building just being errected on our boundary wall - help If you want to know how your DIY projects could be affected by building and planning regulations, click here to post questions and view answers

[biblee]

I am hoping that someone might be able to help me with some information. Our back boundary wall is adjacent to a business that sells surfwear and jet skis. A couple of weeks ago we noticed that they were putting up what we thought was a fence, and initially we were not too upset as it would stop them seeing into our garden. Our neighbour however realised that this was not a fence but that they were about to put a roof on and use this wooden structure for testing outboards. They immediately went over and said that they need to stop under the Party Wall Act (we are new here, they are not and they have had many disputes with the owners over the years due to unreasonable behaviour (i.e. testing jet skis all day and late into the evening despite environmental health outlining to them that this should not be the case).

Initially it seems that they stopped the building process, but I have noticed today that struts? have now gone up for the roof. If this goes ahead they will overhang our border line, and well into our garden, and the water from this structure will thus drain directly into our garden.

What rights do we have to stop this or at least seek to get the work a) undertaken so that there will not be an excess of water into our gardens, and b) how we can ensure that they do not use the building (which is made solely of wood) to test outboards, without suitable ventilation at all hours of the day.

Sorry for the length of the post
Thank you in advance.

[LCL]

biblee

You do not have to stand for this. Planning, building regs and the Party Wall act all come into play, as does nuisance, but I am not a solicitor, so I will leave that there.

They are a commercial premises and therefore do not have any permitted development rights which means that they must apply for planning consent for any works they wish to carry out. If any part of this involves overhanging eaves, they must serve an ownership certtificate on you. The planners will also take noise pollution into account when determining any planning application.

The building requlations will apply as they need to comply with the building requlations for the works they are carrying out. What affects you most will be the rainwater discharge which form part of the building regulations.

The works also sound like they should have served notice upon you under the Party Wall etc Act 1996, both for the building on the line of junction (the boundary) but also for the overhanging eaves.

I would suggest you contact the planning office and the building inspector at your local council. take photos as the work progresses and seek their advice.

Without the benefit of a site visit and seeing photos it is clearly difficult to give a definative answer, but it certainly sounds they they are acting unlawfully.

Hope this helps.

LCL

[biblee]

Thank you ever so much for your reply. I will send hubby out to take some pics and get onto the council tomorrow.

I really appreciate the advice and I will act upon it.

Kind regards