Deed plan vs. Reality

[Cinnamon]

Hi,
I'm looking for some advice, please. Long story short, I bought a freehold property in 2020 and I'm having issues with one of the neighbours (leaseholder, right hand side) since August 2021. She is not happy with me trimming my own hedge on the side with her (she is very peculiar about how everything looks, OCD) so to stop me from doing so, she told me not to step on "her" footpath. Which stops me from accessing the area, I cannot even clean my own living room window. The problem is that as per my deed, issued by the building company, the mentioned footpath belongs to my property. The confusing thing is that the path is paved, and the paving is the same as the pavement leading to her main door/into her garden. But this is just what was used by the building company in 2010 (I have the same in my garden, around the house.) But because of this, it does seem like it could be her footpath... Anyway, based on the deed plan (and subsequently, the title plan), I have much more land around the corner of my house as opposed to what she thinks. Which would make sense as it would allow me to access the side of my house, my living room window, and my own hedge. So... As per the plan, my property boundary should stretch until the drive, and I should have the paved area up until the 2/3 of the drive way. I hope this makes sense. Any advice what can I do? Can I use that land without any consequences, which actually seems to be mine anyway?

I'm desperate for some help. I had someone to look at the area and he believes I can claim that land, as per the deed and title plan.

Thank you in advance.

[Cinnamon]

Attached deed plan, area highlighted in blue.

[Cinnamon]

Attached photo, showing how it looks now.

[IdefixUK]

Hello Cinnamon,

You would do well to thoroughly read this thread (it's from different forum) so that you understand the significance of the red line as shown on title deeds.

https://www.gardenlaw.co.uk/phpBB2/v...php?f=4&t=3149

It would be interesting to know if you have access to any plans which have precise measurements marked on them. If you have your Land Registry title there may be reference to other documents as "copy filed". These documents are available by written application to the Land Registry for £7 each.

It would be sensible for you to download the title deeds and title plan of the neighbouring property for £3 each to see if the red line is marked in a similar/same place to the line on your own plan.

Are you able to draw a plan of the fences (some are shown in the photo) Is that a gate? Where does it lead to? How old are these fences, and when were the houses first sold.



Regards

[atticus]

You may well be misunderstanding the plan. Without seeing the text of your land registry title, the line may do no more than indicate the location of the boundary.

Inspection of your title and the neighbour's title will be needed to show whether you have a right of way over the paved area.

[Crazy council]

Hi, i have dealt with something nearly exactly the same. I will try look through properly later, your right and the advice you have been gien above ( get the plans from the land reg and measure them). If theirs any dispute after that, you both agree on a surveyor to do the measurements and the land registry accepts that.

Most probably the drive is an access, and no one can block it or put any obstruction on it. If your property has a bush facing or walling it, your responsible to maintain the bush. All residence connected usually have responsibility to maintain the access

I AM NOT A SOLICITOR or legally trained , i was a property manger but i dealt with this side of things

[Cinnamon]

Hi,

Thank you for all response! Very much appreciated! So I checked and all title plans (mine, her leasehold plan, and the building company's title plan who owns her freehold) show the boundary at the same location.

To the question in the first response regarding a gate, yes, her house is basically a coach house and she has no access to the small are behind the building without coming out of the building. So her gate is next to her main door on the left. She owns the leasehold to the flat with 3 garages under it. Her drive is next to the footpath. Mine is in the middle (that's already a nightmare, a garage under her flat, but that's another story...), and the 3rd belongs to another house.
I attached a photo I took from one of my rooms, it shows how the fence runs. On my side, it is a dead end, on her side it's her way in. In theory, my boundary line continues and then takes opens up/widens the area and end in a 90 degrees angle with her drive. I attached another snapshot of my deed plan showing just this. I coloured it, apologies for the shaky hands. The red line is the original line marking the boundary on the plan. I coloured this over with brown where there is wooden fence. The green over colour is a hedge and it reflects how it is planted. The orange colour is her gate. You can see the three drives, leading into the three garages. There is a pedestrian way in front of the drives and that runs all around the cul de sac. The way the neighbour behaves is that the corner area between her drive and my hedge is hers,and that's where I'm not supposed to step on.

These houses were built in 2010 (summer) so the 12 year is soon up. Although I was told it doesn't matter because the land is registered so she cannot acquire a part of mine by saying she has been using it (is that right?). And I used to use it regularly as well to access my window there, until she flipped...

On the charges register there are two documents mentioned with the note "copy filed" and these are the two TP1 forms. I have copies of both (one is when the building company acquired the land from the council and one when the previous buyer (first owner) bought the land from the developer). Both have pretty much the same restrictive covenants, usual stuff about having pets, cutting the grass, hedge height, no business activities, etc..
Section 12. Additional provisions says there are rights granted for the benefit of the property, rights reserved for the benefit of other land, and restrictive covenants by the transferee and by the transferor.
I'm just looking at these. It does say Rights granted: "to enter upon adjoining parts of the Estate to inspect, maintain, or renew any part of the property" - so I guess even if things turn out to be bad and that corner is hers, I can still put my feet on it to access my window?
I noticed now that rights reserved says (13.6.1.10) "to enter the property for the purpose of relocating any Boundary Structures or other boundary markers (in respect of which the Transferees shall not be entitled to object or to claim compensation) if as a result of a subsequent as built survey it is shown that such Boundary Structures or markers have not been erected in the position shown on the plan."
Does this mean that the plan is considered to be ultimately the deciding point and it doesn't matter that by the look of it, the footpath looks like a boundary marker in her favour, as it is one" flow"?

What is a document that may have precise measurements on it? The scale on the deed is 1:500, it shows the direction of North and mark's visibility splays but apart from that I don't really see measurements. Or I just don't know what I'm looking for... Dear me... What did I get into when I bought this house. Sometimes I'm even thinking of selling because of her,this corner thing is just the cherry on top...