quick boundary question
Discussion
Righty, one for you legal eagles (or those in the know)
We currently have a hedge which is adjoining the boundary fence with our neighbours. The fence is an old wire thing which is rusty & in disrepair. The hedge on the other hand is massive. They keep it clipped right to the boundary line & it takes about 4-5 foot of space up on our side.
If we remove the hedge, do our neighbours have any come back? If we break the wire fence while removing the hedge, what is our obligation in terms of fixing or replacing it? What is the minimum which constitutes a boundary fence - presumably as long as it's there, if we elect to change it for something better it's probably going to be 50/50?
Just to add some more detail, we are trying to come to an ammicable arrangement for the cost of replacing the wire fence with a shiny new wooden one but if push comes to shove I'd like to know where I stand before I get the chainsaw out & deal with it (the hedge) directly.
Also, we've got the land registry details for both properties & there is no mention of ownership of this particular boundary in either.
oh & I suppose I should ask if anyone does fencing in the reading area.. potentially looking for 80m of close board fencing.
Cheers!
We currently have a hedge which is adjoining the boundary fence with our neighbours. The fence is an old wire thing which is rusty & in disrepair. The hedge on the other hand is massive. They keep it clipped right to the boundary line & it takes about 4-5 foot of space up on our side.
If we remove the hedge, do our neighbours have any come back? If we break the wire fence while removing the hedge, what is our obligation in terms of fixing or replacing it? What is the minimum which constitutes a boundary fence - presumably as long as it's there, if we elect to change it for something better it's probably going to be 50/50?
Just to add some more detail, we are trying to come to an ammicable arrangement for the cost of replacing the wire fence with a shiny new wooden one but if push comes to shove I'd like to know where I stand before I get the chainsaw out & deal with it (the hedge) directly.
Also, we've got the land registry details for both properties & there is no mention of ownership of this particular boundary in either. oh & I suppose I should ask if anyone does fencing in the reading area.. potentially looking for 80m of close board fencing.
Cheers!
1) No, you don;t need any sort of permission or agreement, either from your neighbour or the council, to remove a hedge that lies entirely within your land ownership. 'Countryside hedgerows' are protected - see link, but not garden ones, in most cases.
2) If there is no mention of it in the deeds, then it may be assumed that the boundary fence is shared, and responsibility for maintenance and replacement will need to be shared, by agreement.
3) in view of item (2), it would be sensible and neighbourly to discuss removal of your hedge beforehand with your neighbour - it's hardly going to make them your best friend if you remove the hedge, replace the fence, then send them half the bill for the cost, without warning. I leav it to your own conscience whether you judge that, since you are causing the problem by removing the hedge, you ought to foot the whole bill for a fence to replace its function.
2) If there is no mention of it in the deeds, then it may be assumed that the boundary fence is shared, and responsibility for maintenance and replacement will need to be shared, by agreement.
3) in view of item (2), it would be sensible and neighbourly to discuss removal of your hedge beforehand with your neighbour - it's hardly going to make them your best friend if you remove the hedge, replace the fence, then send them half the bill for the cost, without warning. I leav it to your own conscience whether you judge that, since you are causing the problem by removing the hedge, you ought to foot the whole bill for a fence to replace its function.
Cheers for the info much appreciated.
I'm being a nice guy at the moment & hopefully we can meet in the middle with no hitches, nice to know where I stand though.
I think the biggest issue from their point of view is that they see the hedge as the boundary rather than the fence itself, based on that viewpoint I can fully see their position.
thanks.
I'm being a nice guy at the moment & hopefully we can meet in the middle with no hitches, nice to know where I stand though.
I think the biggest issue from their point of view is that they see the hedge as the boundary rather than the fence itself, based on that viewpoint I can fully see their position.
thanks.
fade2grey said:
Cheers for the info much appreciated.
I'm being a nice guy at the moment & hopefully we can meet in the middle with no hitches, nice to know where I stand though.
I think the biggest issue from their point of view is that they see the hedge as the boundary rather than the fence itself, based on that viewpoint I can fully see their position.
thanks.
This is a common misconception.I'm being a nice guy at the moment & hopefully we can meet in the middle with no hitches, nice to know where I stand though.
I think the biggest issue from their point of view is that they see the hedge as the boundary rather than the fence itself, based on that viewpoint I can fully see their position.
thanks.
How old is the hedge and how old is the fence? Unless the hedge is in the realm of hundreds of years old, and forms the traditional boundary between fields, it stands to reason that the fence was the original boundary. The owners of your house then decided to put in a hedge. Of course they need it in their side of the fence, which is what they probably did.
As I mentioned the only exception to that would be a very old hedge, and a wire fence was added for example to keep in livestock.
fade2grey said:
Yup, it's defo a case of manky fence was there.. old owner of our place wanted a hegde so planted it well within the boundary (& then let it grow uncontrollably lol)
ta
That makes more sense.ta
The logical reason is that if the fence is shared, it is usually on the boundary, if for some reason it is not, they just put is a few centimetres in the boundary. If you put a hedge in however, you put it a couple of feet in to allow it to grow inside your boundary.
yeah I can certainly understand their postion.. we bought the house a year ago & talked to them about it even before we'd put the offer in & at regular intervals since then - up until crunch time the intent on both sides was 50/50, it's just taken a year or so to be in a position to consider it. At the end of the day, pee'd off or not, the hedge takes up nearly 50% of the width of the garden along about 40m.. it it's going the journey. Personally I'd rather have a nice fence rather than a wire thing but we'll see what happens.
To top things off, they are now selling up so it kind of puts some pressure on a resolution one way or another. I don't want to be awkward but equally they do need to realise that they are benifiting from a hedge that isn't theirs & it's gotta go.
To top things off, they are now selling up so it kind of puts some pressure on a resolution one way or another. I don't want to be awkward but equally they do need to realise that they are benifiting from a hedge that isn't theirs & it's gotta go.
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