Mate erected fence backwards
Discussion
DickyC said:
IIRC good side of 'your' fence facing your neighbour was law until enough people didn't bother for the law to be repealed. We gave our neighbour the good side of our fence but the neighbour the other side gave themselves the good side so we have the backs of both fences.
Nope, never as far as I know. Feel free to provide a link. The very basic legal problem you have is that the "best" side is purely a personal opinion. Who says any particular side is "better" than the other? It's something you can't define in law, especially given the numerous different ways in which you can build a fence. If the fence is on your side then the neighbour is essentially complaining about the view and there is no right in law to a specific view, or indeed any view, as far as I am aware.
DickyC said:
IIRC good side of 'your' fence facing your neighbour was law until enough people didn't bother for the law to be repealed. We gave our neighbour the good side of our fence but the neighbour the other side gave themselves the good side so we have the backs of both fences.
48k said:
Surprised nobody's mentioned about the arris rail acting like a ladder for ne'er-do-wells.
CAPP0 said:
Bear in mind that if you put fencing with horizontal rails up with the "good" side facing inwards, then depending on the area where you live, you have just provided intruders with a handy permanent stepladder to get into your garden with.
AJL308 said:
Nope, never as far as I know. Feel free to provide a link.
The very basic legal problem you have is that the "best" side is purely a personal opinion. Who says any particular side is "better" than the other? It's something you can't define in law, especially given the numerous different ways in which you can build a fence. If the fence is on your side then the neighbour is essentially complaining about the view and there is no right in law to a specific view, or indeed any view, as far as I am aware.
Apologies. It looks like you're right; not law but convention to have the posts on your side. A convention now largely ignored. The very basic legal problem you have is that the "best" side is purely a personal opinion. Who says any particular side is "better" than the other? It's something you can't define in law, especially given the numerous different ways in which you can build a fence. If the fence is on your side then the neighbour is essentially complaining about the view and there is no right in law to a specific view, or indeed any view, as far as I am aware.
DickyC said:
AJL308 said:
Nope, never as far as I know. Feel free to provide a link.
The very basic legal problem you have is that the "best" side is purely a personal opinion. Who says any particular side is "better" than the other? It's something you can't define in law, especially given the numerous different ways in which you can build a fence. If the fence is on your side then the neighbour is essentially complaining about the view and there is no right in law to a specific view, or indeed any view, as far as I am aware.
Apologies. It looks like you're right; not law but convention to have the posts on your side. A convention now largely ignored. The very basic legal problem you have is that the "best" side is purely a personal opinion. Who says any particular side is "better" than the other? It's something you can't define in law, especially given the numerous different ways in which you can build a fence. If the fence is on your side then the neighbour is essentially complaining about the view and there is no right in law to a specific view, or indeed any view, as far as I am aware.
there is a reason for it - the line of the fence boards follows the legal line of the boundary. The posts are safe and secure your side.
If you erect it backwards with the fence posts still in your ground.,the neighbour gets nice 6ft x6" pieces of ground to plant up.
Unless the posts and fence are in line on the boundary which is not we're talking about here
I spent some time looking into it, as no deeds for any house I've bought have ever had the 'T' marking on the fences, and it was assumed they were all party fences as a result. From what I've read up on boundary/fence laws -
You have a boundary, its up to you to erect a fence.
The fence is either-
1) On your land up to the boundary- This fence is wholly owned and maintained by you.
2) On your neighbours land up to the boundary. This fence is wholly owned and maintained by your neighbour.
3) A party fence (it sits bang in the middle).
The 3rd instance seems to have stemmed the whole "my fence is on the left" as it was probably a convention setup to help with maintaining party fence and splitting costs (or maybe just a myth- as it doesn't really work for corner plots/houses). In reality, you should share that cost with your neighbour. Or, remove the fence and build it on your land, in which case the neighbour cannot really object to the type of fence you erect (as long as its safe and proper I imagine).
In the same way, if the fence is on a neighbours land, you haven't really got a leg to stand on if the fence is in poor state (not dangerous and not hanging over onto your land) or missing some panels. Legally, you could build a fence on your land directly adjacent to your neighbours so you dont have to see theirs. But don't be surprised if your neighbour then removes theirs and Your fence becomes THE fence.
Same with the whole good side facing your neighbour. Its a convention and neighbourly thing to do, although not everyone is aware of it, and its not enforceable.
Happy to be corrected, but the way I've always understood it, a fence isn't even a legal requirement, so technically if there was an argument over the state of the fence, the neighbour could remove it completely (as long as its theirs wholly) and piss you off entirely leaving you to build your own.
