Fencing blown over issue?

[dgs]

Hi Could any of you learned guys give me your thoughts on this one?

We moved into our semi about 9 years ago, our house was at the end of the road which is a dead end.
There was just some waste ground next to our house and we had a rickety old fence which extended from the front facing brickwork (which you can still see the original struts) for some 20 feet.

A builder built a bungalow that you can see in the picture, we were on friendly terms with him and he told us he was in the process of putting a new fence all the way around the bungalow but because it goes within inches down the side of our house next to our old fence, the first long section would have to be fitted the wrong way round because of access problems when fitting it and did we mind? I said "absolutely no problem", he suggested that we could take our old fence down to reveal the new fence he was erecting around the newly built bungalow.

All has been fine but with the high winds recently the section that starts in the corner of their garden next to the side of our house has started to lean over into the bungalow owner's garden which is at the rear of their property.
Is this going to be my problem?
I have not had any conversation with them on this but just wanted some advice from you guys on this before I approach the situation. Thanks DGS

[des8]

Re: Fencing blown over issue?

The original owners (builders) of the bungalow put the fence up on their side of the boundary (it doesn't matter which way round the fence "faces").
It is their fence, and (unless there is something in your deeds which says you have to fence that boundary) it is up to them to replace it, if they want.

If you get on well with your neighbours perhaps you could offer to share the repair costs.

[Ripped-Off]

Re: Fencing blown over issue?

A few of points I would add...

Des is right.

My understanding is that, as a general rule of thumb, you are responsible for the boundary fence to the left as you look at the house from the front, but in your case you took your fence down because the neighbour/builder had put a new fence next to your own I believe. However, that is no excuse for not checking your deeds.

Presumably the builder is also the bungalow owner so there should not be an issue proving that the fence is not yours. Just imagine if your deeds said that you were responsible for the boundary, leaving you to prove that the boundary fence was erected by the neighbour on their land, rather than erected by you on their land!

The wind will continue pushing against the fence until it falls down completely. This could cause the concrete (presumably the builder dug adequate holes and used concrete to hold the posts upright) to heave the ground upwards (like a see-saw) so that when the fence collapses completely you may be left with large 'mole hills' where the concrete for each post has lifted the ground around it. There could be a trespass issue (albeit minor) here because the concrete and surrounding soil may end up on your side of the boundary. This is entirely dependant on how strong the connection is between the post and the fence panel. Also beware of damage to adjacent services, unlikely but possible.

The post centres look to be about 2.40m. Maybe with a solid fence like this (i.e. no gaps) the centres should have been 1.80m?