Neighbour refused permission for me to paint her fence

[GroovyPinkLady]

Hi all, My neighbour replaced her wooden fence alongside the left side of my garden a few years ago. My partner and I now want to paint our side of her fence - she only painted her side. We started and foolishly, I didnt think to ask permission (not having ever painted a shared fence before) and she came out ranting that we mustn't touch it. (she hates me by the way and is very difficult about anything connected to her property!).

We stopped painting immeidiately. I swallowed my pride (it stresses me enormously to even speak to her) and phoned her to apologise for not asking prior to starting and could I have her permission to paint our side. After a 2minute rant at me for touching her fence, she put the phone down on me. I rang back and left an apologetic message and asked again nicely for permission to paint it. I also added that if they preferred to get someone in to do it for them rather than us doing it, they could. I couldnt have been more reasonable if I tried.

I later spoke to her husband (who is slightly more reasonable) and he said he would let me know.

I have now received a letter stating that we MUST NOT (in caps and underlined) paint our side of their fence. This is so petty its unbelievable!

Are they able to refuse permission for me to paint my side? Does anyone know if I have ANY rights over their fence? Am I allowed, for example to put climbing plants on it, or nail an ornament on it?
Thank you

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

If its their fence then you cannot legally touch it let alone paint it, bang nails into it or grow plants up it. The only thing you can do if you don't want to see it or have it a different colour is build your own fence on your land against it and paint that one. It may seem madness but its the law.

 

[GroovyPinkLady]

OKayyyyyyyyyyyyy, I'll have to abide by the law then. Thank you for confirming what in my heart of hearts I thought must be true otherwise she wouldnt have enjoyed telling us off so much!

I do have an existing bit of my own fence up against hers already of about 2m wide and 1.7m high (her whole fence is about 20m long). I need to replace my fence on the right side and my bit on the left. Having checked planning, it says i dont need planning permission as long as it is on my land and not above 2m from ground level.

So I think I am going to replace within the 2m height allowance and not allow her to paint my bit that is higher than hers lol

Again very petty but lawful! lol Its this isnt lawful - please let me know! I really dont want to do anything to get into more trouble from nightmarish neighbour! Other neighbour is lovely BTW!

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Yes you can build a new one 2m high, you can even paint the side facing her boundary pink with yellow spots if you like. But that's how these kind of things get out of hand and nowadays you have to start declaring these things when you come to sell.

http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/permission/commonprojects/fenceswallsgates

 

[Deleted2797112]

Can you really not live with the fence as it is and just plant in front of it? It's never a good idea to double up on boundary features. If you install a second fence entirely on your own land, and if the neighbour's fence is removed at some point in the future, you risk your fence becoming the de facto boundary and losing a bit of land.

 

[rjm2k]

A neighbour of mine is thinking about painting a new tanalised fence brown to match the old stuff which is in need of replacing anyway, bizarre. On top of that, the new stuff is double sided paling so they will never be able to paint every surface they can see properly anyway.

OP what colour is the fence now?

 

[GroovyPinkLady]

Thank you for all your comments, esp. freddymercurystwin!

I WAS planning to replace my fence with a higher fence and paint the extra 0.3m on top on her side with the weirdest colours i could think of and I know I would be lowering myself to her level but it was great to think that I could finally do something to upset her that was legal and she could do nothing about it! You really wouldnt believe what she has complained about to me, my family and ANY visitor to our house! It's totally mad or rather she is!

But I think I will bear all your comments in mind and leave it be. It's also easier for me to get 1.8m rather than 2m fence posts in our car from the store lol.

I shall gracefully accept her wishes and just smile to myself that I "could've" and be glad that I "didnt". Thank you for helping me regain my composure!

 

[GroovyPinkLady]

@rjm2k = my side of her fence is currently unpainted apart from a big patch of red cedar where my partner started painting and then stopped! lol we'll just put one more panel in front of that bit to hide the patch and paint it. It'll look good when we've done - even without touching her fence!

Sorry - this only happened yesterday so ive been very emotional about it but I have my grown up head on now lol

 

[kingandy2nd]

Just paint her fence when she goes on holiday next...then when she returns home just deny it

 

[Sponge]

Can you really not live with the fence as it is and just plant in front of it? It's never a good idea to double up on boundary features. If you install a second fence entirely on your own land, and if the neighbour's fence is removed at some point in the future, you risk your fence becoming the de facto boundary and losing a bit of land.

I now find myself in this situation in my new home, abeit the party to benefit.

We moved in 4 weeks ago and I've just started clearing my back garden. It wasn't something I noticed when viewing, but our neighbours have a fence within their boundary and we also have, had, a fence.

It was rotten, so I've pulled it down. I now wonder if I should build another fence, which seems silly and a waste of money. Or leave it 'unfenced', plant plants as planned, but keep off their fence (no painting it or plants growing up it) and effectively be shifting the property boundary (in my favour).

I'm going to knock at my neighbours and see what they'd like to happen. I've only spoken to them a couple of times, but they seem like reasonable and friendly neighbours, unlike yours!

 

[kingandy2nd]

I'm going to knock at my neighbours and see what they'd like to happen. I've only spoken to them a couple of times, but they seem like reasonable and friendly neighbours, unlike yours!

Exactly the right course of action to take - except you forgot that you need to take a bottle of wine round with you

 

[ABCwarrior]

What a load of nonsense really. So you could both in theory fence to the boundary back to back and neither have any access for maintenance?!
I'd be scrutinising my deeds to see exactly where the boundary is- if she's gone over by putting in posts with concrete etc I'd point this out ask her to remove the concrete.

We've got a strainer/post/wire+chicken wire between us and our neighbours(which I [paid for and put up to keep our dog in). I get on great with the hubby but his missus is a fruitcake animal hoarder and their garden is like a zoo/barnyard. I'm putting up a decent sized wooden fence for our privacy this summer, but it's going inside the existing fence and will not be on the boundary either so I might take it higher than the usual "boundary no higher than 2m" limit. We've half an acre so I'll leave enough space to walk between the 2 fences....or put chickens in the space, there's an idea......

 

[D4N1EL]

im no expert on law but, it a fence is on a boundry wouldn't part of you be on you land anyway?

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

I'd be scrutinising my deeds to see exactly where the boundary is- if she's gone over by putting in posts with concrete etc I'd point this out ask her to remove the concrete.

No the neighbour can lawfully allow her concrete over the boundary just not above ground level. Same as when you build a new wall to a outbuilding or extension or similar along the boundary. The foundation may go beyond the boundary but the wall can not. You are not permitted to dig the ground at ground level but you can undermine it.

 

[Matt42]

If it's on her side then I would tell her that you don't like the ugly brown and there are two solutions. Put a higher fence up with the top yellow and pink dots as previously said or paint your side of her fence. She is being completely unreasonable, if you offer to clean up any drops that permeate the fence that she can then see, I fail to see why she is being narky.