Party wall dissent process

[Big Jimbo]

When you have paid for the Three surveyors, and all the discussions between them, come back and tell me you have spent less.

Are you able to actually answer any of the questions put to you ?

How far from the wall are you digging ?

How do you know you will be digging deeper than the existing footings ?

[TryC]

50 minutes ago, Big Jimbo said:

When you have paid for the Three surveyors, and all the discussions between them, come back and tell me you have spent less.

Are you able to actually answer any of the questions put to you ?

How far from the wall are you digging ?

How do you know you will be digging deeper than the existing footings ?

ah, right. i see.

 

sorry, but I didn't know them off the top of my head! (measurements)

 

we're probably looking at building away from the boundary wall by at least 18 or so inches. 

 

I don't know if we will be digging deeper than the existing footings, it is beyond the realm of my understanding. I just trust the architect knows what he is doing, I mean that's what I hope I've paid for at least.

[Big Jimbo]

If you are only 18 inches away from the boundary wall, the chances are that you will be digging deeper than the footings that the wall is built on. It would be worth going into you own garden, as near to the wall as you can, and having a dig to see if the wall has any footings. Sometimes, people are just wary of committing to something on paper, and by signing,

,they might imagine that they are giving up any rights to complain if you damage there property.

Try and have a chat with them. Ask them outright what problem they have with you getting on with your extension. Try and address with them any fears they might have.

I previously made my rude neighbour go through the 3 surveyors because i didn't like them. Cost them over £6k

Try sending the Mrs around for a chat with them. You might be coming across in the wrong way to them ?

[TryC]

3 minutes ago, Big Jimbo said:

If you are only 18 inches away from the boundary wall, the chances are that you will be digging deeper than the footings that the wall is built on. It would be worth going into you own garden, as near to the wall as you can, and having a dig to see if the wall has any footings. Sometimes, people are just wary of committing to something on paper, and by signing,

,they might imagine that they are giving up any rights to complain if you damage there property.

Try and have a chat with them. Ask them outright what problem they have with you getting on with your extension. Try and address with them any fears they might have.

I previously made my rude neighbour go through the 3 surveyors because i didn't like them. Cost them over £6k

Try sending the Mrs around for a chat with them. You might be coming across in the wrong way to them ?

ah, lol. I see. 

 

we have flags down so I cannot dig there. or houses are a bit of an anomaly, ours probably more so because we haven't walled in a patio away from the house. We have flags that then sloped down to the garden...which is then level the neighbours garden.

 

I am not sure they makeshifted their wall patio by just layering on flags and putting some bricks around it, so not even sure they even dug it up or just put the flags and bricks on top.

 

I'm not sure it is the way I'm coming across that is the issue, we get or got on like very well until this.  I previously told them I wanted to do x in my garden, they just said they objected so I didn't pursue it out of respect to them so itw just perplexing they couldn't be honest about this matter this time round.

[Big Jimbo]

Yeah, some people don't want to discuss face to face, and would rather somebody else dealt with it on there behalf.  What damage do you think might be caused by your extension ? Has your builder flagged up any potential problems to you ? Things like, "I'm worries that the neighbours patio might collapse into our trenches"

[DaveAF]

I hope you have managed to get your party wall agreement sorted out.

BUT if you haven't then here is my experience of extension work going on currently next-door where a single storey extension is being built AND the value of getting a Party Wall Agreement sorted for both partys. 

 

The first thing I will say is that your projects success relies on the competence of your builder. 

 

This is our timeline - 

1. March 2023 - Neighbour buys house next door. 

2. April - Council inform us the neighbours have applied for planning permission. No communication from neighbours. 

3. June - a family friend tells us about the Party Wall Act. Still no communication from neighbours. 

4. July - we see on Council website that permission is granted. Still nothing from the neighbours. 

5. Late July - we're awakened at 8am by a small jcb type digger driving into the neighbours garden. I then climb onto our garden fence to ask the driver to stop and get his boss. When I say that the neighbours haven't informed us about getting a Surveyor to arrange the Party Wall Agreement sorted before works start on the extension, he says that this project doesn't require it because he's not going to build onto our wall and he's going to leave a 6 inch gap between our and their extensions.

As you know, the digging of foundations within 3 meters of a boundry wall falls under the Party Wall Act but either this builder didn't know or else was chancing that I wouldn't know. 

I said that I want them to stop and wait for my Surveyor to sort the Party Wall Agreement out. 

6. Early August - the neighbour delivers a document to us (in silence) with information on their proposed extension works stating that they will safeguard our foundations.

Our surveyor and their surveyor visit our property and do their thing. 

7. Mid August - Both partys recieve a copy of the Party Wall Agreement. 

8. Late August - work begins - foundations are dug, concrete is poured, walls are built, steels are inserted, a wooden flat roof is put on (but only half of it has been glass fibered and its been raining for 2 days on the uncovered boards!). 

