Love him or loathe him, Donald Trump has undoubtedly made an impact in his first few months in office.
Of all his policies, probably the most divisive of public opinion (quite literally), is the announcement of his intention to build a 2000-mile wall separating the southern US border with neighbouring Mexico. Estimated to cost between $12 billion and $15 billion, the human and social costs of Trump’s vision are only just emerging.
The prospect of split communities and confused identities for American-Mexicans got me thinking – there’s a lot more to building a wall than just how much it will initially cost you to build and how it’s going to look. Neighbours Mexico, in particular properties that straddle both American and Mexican soil will be directly affected by the building of the wall. But has Trump really considered them?
Back across the pond in England & Wales, this would be referred to as a party wall matter and here at PPC Surveyors, we are well versed on the topic. Whether you’re the building owner or adjoining owner, our specialist Chartered Surveyors can assist you through the party wall process with ease – saving you time, money and a lot of stress in the process! We have a vast range of experience; from acting as the party wall surveyor for the adjoining owners of several industrial units and retail units through to residential extensions and shared party walls that have fallen into disrepair.
There’s a lot more to building a wall than just how much it will initially cost you to build and how it’s going to look. This month’s blog will outline simply what a party wall is, how the Party Wall etc Act 1999 works, the types of work included in the act and most importantly, why failure to consider party wall matters at an early stage in a construction project can lead to expensive delays and could risk you causing severe damage to neighbouring properties.
What is a party wall?
- A wall that stands on the lands of 2 (or more) owners and forms part of a building – this wall can be part of one building only or separate buildings belonging to different owners
A wall that stands on the lands of 2 owners but does not form part of a building, such as a garden wall but not including timber fences
A wall that is on one owner’s land but is used by 2 (or more) owners to separate their buildings
What is the Party Wall etc. Act 1996?
In a nutshell, the Party Wall etc Act 1996 provides the construction industry in England & Wales with a framework for preventing and resolving disputes in relation to party walls, boundary walls and planned excavations of within 3, or in some circumstances, 6 metres of neighbouring buildings.
It basically stops one party (known as the ‘building owner’) either building or amending something that could adversely affect another person’s property (known as the ‘adjoining owner’) and requires them to serve notice, in writing, to inform them of the works they are planning to carry out. This must be done at least 2 months before the project is due to commence.
At this stage, I’d always recommend to our clients at PPC Surveyors the value of talking to neighbouring property owners before serving a formal letter of notice. Essentially, explaining any planned works in person can help to soften the blow depending on the scale of what you’re looking to do rather than marching up to their door complete with legal papers in hand or worse, serving them coldly in the post! If the other party agrees to it, you can send notice electronically if you prefer or if the neighbouring property is empty, you can attach it to a conspicuous part of their house simply addressed to ‘the owner’.
The gov.uk website has various example party wall letter templates available for free download here – or your Building Surveyor can draft and issue these on your behalf. A word of warning though. It can be a complicated process to do alone and the cost of getting it wrong is high (we’ll come onto this later!) so always consult a professional if you’re unsure.
Explaining any planned works in person can help to soften the blow depending on the scale of what you’re looking to do rather than marching up to their door complete with legal papers in hand or worse, serving them coldly in the post!
Once the letter of notice has been served, the adjoining owners can then either agree or disagree with the description of works you are proposing to carry out. In cases where they might not consent and wish to challenge it (which means you would be ‘in-dispute’), the Act basically provides a fair mechanism for resolving disputes and is designed to protect the interests of both parties by attempting to take the ‘emotion’ out of the situation.
Adjoining owners who don’t respond to a party wall notice within 14 days are assumed to have dissented and are automatically classed as in dispute.
As I alluded to earlier, consulting a neighbour in person first will decrease the likelihood of your notice resulting in dissent. After a brief chat and agreement on some slight modifications over a hot cup of tea, your adjoining owner might feel a lot more comfortable with the proposed work and be less likely to challenge the party wall notice when it is eventually served upon them – a win-win for everyone involved.
Last but certainly not least – it’s worth noting that the Act is separate from obtaining planning permission or any building regulations approval you might need for your project. It’s unfortunately an additional requirement that you may have to undertake prior to commencing work that falls under the Act. However, you don’t actually need planning permission for your plans to serve notice, but once you’ve done so, you can take up to a year to start work.
What’s included in the Act?
Every property is unique in it’s build and surrounding environment so there are inevitably grey areas, but as outlined on the gov.uk website, typically the Act covers the following:
new building on or at the boundary of 2 properties
work to an existing party wall or party structure
excavation near to and below the foundation level of neighbouring buildings
The types of work this may include:
building a new wall on or at the boundary of 2 properties
cutting into a party wall
making a party wall taller, shorter or deeper
removing chimney breasts from a party wall
knocking down and rebuilding a party wall
digging below the foundation level of a neighbour’s property
most extensions, basement and loft conversions
It’s worth noting that the Act is separate from obtaining planning permission or any building regulations approval you might need for your project.
What happens when party wall matters go wrong?
Issuing a party wall notice is a legal requirement if you are carrying out works governed by the Act. So, it should come as no surprise that as with any other legal processes, failure to follow the correct procedures can cause significant delays to your project and could land you in hot water…along with some hefty legal costs thrown in for good measure!
Inevitably, all building works come with a risk that damage could occur to neighbouring properties. However, if you correctly serve notice and damage occurs, your neighbour can still claim off you but it will be dealt with by surveyors – not common law. On the other hand, failure to serve notice correctly or at all could result in your neighbour taking you to a common law court and obtaining – all at your own expense – an injunction to prevent you from continuing with the work.
Sound bad? You’ve not heard the worst of it yet!
If you cause major damage to your neighbour’s property as a result of the works you’ve carried out, a judge can potentially award your adjoining owner with compensation for any loss or damage, including all their legal costs. Depending on the scale of your project and the complexity of the party wall matters that you face (as don’t forget, you could have more than one adjoining owner), get it wrong and this could cost you thousands – if not millions.
So, the moral of today’s blog is – don’t do a Trump. Think carefully before proceeding with any building work that could fall foul of the Party Wall Act. After all, there’s more to building walls than just the initial cost. Failure to take into account the interests of your neighbours upfront could end up costing you so much more in the long run – not forgetting losing you a few friends in the process!
If there is any shadow of doubt as to whether your next project is affected by the Act, speak to an experienced Building Surveyor sooner rather than later – otherwise it could end up being the most expensive wall you’ve ever built.
I hope you found my advice helpful. As the owner of PPC Surveyors Ltd, I’m well versed in party wall matters and importantly, how to avoid costly mistakes. If you feel that my experience is something that could help you on your next building project, please feel free to say hello.
