The Party Wall Act of 1996 gives a framework for averting and resolving conflicts with regard to boundary walls, excavations close to neighbouring structures and party walls.
If you are a property owner and are planning to commence work that is covered by the Party Wall Act, such as a loft conversion, you are required to notify your neighbours about your intentions in the manner laid down within the act.
Your neighbours can disagree or agree with your proposals. If they disagree, the Party Wall Act provides a means for dispute resolution.
What Exactly Is A Party Wall?
If you live in a terraced or semi-detached house, and you and your neighbour share a wall, that wall is known as a party wall.
The different party walls
The three different types of party walls include:
- A wall which stands on the land of two (or more) owners and is also part of a building – the wall may be part of one building or separate buildings which are owned by different parties.
- A wall which is not part of a building but is standing on the land of two or more owners. For example, a garden wall, however, this does not include timber fences.
- A wall standing on one owner’s land, however, is used by two or more owners to separate their buildings.
The act also refers to the term ‘party structure’. Party structure can mean any structure such as a floor or wall partition that separates buildings or portions of buildings owned by different parties, for example in flats.
What Does The Agreement Include?
The Party Wall Act 1996 covers:
- * Work on an existing party structure or party wall
- * New building on the boundary line between land that is owned by different parties
- * Excavation work beneath or close to the foundation level of any adjoining buildings
This might include:
- Loft conversions
- Chimney breast removal
- Constructing a new wall on the borderline of two properties
- Knocking down and reconstructing party walls
- Increasing or decreasing the height or width of party walls
- Cutting into party walls
What You Need To Do
If you have plans to carry out any of the above things, you are required to serve your neighbour a party wall notice. You must do this at least two months prior to starting the work and at least one month prior to starting excavation work.
After sending the notice to your neighbour, he or she is required to respond within fourteen days. However, if your neighbour gives you written permission, you can start work immediately.
If your neighbour has not responded to your notice after fourteen days, it is assumed that he/she has disagreed. If your neighbour disagrees, you have to serve them another notice informing them to engage the services of a party wall surveyor in ten days, otherwise you will hire a surveyor on their behalf.
After serving the notice, your neighbor has twenty-six days to decide whether they want to engage the services of a surveyor or not. If they fail to hire a surveyor, you have the power to hire one for them, however, it must be a different surveyor from the one you are using. Bear in mind that all of the surveyor’s fees will be paid by yourself.
The appointed surveyor will draw up a document called an “Award”. This Award will lay out the rules that your builder must follow. For instance, restrictions on how and when works on the party wall should be done, plus any additional measures required to protect your neighbour’s building.