9. September - works continue... 

 

My assessment of the builders hired by the neighbours is that they are cowboys with no interest (or time?) to do a good job. I dread to think how thorough they have been in digging the foundation channel beside our Party Wall.

BUT because there is a Party Wall Agreement in place, any damage to our property will be paid for by my neighbours, not me. 

Your neighbour might not have realised whats involved in your building works and is within his rights to have his property protected. 

 

[TryC]

On 03/09/2023 at 12:14, DaveAF said:

I hope you have managed to get your party wall agreement sorted out.

BUT if you haven't then here is my experience of extension work going on currently next-door where a single storey extension is being built AND the value of getting a Party Wall Agreement sorted for both partys. 

 

The first thing I will say is that your projects success relies on the competence of your builder. 

 

This is our timeline - 

1. March 2023 - Neighbour buys house next door. 

2. April - Council inform us the neighbours have applied for planning permission. No communication from neighbours. 

3. June - a family friend tells us about the Party Wall Act. Still no communication from neighbours. 

4. July - we see on Council website that permission is granted. Still nothing from the neighbours. 

5. Late July - we're awakened at 8am by a small jcb type digger driving into the neighbours garden. I then climb onto our garden fence to ask the driver to stop and get his boss. When I say that the neighbours haven't informed us about getting a Surveyor to arrange the Party Wall Agreement sorted before works start on the extension, he says that this project doesn't require it because he's not going to build onto our wall and he's going to leave a 6 inch gap between our and their extensions.

As you know, the digging of foundations within 3 meters of a boundry wall falls under the Party Wall Act but either this builder didn't know or else was chancing that I wouldn't know. 

I said that I want them to stop and wait for my Surveyor to sort the Party Wall Agreement out. 

6. Early August - the neighbour delivers a document to us (in silence) with information on their proposed extension works stating that they will safeguard our foundations.

Our surveyor and their surveyor visit our property and do their thing. 

7. Mid August - Both partys recieve a copy of the Party Wall Agreement. 

8. Late August - work begins - foundations are dug, concrete is poured, walls are built, steels are inserted, a wooden flat roof is put on (but only half of it has been glass fibered and its been raining for 2 days on the uncovered boards!). 

9. September - works continue... 

 

My assessment of the builders hired by the neighbours is that they are cowboys with no interest (or time?) to do a good job. I dread to think how thorough they have been in digging the foundation channel beside our Party Wall.

BUT because there is a Party Wall Agreement in place, any damage to our property will be paid for by my neighbours, not me. 

Your neighbour might not have realised whats involved in your building works and is within his rights to have his property protected. 

 

thanks for the detailed walk through, it's very helpful. 

 

 

Two main differences in our experiences, one being that we kept our neighbour informed at each step, even telling them about the plans for extension, even submitting for planning permission, and same for party wall notice. Since they were seved notice, they have continuously dragged it out though, and the surveyor is letting them and Tbh, I don't know what their actual problem is, WE asked them about the PWA not the other way around. We wanted something in place to protect both of our properties, as it is the right thing to do, but they are making it now, very uncomfortable and unnecessarily difficult by not responding,  and it has been very draining. Totally understand they are within their rights to protect their property...that's why we approached them about the party wall, if they want an Award, they could just say, instead of lying and delaying on purpose. 

 

 

[DaveAF]

1 hour ago, TryC said:

thanks for the detailed walk through, it's very helpful. 

 

 

Two main differences in our experiences, one being that we kept our neighbour informed at each step, even telling them about the plans for extension, even submitting for planning permission, and same for party wall notice. Since they were seved notice, they have continuously dragged it out though, and the surveyor is letting them and Tbh, I don't know what their actual problem is, WE asked them about the PWA not the other way around. We wanted something in place to protect both of our properties, as it is the right thing to do, but they are making it now, very uncomfortable and unnecessarily difficult by not responding,  and it has been very draining. Totally understand they are within their rights to protect their property...that's why we approached them about the party wall, if they want an Award, they could just say, instead of lying and delaying on purpose. 

 

 

Very odd behaviour. 

[TryC]

40 minutes ago, DaveAF said:

Very odd behaviour. 

I know. and we've been on good terms for many decades up until this 

[joe90]

Some people just hate others  “getting on”.

[TryC]

1 hour ago, joe90 said:

Some people just hate others  “getting on”.

I thought so too.

 

I've read similar situations where people are just bitter and jealous so make it as difficult as possible?

[Alan Ambrose]

It could just be that they've got other things on their mind and your building work isn't exactly top of their agenda. Suggest you politely corner them and see if you can find out what's going on. 

[TryC]

they have been politely asked on several occasions, and each time they lied. they actually said they sent it all off in July, they lied. we're now in September and still waiting for them to respond. if it isn't on top of their agenda, fine, just dissent from the get go so,  we can do they necessary instead of inconveniening others, and causing unnecessary stress to us, mentally and financially.