GUTTERINGS AND DOWNPIPES

[Drumgilken]

Hello again,

I have not posted on here for a while.

I'm planning on replacing my guttering & downpipes.

My semi-detached bungalow was built in the 1980's & has
shared gutterings with the attached property.
During heavy downpours, the water comes over the top of my
gutterings and runs the walls & windows of my property.

When I replace my gutterings I am going to detach my gutterings
from my next door neighbour. The rain runs down both roof's and
into the gutterings, which then goes to the downpipes on the
corners of my property & then into the soakaway on my property.

I have been looking into the legalities of this & know my neighbour
will have to attach downpipes to his property & also build his
own soakaway.
I contacted the Environment Agency and they told me it was a Planning
matter.

I found the following information on a website:

www.environmentlaw.org.uk stating the following:

Your Rights and Duties (England & Wales only)
The general information provided here is not intended to constitute legal advice. You are advised to seek legal advice on your specific circumstances.

If you live in Scotland, this page does not apply to you. You should seek legal advice from a Scottish solicitor.

Rights of property owners
The law (common law) allows property owners to take reasonable measures to protect their land and property from flooding, provided that these measures do not cause harm to others. For information about building your own flood defences, see section below: Right to protect property from flooding.

The Environment Agency website offers guidance on simple measures you can take to protect your home. You may have to seek professional advice before you put some of these measures into practice. Other measures such as sandbag protection have some legal consequences. For instance, if the sandbags you place outside your home get soaked with floodwater, they may become contaminated with sewage and you would need to dispose of them properly. So if you intend to use sandbags for flood defence, ask your local authority for advice on disposal.

Responsibilities of property owners
The law (common law) requires that you use your property or land in a way that does not increase the risk of flooding to a neighbouring property. If you do carry out acts on your property that results in flooding to other people’s property, you may face a civil action.

To reduce the risk of flooding to neighbouring properties, the law requires that you:

• Keep your drains clear in your property and to ensure that you do not drain water into your neighbour’s property or foul drain. There is a natural right of drainage that allows water that flows naturally across your land to flow downhill naturally to your neighbour’s land. But you are not allowed to artificially channel water a way that will cause damage your neighbour’s land. If you do, you may face a civil action. (Example: Yes - Rainwater that falls on your lawn is allowed to flow downhill through your neighbour’s land. No - You are not allowed to channel roof water through a down pipe on to your neighbour’s property.)

I would like to know if any member on here has dealt this type of situation in the past & how they resolved it????

Many thanks.

Dee

 

[datarebal]

Are your downpipes blocked? is the soakaways still working?

 

[Drumgilken]

Hello there,

Thank you for your reply.

My downpipes & soakaway are working properly. I have them cleaned out regularly.

Why do you ask??

Thanks.

 

[Ian H]

If it was built like that I don’t think you can cut your neighbour off.

You could ask them to add another pair of downpipes. If I were them i’d drop one into their kitchen gully and see what was available for the other.

 

[datarebal]

if they are clear and working properly then they shouldn't over flow.
unless of course there is not enough down pipes.
If you cut your neighbours off as you suggest then his water will over spill where you have cut it off...gravity.

 

[Drumgilken]

If it was built like that I don’t think you can cut your neighbour off.

You could ask them to add another pair of downpipes. If I were them i’d drop one into their kitchen gully and see what was available for the other.

Thank you for your reply.

My neighbours do not have any downpipes. I am not responsible for my neighbour's
rain that ends up in their gutters, but, then it runs into my gutters creating the problem.

According Environment Law, they state this quite clearly as shown in the article I have posted.

 

[Drumgilken]

if they are clear and working properly then they shouldn't over flow.
unless of course there is not enough down pipes.
If you cut your neighbours off as you suggest then his water will over spill where you have cut it off...gravity.

Thanks again for you reply.

I have sufficient downpipes for my property. But They take the rain from both properties.
I mentioned in the first post that the overflow was affecting my property, not my neighbours.

 

[Drumgilken]

To reduce the risk of flooding to neighbouring properties, the law requires that you:

• Keep your drains clear in your property and to ensure that you do not drain water into your neighbour’s property or foul drain. There is a natural right of drainage that allows water that flows naturally across your land to flow downhill naturally to your neighbour’s land. But you are not allowed to artificially channel water a way that will cause damage your neighbour’s land. If you do, you may face a civil action. (Example: Yes - Rainwater that falls on your lawn is allowed to flow downhill through your neighbour’s land. No - You are not allowed to channel roof water through a down pipe on to your neighbour’s property.)

 

[Leofric]

You could ask them to add another pair of downpipes. If I were them i’d drop one into their kitchen gully and see what was available for the other.

You can't just discharge rainwater into a waste gulley that goes into a foul drain unless it is a combined drainage system .

 

[Ian H]

You can't just discharge rainwater into a waste gulley that goes into a foul drain unless it is a combined drainage system .

You shouldn’t, but in that situation I would.

 

[Ian H]

Thank you for your reply.

My neighbour does not have any downpipes. I am not responsible for my neighbour's
rain that ends up in their gutters, but, it runs into my gutters creating the problem.

According Environment Law, they state this quite clearly as shown in the article I have posted.

If you cut off their gutters you fail on this:

provided that these measures do not cause harm to others

If they agree to modify theirs first and add the downpipes and soakaway, then you could cut their off from yours.

Has this been happening since the 1980’s?

 

[Leofric]

You shouldn’t, but in that situation I would.

but I thought the idea was to advise people on the best practice and not 'advise' them to do what shouldn't really be done

 

[Ian H]

but I thought the idea was to advise people on the best practice and not 'advise' them to do what shouldn't really be done

Best practice for me would be to save money.

 

[Leofric]

Best practice for me would be to save money.

Just a thought but would you discharge foul or waste water into a surface water drain to save money

 

[Ian H]

Just a thought but would you discharge foul or waste water into a surface water drain to save money

No.