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Dear LegalBeagles Community,
I own a house, which is one of ten clustered around a shared car park and entrance driveway. The "shared" land is divided into strips, with each house assigned one strip. The land registry recognises these strips (very approximately), which are transferred along with the titles. We are all freeholders (but some have let to tenants), and the freehold includes a restrictive covenant. Relevant points of the covenant being, here, that there are some shared access paths, and that no one can obstruct or use these as their private land. Also, that we must allow the authorities access for their official business. The land is not adopted by the local Council. The freehold is between us owners and two other parties, the identities of neither of which are entirely clear (names have changed over the 20+ years).
The problem is that the "shared" area is filling up with abandoned wheel bins, and also some that tenants of some freeholders are leaving in the car park for their convenience. Some also have not numbered the bins they are using. The abandoned ones tend to be along the edge of the area, where there's no shared path, and just outside of the assigned strips. At least five, however, are blocking the shared path; this makes access difficult if the car park is fully occupied. Many of the bins have mixed rubbish in them. I have found one dead rat by the bins. My impression is that these bins remain council property, but the Council only allow me to report an unwanted or abandoned bin (that contains no inappropriate waste) that was on my strip of land or was on Council land, respectively; neither of which applies here. My understanding is that moving those abandoned bins with waste in them would be technically fly-tipping. Also, I would be taking them from another's land without permission, and I don't know who owns a particular strip, aside from my own, and a couple of neighbouring strips.
Both of the neighbours, with whom I was on speaking terms, have moved out recently, and I do not know the new tenants at all. I haven't even seen them yet. At the moment the weather is not good, and there's little chance of encountering anyone in the car park. I would still like to get some groundwork done on this problem, ready for summer.
I wanted to ask for any tips on how to go about getting the abandoned bins removed, and also getting the bins in use off the shared pathways (should be easy if the abandoned ones are gone). The obstacles being that I would have to access the land of others, even to examine some of these bins, and I would be extremely unpopular should we all end up with a shared financial liability from the Council for a professional clean up, and it became known that I was the one who caused the "problem". The latter reason is why I am posting here, and trying to get a clear idea of all options, to find the best one, before initiating something that I can't stop.
I hope that I have included everything relevant. I apologise if I have neglected to mention some important detail, as I know that can be annoying.
Thank you.
Oxman.
I own a house, which is one of ten clustered around a shared car park and entrance driveway. The "shared" land is divided into strips, with each house assigned one strip. The land registry recognises these strips (very approximately), which are transferred along with the titles. We are all freeholders (but some have let to tenants), and the freehold includes a restrictive covenant. Relevant points of the covenant being, here, that there are some shared access paths, and that no one can obstruct or use these as their private land. Also, that we must allow the authorities access for their official business. The land is not adopted by the local Council. The freehold is between us owners and two other parties, the identities of neither of which are entirely clear (names have changed over the 20+ years).
The problem is that the "shared" area is filling up with abandoned wheel bins, and also some that tenants of some freeholders are leaving in the car park for their convenience. Some also have not numbered the bins they are using. The abandoned ones tend to be along the edge of the area, where there's no shared path, and just outside of the assigned strips. At least five, however, are blocking the shared path; this makes access difficult if the car park is fully occupied. Many of the bins have mixed rubbish in them. I have found one dead rat by the bins. My impression is that these bins remain council property, but the Council only allow me to report an unwanted or abandoned bin (that contains no inappropriate waste) that was on my strip of land or was on Council land, respectively; neither of which applies here. My understanding is that moving those abandoned bins with waste in them would be technically fly-tipping. Also, I would be taking them from another's land without permission, and I don't know who owns a particular strip, aside from my own, and a couple of neighbouring strips.
Both of the neighbours, with whom I was on speaking terms, have moved out recently, and I do not know the new tenants at all. I haven't even seen them yet. At the moment the weather is not good, and there's little chance of encountering anyone in the car park. I would still like to get some groundwork done on this problem, ready for summer.
I wanted to ask for any tips on how to go about getting the abandoned bins removed, and also getting the bins in use off the shared pathways (should be easy if the abandoned ones are gone). The obstacles being that I would have to access the land of others, even to examine some of these bins, and I would be extremely unpopular should we all end up with a shared financial liability from the Council for a professional clean up, and it became known that I was the one who caused the "problem". The latter reason is why I am posting here, and trying to get a clear idea of all options, to find the best one, before initiating something that I can't stop.
I hope that I have included everything relevant. I apologise if I have neglected to mention some important detail, as I know that can be annoying.
Thank you.
Oxman.