party walls

whitewash

whitewash

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anyone know anything about 'party walls' between terraced properties?

having a bit of bother with a neighbour getting the council to issue me a 'statutory nuisance' (i know i know...) and threaten me with an abatement notice regarding a small patch of render which has broken up on the chimney between mine and my neighbours property, the chimney serves only my house but sits wholly on top of the party wall, i can understand the chimney being my responsibility but to what extent do my responsibilities reach when concerned with flashing etc. as currently the council have told me that i will have to pay 100% of the cost to repair (which is a big shift over the previously agreed 50:50 split) but obviously if im only liable for the chimney and not her flashing then i am not in fact liable for the full costs (and would not therefore be willing or required to replace any damaged flashing on her side of the chimney).

i can understand that the chimney is my responsibility but to some extent she must be to some extent responsible for it because 50% of the chimney is on her property?

the other thing that confuses me is that the 'damage' to her property is on the front corner of her property which is a good 10ft away from the chimney (im fairly convinced that its actually her gutters/window whcih is causing the damp) but she has got the council in (who have served me with this order) i will be asking to see their report when i phone tomorrow, so i also dont know where i stand on this matter



i dont know enough about law to be able to really know where to turn next, the only thing about lawyers is that i know i cant afford one!:bonk:
 
Unless deeds state otherwise, if the chimney sits across the party wall then the responsibility is divided regardless of whose house the chimney serves. Look at it this way. If the neighbour wanted to modify their interior to make use of the chimney, you wouldn't be able to do anything about it.

Councils have a habit of making up their own rules as it suits them and bullying people in to thinking that it's the law. There are free online legal advice services. The one whose address I have is currently down. If it reappears and looks like it might be of use I'll get back.
 
The site for party wall issues is the Pyramus and Thisbe Club [*]. Google that and you'll get the best source of info.

[*] Obviously founded by someone with a sense of humour.
 
MisterE said:
Unless deeds state otherwise, if the chimney sits across the party wall then the responsibility is divided regardless of whose house the chimney serves. Look at it this way. If the neighbour wanted to modify their interior to make use of the chimney, you wouldn't be able to do anything about it.

Councils have a habit of making up their own rules as it suits them and bullying people in to thinking that it's the law. There are free online legal advice services. The one whose address I have is currently down. If it reappears and looks like it might be of use I'll get back.
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the letter that i got from the council regarding this matter was in part reasonably pleasant, the rest was downright rude, and this will be noted when i reply to the council in due course. spoke to a builder today, im just gonna do the work for the simple reason that i cant afford to get into any dispute (and i know that the neighbour doesnt either) i think the main problem is that the council would be loaning her (some scheme for OAPs to loan money from the council that she will be uing) her the money and quite frankly they dont want to pay, and have therefore sticky beaked themselves in and started sending me threatening letters, which will be noted to someone higher up the food chain from the person who has been corresponding with me.



im quite enjoying being a 'statutory nuisance' officially (its good to get recognition once in a while)


i was going to upload the letter but i cant get my webspace to play ball at the moment
 
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If the damage to her property is water ingress then it is possible, water will always take the line of least resistance which is why when there is a leak on one floor it so often come though the light fittings (if there is no light fitting, pushing a knife or screwdriver into the ceiling will often save replacing the whole thing).

If the damage to her property is internal/decorative then that should be an insurance matter with her insurance although fixing the cause generally will not be.

Above is purely my opinion/experience.
 
I'd have a word with your Citizen's Advice Bureau.
It's free.
 
Citizens advice bureau give free and usualy unbiased information.



