WALL WAR
I’m locked in neighbour row over tiny ‘dwarf wall’ on our boundary – they want to knock it down but I’ll NEVER let them
He said he feels as if the company want to "bulldoze" his wall
A BUSINESSMAN is locked in a row with the developers of a new housing estate over a tiny wall that is just two bricks high.
Roger White is adamant that the "dwarf wall" on the boundary of the estate belongs to him and he refuses to let Lioncourt Homes knock it down.
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The 58-year-old says the mini wall in Hempsted, Gloucester, sits on land he inherited from his father in 1997, but the developer said the land it is working on is "wholly owned by Lioncourt Homes or is in adopted highway land".
But the housing developer insists they need to knock down the two-brick high structure to create an emergency access route, required in their planning permission.
IT worker Roger complained that they didn't approach him to buy the land before starting work.
He claims the land was valued at £10,000 in 2017.
In turn, Lioncourt Homes sent a cease-and-desist letter to the local businessman in the planning saga.
They said he has "no entitlement to a ransom" over the tiny wall.
Roger told he "keeps an eye" on the land and around a month ago he noticed the construction work going on, so looked up the planning permission online.
He noticed it required an emergency access route because of potential flooding, and said it was "going to be across my land and obviously across my dwarf wall".
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He said: "I contacted Lioncourt Homes and said 'you don't realise I own this' and they came back and confirmed in writing that it was my dwarf wall. 'But they are saying that either the dwarf wall is adopted highway or it is their dwarf wall - which clearly isn't."
The BBC reported that Lioncourt claims to have documents from 1964 proving its ownership of the wall.
Roger says he has paperwork from 1971 which shows the wall belongs to him.
The IT worker said he is not against the development of 70 homes being built.
But he said the company needs to make sure "everything is done properly".
He feels as if they want to "bulldoze" the wall and "get on with the work".
"It certainly starts to feel like it is the big developer bullying a small businessman because they just seem to be adamant."
A spokesperson at Lioncourt Homes said: "Works required to implement our planning permission is in land wholly owned by Lioncourt Homes or is in adopted highway land, no third-party land is required."
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A spokesperson for Gloucestershire County Council said: "We consider that the legal boundary of Lioncourt's land directly adjoins the public road of Honeythorn Close. Legal boundaries have no physical width (regardless of the physical boundary's appearance) and the highway status takes precedence over whoever owns the ground beneath it.
"Therefore, the council considers that the works to create the emergency vehicle access as required by planning can be lawfully implemented."
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What are your rights over a fence row?
IT'S very important to know your rights if you are embroiled in a fence row with a neighbour.
How do I know which side I own?
A boundary feature can be a fence, wall, hedge, ditch, piece of wire, or sometimes even just the edge of a driveway.
The only way to know for certain who owns what side and to avoid any neighbour disputes, is to refer to the title plan or Land Registry.
In this, the T mark is used to indicate who the boundary belongs to and therefore who is responsible for its upkeep, say pros at .
Larger developments tend to have some indication provided by the builder, but there are no hard and fast rules
People often think they are responsible for the left (or right) hand boundary wherever they live, but there isn’t any legal basis for this.
You can check with HM Land Registry to see which boundary feature you are responsible for.
Often households can't get hold of the paperwork but experts say they shouldn't panic.
Homeowners can guess who owns the fence by checking where the rails are.
Pros say: "The fence is typically facing away from their property so that their neighbour gets the ‘good’ side.
“This is the most secure way of facing fencing so there are no rails for anyone to use to climb into your garden.
“This is then repeated with the neighbour on the other side to ensure that each home has both a ‘good’ and ‘bad’ fence side.”
Walls and fences are often built on the land of the boundary's owner with the edge of the wall marking the limit.
While professionals agree a glimpse at the fence can give you a hint, it's not foolproof - so you can't be certain.
Fines and punishment
It is recommended to always check legal documents before making changes to avoid hefty fines.
There is no law that the neighbour has to get the good side of the fence, so it's completely up to whoever owns the fence.
Fencing pros have suggested: “It may be worth selecting a double-sided panel with no ‘bad’ side as both sides look the same and rails are concealed within the fence panel.”
If one boundary backs onto a road or footpath you can install the panels with the rails on the inside
But if it's installed on the outside, it can provide an “easy ladder for burglars to enter your garden”.
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and the Property Litigation Association have created a mediation service to help neighbours resolve disputes over their property boundaries without resorting to court action.
RICS also provides a list of surveyors who could assist in boundary disputes.
If a dispute continues, it is ultimately a court that makes decisions, but they do not like such disputes being put before them.
Changing a boundary
If you want to change an existing boundary, such as replacing an old fence with a new one, we always recommend discussing with your neighbour first and making sure it is all agreed.
The registered titles can help you to reach an agreement, but only if this information has been added.
In terms of decorations on a fence legal advisers recommended asking around over who actually first installed it.
But they also urged caution before getting to work on amending the fence without getting more certainty yourself - since there is a danger of actually being prosecuted for criminal damage.
How high can a garden fence be?
The height of the fence is measured from your ground level, this can have an impact when, due to slopes in the ground, your garden may be at a higher level than your neighbours'.
A garden fence can be as high as 100m but you need to get planning permission if it's over than 2m.
However, there are some complications to this.
If you are thinking about front garden fences, restrictions state that fences alongside a driveway can be a maximum of 1m or 3ft.
You would need to get planning permission for putting a trellis on a fence of 2m.
But, if any plant that you grow on that trellis exceeds 2m, you do not need to obtain a permit for the growing plant.
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