The main issue for me was working out if the fences are on my land or not on the detached side of the property where there is no building boundary to follow.. I guess you would need a surveyor for this if it really kicked off?
You have a boundary, its up to you to erect a fence.
The fence is either-
1) On your land up to the boundary- This fence is wholly owned and maintained by you.
2) On your neighbours land up to the boundary. This fence is wholly owned and maintained by your neighbour.
3) A party fence (it sits bang in the middle).
The 3rd instance seems to have stemmed the whole "my fence is on the left" as it was probably a convention setup to help with maintaining party fence and splitting costs (or maybe just a myth- as it doesn't really work for corner plots/houses). In reality, you should share that cost with your neighbour. Or, remove the fence and build it on your land, in which case the neighbour cannot really object to the type of fence you erect (as long as its safe and proper I imagine).
In the same way, if the fence is on a neighbours land, you haven't really got a leg to stand on if the fence is in poor state (not dangerous and not hanging over onto your land) or missing some panels. Legally, you could build a fence on your land directly adjacent to your neighbours so you dont have to see theirs. But don't be surprised if your neighbour then removes theirs and Your fence becomes THE fence.
Same with the whole good side facing your neighbour. Its a convention and neighbourly thing to do, although not everyone is aware of it, and its not enforceable.
Happy to be corrected, but the way I've always understood it, a fence isn't even a legal requirement, so technically if there was an argument over the state of the fence, the neighbour could remove it completely (as long as its theirs wholly) and piss you off entirely leaving you to build your own.
The main issue for me was working out if the fences are on my land or not on the detached side of the property where there is no building boundary to follow.. I guess you would need a surveyor for this if it really kicked off?
Edited by tejr on Wednesday 28th October 08:58
Edited by tejr on Wednesday 28th October 09:00
My neighbour just decided to take a good fence down, and rebuild a shorter one and even gave themselves the good side lol not even a word just came home to see a new smaller fence.... She enjoys a good watch over the 4.5ft fence. Iv since planted many growing plants that by the summer will mostly block her out.
Although she never liked my small 1foot ball like tree I enjoyed pretending I was a pro by keeping him perfectly round. I came home and she had removed all 3. From my garden. I'm sure more will happen as time progresses. I just laugh it off now... gritting my teeth lol
Although she never liked my small 1foot ball like tree I enjoyed pretending I was a pro by keeping him perfectly round. I came home and she had removed all 3. From my garden. I'm sure more will happen as time progresses. I just laugh it off now... gritting my teeth lol
nonsequitur said:
48k said:
Surprised nobody's mentioned about the arris rail acting like a ladder for ne'er-do-wells.
You're forgetting the razor wire placed conveniently along the top.
Convention is that the side with the posts denotes that's the side that owns the boundary (and is therefore responsible for it). So arguably the OP's neighbours can wait 20 years and then claim the boundary 
Ultimately of course it all comes down to neighbourly agreement. I have one 'post and panel' fence, which is my boundary, but the panels slide between the posts so it's virtually symmetrical.
Ultimately of course it all comes down to neighbourly agreement. I have one 'post and panel' fence, which is my boundary, but the panels slide between the posts so it's virtually symmetrical.
I was lead to believe that you were responsible for the boundary to the left of your house when looking at your house from the front.
Regardless, when I replaced the fence on my left I checked with that neighbour first and he said I owned that fence as the previous occupier had purchased it. We agreed to keep the new fence on the existing fence line and he volunteered to pay 50%, and I wrote a receipt for him with an explanation of what we had agreed, which we both signed.
We did this to avoid any future boundary disputes if either of us sold up to inconsiderate new owners.
Last week the neighbour on the other side replaced some worn fence panels, within the original fence posts and I offered to contribute half the cost. Annoyingly he accepted!!!
Regardless, when I replaced the fence on my left I checked with that neighbour first and he said I owned that fence as the previous occupier had purchased it. We agreed to keep the new fence on the existing fence line and he volunteered to pay 50%, and I wrote a receipt for him with an explanation of what we had agreed, which we both signed.
We did this to avoid any future boundary disputes if either of us sold up to inconsiderate new owners.
Last week the neighbour on the other side replaced some worn fence panels, within the original fence posts and I offered to contribute half the cost. Annoyingly he accepted!!!
CampoTheMexicana said:
You can always attached carpet gripper on the inside of your fence, that way if any oiks reach over your fence fro leverage then they'll get a nasty surprise.....
Are you actually allowed to do that? I thought you weren't allowed to do that in case the poor promising footballers hurt themselves.Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff