What is a Party Wall Notice?

This is a document from a home owner (“Building Owner”) informing owners of adjoining or neighbouring properties (“Adjoining Owner”), that they are planning to undertake work which could affect the party (shared) walls of those adjoining properties or they are plan to excavate within 3m or 6m of the neighbouring property.

So, if your neighbour is planning an extension which would require cutting into or cutting away from the wall that separates your two properties or excavating within 3m or 6m of your foundations, legally they have to give you notice of their intended works.

Because your neighbour wants to undertake work to their property that may affect yours, they need to serve you notice of their intention which gives you the option to consent or dissent under the Party wall etc Act 1996.

You now have 14 days from receiving the Party Wall Notice to respond. You can :

• Give consent to the Party Wall Notice: If you’re happy with the works laid out in the notice and don’t expect them to affect your property, simply give written consent for the proposed works to go ahead. We would recommend that you also ask for a ‘schedule of condition’ of your property. This will make it easier to identify if any damage has been done to your property during the works. The cost for the schedule should be covered by the Building Owner.

• Dissent to the notice: if you are concerned about possible damage to your property, you can refuse consent. This will trigger the dispute resolution process and you must appoint a surveyor. The surveyor can be either the same surveyor as your neighbour i.e. an Agreed Surveyor or a different surveyor than your neighbour.

The Agreed Surveyor or the two appointed surveyors will draw up a legal document called a Party Wall Award. This provides a set of guidelines on how the proposed works should progress; drawings detailing the proposed works; and a “schedule of condition” survey of your property which is checked after the works are completed to determine if any damage occurred to your property during the works. The Party wall etc Act 1996 states that it is the Building owner’s responsibility to make good all structural, decorative and horticultural damage to the Adjoining Owner’s property occasioned by the works, in materials to match the existing fabric and finishes.

A Party Wall Award may include other items as well. Take a look at our Party Wall Guidance for a full breakdown.

Remember, you must respond to a Party Wall Notice within 14 days. If you don’t, it will be presumed you have refused consent and start the dispute resolution process.

The Party Wall etc Act is a dispute resolution Act and if damage has occurred after consent, you are working outside of the Act. It is therefore a civil matter. You can ask the Building Owner to rectify the damage or instruct a surveyor to determine the extent of the damage. If the Building Owner refuses to make good the damage, you can take the matter up in court to claim back the damages.

As a rule, the Building Owner pays for all the surveyors’ fees, this includes fees for the two appointed surveyors or the Agreed Surveyor.

The Party wall etc Act 1996 gives rights of access to your property under certain conditions. Essentially, access is given , if they can’t finish the notifiable works under the Act without access to your property If they do need access, they should give you an appropriate notice period – 14 days is considered acceptable.

The award states hours of noisy working, but this relates to the notifiable works under the Act only. Your local council also has restricted hours of working for construction noise and the contractors usually follow this. These are usually 8am to 5.30pm weekdays , 8am to 1pm on Saturdays and no noisy working on Sundays and public holidays.

You can file a complaint to your local council if the contractor is working outside of these restricted hours.