've just had some work done on my roof, and just as it's finishing, my (semi-detatched) neighbour has pointed out that I no longer have a down pipe on my side, so all my roof water will drain into her gutter and down pipe.

Is there anything in planning and/or building regs covering this? Do I *have* to have a down pipe? If I offer to clean her gutters every year instead, is that reasonable?

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

You dont have to have a downpipe, but if you previously had a downpipe on your side then you have no automatic right to use the neighbours gutters to drain your roof.

If you can come to an agreement with the neighbour then fair enough, but be aware these agreements can often go sour. Rather than mess about why cant you fit a downpipe on your property?

 

[joe-90]

If I were her I'd put a baffle in the gutter then your water can run all down your house. Stop being selfish, it's YOUR water.

 

[timsk3]

@joe-90: I'm glad I live where I do then, rather than, say, next door to you. Thanks for your, um, contribution.

FWIW, I'm not assuming that I have an automatic right to use her downpipe. I'm looking at what amicable solutions are within the realms of possibility so we can consider our options.

If it turned out that building regs say I have to have a downpipe, then that's the end of the discussion.

If not, and my elderly neighbour would like to have her gutters cleaned for free from now on, then that might be the way to go.

 

[devonlad]

are you saying you have taken your down pipe off and set the fall of the gutter to flow into hers.. ? if so i think she has the right to say you need to reinstate it.. if it was always that way as is the case with many terraced houses sharing 1 pipe between 2/3 then no harm done as you may not have a conveinent place for water to exit

 

[^woody^]

Normally with semis, although there may be a downpipe on each property, the gutter is actually shared and some water from one roof will go through the neighbouring gutter and downpipe. There is also an implied right for each neighbour to allow the passage of water and to expect the passage of water

So, although you can expect your neighbour to allow your rain run-off to discharge via her gutters, she can expect he same - although you have removed the downpipe preventing this.

You don't have to have a downpipe, you can if you like, just let it drip. But the neighbour should not be disadvantaged by your method of discharging the water

 

[seema15]

Do not do that at all. My neighbors roof is causing problems for my property, destroying it actually . I have had to take them to court over it now with expenses for myself in the region of £35 k.

Find solutions for your own house as water causes damage and when things go wrong such arrangements are hard to work to put right.

 

[cotswoldbuilders]

Do not do that at all. My neighbors roof is causing problems for my property, destroying it actually . I have had to take them to court over it now with expenses for myself in the region of £35 k.

Find solutions for your own house as water causes damage and when things go wrong such arrangements are hard to work to put right.

Thats some expensive guttering.

 

[timsk3]

Thanks for all your views (and I'm intrigued to know what caused £35k of damage there, seema15!)

I've had a downpipe added at the corner of my house, so roughly half of the water from both of our roofs will drain down my side.