Way too slow :lol:
 
i think my first thing to do is to write a letter explaining that i am in the process of fixing the problem, whilst im unsure on where i stand with the party wall i do not wish to get into any costly legal proceeding to determine whole or partial responsibility/ownership of the stack (getting into any legal proceedings would no doubt be much much more than just wholey paying for the chimney work myself

i will also point out in this letter that i have yet to see any engineers report linking the poor rendering of the chimney with the damp in her property (which is the main reason for branding me a 'statutory nuisance' and the threats of further action contained within the letter and that i believe it to be within my rights to see this information.

i think the final thing i will point out in this letter is the threatening and confrontational manner of the letter which backtracks upon the previous corrispondance i have had. as far as i was aware myself and my neighbour were taking steps to rectify this issue and had a good relationship. as far as im concerned this council letter (lets not forget that the council should be helping me as well as my neighbour as i am also a council tax payer) destroys this relationship. i do not take kindly to letters which are rude and threatening, had i not been compliant then maybe the letters tone and the threats within it would be acceptable, but this has simply not been the case.


do you think these are acceptable topics to put in the letter?


remind me NEVER to buy any sort of attached property again, more hastle than its bloody worth!
 
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i have written a letter saying that ill be getting the work done (i know it needs doing anyway) but how upset and agreeved i am that the council have sent me these threats, wrecked what i believed to be a good relationship with my neighbour and generally waded in with a heavy boot when completely uncalled for, ive also pointed out the fact that as a council tax payer the council should be working for both parties not for one against the other.

it'll be hand delivered to the front desk of the council building tomorrow, lets see how it goes!
 
Have a look at your home contents insurance and see whether it includes legal expenses insurance cover. If it does, call them and notify a claim and get them to either pass the details of one of their panel solicitors to you or ask them whether you can instruct one of your own choice - let them pay for you to get some specialist advice.

If you're struggling to sleep tonight, have a look at the Party Wall Act....
 
Lurking Lawyer said:
Have a look at your home contents insurance and see whether it includes legal expenses insurance cover. If it does, call them and notify a claim and get them to either pass the details of one of their panel solicitors to you or ask them whether you can instruct one of your own choice - let them pay for you to get some specialist advice.

If you're struggling to sleep tonight, have a look at the Party Wall Act....
Click to expand...

i had a look already, fairly heavy going (both the documents and the eyelids whilst reading) and i couldnt seem to find much relating to chimneys on top of party walls (and any internet search about chimneys seems to bring up millions of hits of 'i want to knock a chimney down on a party wall' and not alot else. i guess its a grey area

cheers.

unfortunately i removed legal expenses cover from my home insurance last year, b****r!
 
sure is!!

i don't think i wish to get into the ins and outs of who owns which brick for the sake of £50 (the difference between getting the work done by a builder she wants to use and we pay 50:50) or using a builder ive been recommended with his own scaffold who will do it all for nearly half (but she wouldn't want to use as she wanted some additional roofing work done a the same time....) the price.......
 
I wouldn't state specifically that you are getting the work done, I would merely word it as that you are "currently seeking to resolve the issue to the extent of your legal liabilities."
If you state youre sorting it, that might go against you if you later find you don't have a 100% legal responsibility to fix it and want to change your mind :)
 
Marcel said:
I wouldn't state specifically that you are getting the work done, I would merely word it as that you are "currently seeking to resolve the issue to the extent of your legal liabilities."
If you state youre sorting it, that might go against you if you later find you don't have a 100% legal responsibility to fix it and want to change your mind :)
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i ignored any reference to ownership in my letter, i stated i am seeking further quotes to remedy the work required. silly bat next door is now blanking me which is a good sign...
 
whitewash said:
sure is!!

i don't think i wish to get into the ins and outs of who owns which brick for the sake of £50 (the difference between getting the work done by a builder she wants to use and we pay 50:50) or using a builder ive been recommended with his own scaffold who will do it all for nearly half (but she wouldn't want to use as she wanted some additional roofing work done a the same time....) the price.......
Click to expand...

Why does she want some extra roofing work doing? I thought it was just your chimney that was causing the damp problem :suspect:
 
singlespeed said:
Why does she want some extra roofing work doing? I thought it was just your chimney that was causing the damp problem :suspect:
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shes convinced herself she needs her ridge repointing, it doesnt look like it does.

basically i think the council are being ******s and i await their report with bated breathe (as i dont believe they have one)

didnt get a reply today to my letter which he would have got yesterday, so hes probably running around the office ******** himself
 
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