We have a damp patch that appears high on our dining room wall. Our water is on the other side of the house. We have a radiator in the room above, but there has been no drop in heating system pressure and no air in it.

The neighbour also has evidence of water on their side and told me last time that it was “pissing down” his wall too. This is directly underneath his shower room.

A new damp patch appeared today so I went and told him. His attitude was less than helpful. He had someone round to check the first time it happened, but not after the “pissing down” incident.

My insurance aren’t interested in stopping the leak, just repairing the damage, but with a £450 excess.

Talking to the guy isn’t getting me anywhere, so what next? Environmental Health and some sort of enforcement perhaps?

Hard to tell exactly what’s going on from your post, i.e. is he culpable?
Invite some Hells Angels around for a pre-xmas drink and then go visit him the morning after. I’m sure he’d pay.

The problem is intermittent and last time was considerably worse on his side. Also it is directly underneath his shower. He’s had it checked once and found nothing, but not had it checked since the time when there was water running down his walls. Apparently his mate is a builder and was going to have a look, but he let him down.

There is a problem that won’t go away on its own.

It is worse on his side.

Our bathroom is on the other side of the house.

He doesn’t seem to care.

You can see it under the beam in the background of this picture.

I assume that the gaps in it match up with the gaps in the brick behind.

I’d look into party wall legislation. I believe that if your neighbour is negligent or wreckless and these actions cause damage to your house, he can be liable for the repair bill. Proving he was negligent/wreckless is a case of advising him of the problem and taking it from there. I might be wrong tho, but had a similar experience in a flat that flooded and was damaged by a neighbours burst pipe – in that case there was no negligence , hence no claim. But had the neighbour knew there was a problem and ignored it, and then the flood happened he would have been liable

He’s been informed on several occasions. Last time he said he’d get someone round but didn’t.

The issue is that he doesn’t think that the leak is his problem despite his wall being soaked and it being under his shower. I just want someone impartial to apportion responsibility. If the council do it can they issue some sort of enforcement order requiring him to fix it?

I just want it sorted. I’m not after compensation. It is easy for me to patch over with a damp membrane paint, but there is no point if it keeps coming back.

Obviously he is liable the issue is how do you enforce/resolve the problem not much point doing cosmetic work in your house if he allows the leak to carry on . you need to threaten and take action for compensation to the point where it becomes less hassle to him to foix it . Have you got legal expenses insurance AA or house cover often carries it.
It may be a simple fix our bath taps are badly sealed if we had a shower at a certain angle we got a leak in the kitchen . Fixed in an hour with plumbers matt and silicone .

One for Environmental Health that, possible statutory nuisance. It won’t be top of their priority list but they have a duty to investigate so don’t expect someone round straight away, but don’t let them fob you off.

Kids look well for 68.

“get it fixed or expect a solicitors letter” along with a couple of phone numbers for reliable plumbers.

Or call a plumber, pretend to be him, and book an appointment when you know he’ll be home?

Thing ive learned with neighbour dispute its not the offending neighbours problem especially if they dont have the cash to remedy the situation, report to local council as a nuisance and let them deal with it eventually.

Had the same thing here neighbour refused access to sort leaking over flowing cistern, result water running down outside of wall for months, eventually threatening letter sorted it

I would offer to pay for a Plumber to fix it for him, he would be unlikely to refuse that offer

Write a letter before action (google it) and deliver it saying he either fixes it or you’ll take him to court and get them to force him to fix it and compensate you for the damage. They work wonders.

Pook – Member

Kids look well for 68.

They appear to be having some sort of breathing difficulty, though…

Pook – Member
Kids look well for 68.
They appear to be having some sort of breathing difficulty, though…

Minor’s lung

That’ll be the effects of the damp from the wall. Time to sue the neighbour 🙂

Get your house insurance on the case.

It’s an escape of water, just not yours. They will chase him to fix and maybe recover the costs.

Keeps you at arms length, too.

Is there an external mains tap? Just turn off his water and remove the handle. 🙂

If the council do it can they issue some sort of enforcement order requiring him to fix it?

that depends on who owns the property. if its privately owned they might not want to get involved.
we had a similar issue a few years ago with our neighbour having a leak in their bathroom and the leak caused a massive mouldy damp patch on our kitchen wall (one that had been re-plastered 6 months previously).
we got an independent plumber to check our bathroom for leaks which was directly above it. he then went next door to check theirs and immediately found the leak
the house belonged to a housing association so we had to chase them to get it sorted. they refused to go through the insurers then told us to claim via our insurers who would then claim it back off their insurer. we refused as this would have meant that we would have had to put a claim in, pay the excess, have the claim on our account/policy and then have to wait while their insurer tried to wriggle out of paying.
after 5 months of complaining and then threatening them with legal action they eventually sent workmen round to strip the plaster and and repair the wall.

Get the kids to blow on the wall to dry the patch.

Timely thread.
Having similar(ish) issues. Getting a damp patch on our chimney breast. Had our roof/chimney looked at a couple of times and supposedly it’s all fine our side. Terraced house, our chimney backs on to the neighbour’s chimney so can only think it’s seeping through from their side. Certainly seems worse during winter/heavy rain so I’m guessing they’ve got a leak on the roof/chimney rather than an internal plumbing issue.

How to broach it tho…. have only spoken to the bloke once or twice and it’s difficult having a conversation with him.