party wall act am in deep trouble (Ed.)

[Hook1]

Ignorance of the 1996 party wall act is no excuse so please don't tell me I'm stupid I now know it! My neighbour is sole owner of a garden freestanding wall dividing our properties. I have gone 6 inches from the base and erected a fence of trellis fixed to posts. The owner of the wall says I have broken the PW Act and is demanding I underpin as I have damaged his walls foundations. I scraped from his wall to a distance of 200mm and down 145mm but no foundations were found. So posts concreted in . Each post hole was checked for the same. He now says he has foundations 200mm over my side for his wall....they're not there. Any advice my neighbour is to say the least..unpleasant as a person and put to get anything he can.

 

[Mottie]

If you’ve only dug on your side of the wall without touching his wall, I can’t see any problems with that. Do nothing, just let him get on with it, he'll soon find out he's talking out of his arse.

 

[Hook1]

Thanks Mottie, we only dug our side but this 3m rule is so confusing. I dug holes closer than 3m but definitely not as deep as his foundations end below ground. This rule would mean I could plant no bushes or trees ever on my side of his wall without permission. He is a tricky fella and tells me he is a surveyor and knows these things.

 

[Hook1]

Ignorance of the 1996 party wall act is no excuse so please don't tell me I'm stupid I now know it! My neighbour is sole owner of a garden freestanding wall dividing our properties. I have gone 6 inches from the base and erected a fence of trellis fixed to posts. The owner of the wall says I have broken the PW Act and is demanding I underpin as I have damaged his walls foundations. I scraped from his wall to a distance of 200mm and down 145mm but no foundations were found. So posts concreted in . Each post hole was checked for the same. He now says he has foundations 200mm over my side for his wall....they're not there. Any advice my neighbour is to say the least..unpleasant as a person and put to get anything he can.

 

[mrrusty]

Are we talking about just a verbal communication or has he actually written to you? I would be inclined to say "there were no foundations in my post holes, and in any case a post hole would not cause any issues to a properly constructed wall. I have nothing more to say on the matter, but will respond appropriately if/as/when you issue me with formal legal proceedings"

I'd like to see him try and find a professional that would back up his claim, but if he does you can respond accordingly.

 

[johnny2007]

Chancer after a bit of cash.
Follow the above advice from mrrusty.

 

[stevie888]

PWN for a fence in your garden?? Is he on drugs?

 

[jono_h]

Surely the only issue with not following the PWA is that he could claim any future damage to his wall (subsidence) was yours to rectify, if it was proven your work was the cause of the issue?

Firstly he’s got to identify an issue with the wall that occured after your work. Then it has to be proven that you’ve caused it by fitting your trellis / legal proceedings issued.

You don’t get a pay out just because someone hasn’t followed the PWA.

 

[footprints]

Invite him to come round and see there are no foundation give him a spade and ask him to show you them, he sounds like a total ~~~~!
Chances are he assumed his faultless builders put in foundations which they didn't.

 

[^woody^]

The PWA does not seem to apply for this situation. Either way there are no penalties for not following it.

 

[Laurieo]

Did he have permission to dig foundations on your land ?.

 

[Hook1]

Thanks all! The wall is old so guessing he didn't live there when built so how he could know 200mm so precisely is amazing. Will invite him to come and dig to show us where they are being hopefully he could end up in Australia and id fill hole in!. Woody thanks for reassuring that I don't need to worry about this Act, maybe if I was building a garage or something.

 

[martygturner]

22. What does the Act say if I want to build up against or astride the boundary line?​

If you plan to build a party wall or party fence wall astride the boundary line, you must inform the Adjoining Owner by serving a notice - see paragraphs 7 and 8. You may want to base your notice on Example Letter 4. However, there is no right to build astride the boundary without your neighbour’s consent in writing – seeparagraph 24.

You must also inform the Adjoining Owner by serving a notice if you plan to build a wall wholly on your own land but up against the boundary line. You may want to base your notice on Example Letter 6.

The Act contains no enforcement procedures for failure to serve a notice. However, if you start work without having first given notice in the proper way, Adjoining Owners may seek to stop your work through a court injunction or seek other legal redress.

So what are your responsibilities : NONE.

You built a fence...fences are not walls and you built yours on your property so that is the end of that However fences astride the the party line do required notice as its a boundary issue.