Can I work without party wall agreement?

Do you always need a party wall agreement? No, but you do always need written consent from the households involved. A party wall agreement is only needed if your neighbour doesn’t give consent, or doesn’t respond to, your notice within 14 days.

Can my Neighbour build right to my boundary?

In general, your neighbour only has the right to build up to the boundary line (line of junction) between the two properties but there are circumstances when they can legitimately build on your land. You can give consent for them to build a new party wall and foundations on your land.

What happens if you dont have a party wall agreement?

Very minor work such as drilling to hang shelves, or chasing out to add new sockets or switches, don’t require notice. While failing to observe the act is not an offence, your neighbours can take civil action against you and have an injunction issued to stop further work until a party wall agreement is arranged.

Can a party wall award be served without notice?

Notice cannot be served after the work has been completed and as the Act is typically invoked by serving notice there cannot generally be a party wall award without notice.

What happens when your neighbour ignores the party wall act?

Without a Schedule of Condition to compare conditions before and after it will be difficult (if not impossible) to identify what damage has been caused by the works. Your neighbour may, therefore, decide to make spurious claims for pre-existing defects.

How to comply with the party wall act?

Before undertaking works which are covered by the Party Wall etc. Act you are required to serve notice on the Adjoining Owners of neighbouring properties, likely to be affected. See our previous blog here …….. It is advisable to engage a Party Wall consultant to serve the notices on your behalf to ensure the process is followed correctly.