Right, while I try and get hold of someone in a council, maybe you lot can help with your wealth of experience…

A colleague of mine returned home from work to find the 12ft hedge that had separated her property from her neighbours had been removed, without any notice.

The hedge in question sits just inside the neighbour’s boundary, but was acting as a barrier between the two properties.

Now that it has been removed my colleague has to keep all her curtains closed otherwise the neighbours can see right into her house and she had the pleasure of being watched while eating her dinner, so is obviously feeling rather uncomfortable about the sudden lack of privacy.

The neighbours are now wanting her to pay half for a new fence, but as she’s just split up with her partner and having to buy him out of his percentage of the mortgage she’s not exactly flush, nor has any sense of humour over this.

So any advice out there?

Does she have to pay half? Or does the neighbour have to pay the full price for the replacement fence? Can the neighbour get away with putting up a shonky fence in this instance and then collar her for half or more when it falls over?

*internet advice warning*
If the hedge was on the neighbours property they can do what they like with it – its their property. She cannot be forced to pay for half a new fence nor are they obliged to put a new fence up. If she wants a boundary fence then she has to pay for one if they don’t put one up.

As TJ says really.

f she wants a boundary fence then she has to pay for one if they don’t put one up.

she’ll also have to erect it on her side of the boundary.

There are also limits on the height of fences – 2 m IIRC

Thanks guys – so there’s no law saying that if an existing boundary is removed it has to be replaced?

Hmmm – poor girl isn’t having a good time and this is the last thing she needs.

But thanks all for the advice/help.

new fences should be limited to less than 1m high if near a highway.

Other fences can be up to 2m high. Planning permission required for higher.

the last thing she wants is a huge erection in the garden.

Who’s responsible for the boundary in question? If the boundary is the neighbour’s responsibility, they pay. Likwise if its your friend’s boundary, she would be responsible for the boundary but its up to her what she erects on the boundary.

Communications the key in my experience with boundary issues; they have been thoughtless and rude to go steaming in, ripping down the existing barrier and then requesting half the price of a replacement without at least some dialogue beforehand…I’d be fuming at the lack of consideration

I believe the solution to her issue is either net curtains or venetian blinds 😆 and ignore the silly buggers next door.

On a more serious note, IIRC you need to look at the property deeds to confirm whose responsibilty the boudries are.

On her deeds will be indication of who’s responsibility the boundary is. If there is a “T” on he side of the boundary it’s her responsibility to maintain a fence, wall or hedge – whatever she chooses. There is no legal obligation to have any barrier.

If the people who took the hedge down don’t have responsibility for the boundary it’s their tough luck. If they want a fence put there, they will have to ask you neighbour very nicely if she wants a fence and if she can’t afford it, tough luck. They could offer to pay for it if she hasn’t got the money. Her financial and legal obligation is zero! Things like this should be discussed and agreed amicably upfront so the other people were a bit stupid.

As per all neighbourhood disputes, talking to the neighbours is the first port of call. If these people had spoken to her about cutting down the hedge, this whole predicament could have been avoided. I do wonder why they didn’t trim and lower the hedge – the obvious thing to do when their neighbour is too strapped for cash to have a fence.

If it’s their boundary, they should pay for a new fence and not hassle this woman. In fact they should be apologising for any inconvenience whilst leaving her boundary unprotected.

She should think herself lucky that it isn’t the other way round where people let Leylandii grow unchecked, blocking out light, roots damaging foundations, or destroying expensive shrubs, ruining the enjoyment of a once pleasant private garden. Unfortunately local councils have made it expensive and difficult to apply what was a simple rule introduced in the high hedges bill. You would have thought a fixed maximum height for hedges would mean just that, but councils in their usual woolly vague manner of doing things have blurred a process that should have been quick and simple. People suffer huge stress over this matter and some have even died as a result of these conflicts. Shame on the faceless “couldn’t care less” attitude of councils for perpetuating this suffering!

So just put up some blinds or net curtains,or move, easy.

But saying that, a neighbour reported us to the council as our hedge was encroaching onto his drive through his chain link fence, after discussion we decided not to cut the hedge down as wed have the miserable sod looking in, but to just cut it back.