Choosing your new garden fencing is only half the battle. There’s also laws and regulations that your fence must comply with. It’s a good idea to get familiar with this first, so you can pick the right height and style for your property while being compliant with the law.
Check Your Property Deeds
If you’ve already got a fence in place and aren’t sure whether it belongs to you or your neighbour, it’s time to check your property deeds. Your deeds should include a plan of your property with the boundary lines highlighted. There’s a small ‘T’ mark that comes out from the garden fencing lines. The side that this ‘T’ sits on is the owner of that part of the fence. Joint ownership of a fence will be denoted by a ‘T’ on both sides of the fence line. These are sometimes known as party walls.
What To Do If Your Garden Fencing Has A Party Wall
If you do find that you have a party wall, you’ll need to consult your neighbour before making any changes. In many cases, agreements are simple to make, depending on the financial agreement you want to make. If your neighbour doesn’t agree to split the cost of the new fence, you may have to enter into negotiations with them. However, no matter what condition the party wall is in, your neighbour cannot be forced to agree to any repairs or maintenance.
What Happens If Your Neighbour Doesn’t Agree To New Garden Fencing
If you’ve tried to make an agreement but your neighbour simply won’t agree to change the party wall, all hope is not lost. Although you cannot make any changes to the garden fencing that you share ownership of, there’s nothing stopping you from erecting a new piece of fencing in your boundary. Even if the new fence that you install is touching the party wall, this is still legally allowed as it’s sitting in your private property.
Get A Garden Fence That’s The Right Height
The other legal requirement is that your garden fencing doesn’t exceed two metres in height. If the fence that you’ve chosen is going to be taller, you’ll need to seek planning permission. As well as that, if your building is listed you may also need planning permission. If you’re changing the fencing in your front garden, or your garden boundary adjoins a road, you’ll need permission to erect any garden fencing that’s over one metre tall.
For Garden Fencing, Choose Staffordshire Fencing
Now that you’ve worked out what permissions you need and what kind of fencing you can get, you’ll need to find a great fencing contractor. Why not choose the expert team at Staffordshire Fencing? We’ll install a beautiful fence that will stand the test of time.