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Party Wall Agreements are covered by the Party Wall Act 1996, which seeks to enable property owners to undertake works to their property while protecting the interests of neighbours.  Notices are served on neighbouring properties that may be affected before any works begin.

These Agreements are most commonly used when building house extensions or basement/loft conversions next to an adjoining property.  They cover structures such as boundary walls and shared walls between semi-detached or terraced houses, and floors between flats.  However, these agreements can also be applied to any work that is being carried out within 3-6 metres of a neighbouring structure, if operations such as foundation excavation are deemed to have an impact on a neighbouring property.

The Party Wall Agreement will include:

• How the works should progress, including working hours;
• Drawings and construction details of the proposed works;
• Schedule of condition of the neighbouring property;
• Contractor’s public liability insurance details;
• Any indemnities;
• Surveyors details and access arrangements.

Work commonly covered by the Party Wall Agreement include:

• Excavation of foundations that may encroach close to and beneath adjoining structures and within 3-6 metres of a neighbouring property;
• Cutting into a wall to take a structural beam (such as for a loft conversion);
• Inserting damp proof membranes or flashings that may ‘encroach’ onto a neighbouring roof or building;
• Alterations to a party wall, such as increases in height or thickness;
• Demolition and rebuilding of a party wall;
• Underpinning of a party wall.

Minor works such as drilling to hang pictures or shelves or chasing out for new wiring or sockets in a shared wall between properties does not usually require any Party Wall Agreement.

So basically, if you are doing any building or structural work on or near a wall/boundary you share with a neighbour, you are likely to need a Party Wall Agreement.

The post What is a Party Wall Agreement? appeared first on White & Lloyd.

The Process 

If you are a building owner wishing to carry out work, you will need to:

1. Serve a party wall notice on the adjoining owners affected by the works.
2. If the adjoining owners consent, then there is no dispute and works can commence once the notice period has run (or sooner if the adjoining owners agree)
3. If the adjoining owners dissent then there is a dispute which needs to be resolved by surveyors.
4. Both sides should appoint a surveyor (you can concur on the appointment of a single surveyor if both sides agree).
5. The two surveyors (or single agreed surveyor) will then consider the works and prepare an award. The award is the agreement that sets out the rights and responsibilities of both parties. It also sets out the terms under which work can proceed.
6. Once the award is in place then works can commence once the notice period has run.

How to get consent?

The easiest, quickest and cheapest way to reach a party wall agreement is to receive the consent of the adjoining owners.

If a notice has been served, and the adjoining owners provide a written consent, then this is the end of the process.

We strongly recommend that building owners discuss their works with the adjoining owners, outlining the specific aspects that may affect them.

Adjoining owners are far more likely to consent if they understand the works and the reason for serving notice.

It is worth bearing in mind that the two parties (building owner and adjoining owner) are free to reach any agreement they want. It is perfectly valid for an adjoining owner to consent on the basis that the building owners provides something in return. This could be:

1. A survey of the adjoining property
2. A promise to repair the fence
3. A bottle of wine
4. A future consent to future work by the adjoining owner
5. Anything that both parties decide

What happens if the neighbour dissents? 

If the adjoining owners dissent to the notice then a “dispute” has arisen in the eyes of the Party Wall Act.

Both parties must appoint a surveyor. The surveyors will check the building plans and discuss any important points with you.

Under The Act, surveyors are required to be impartial, they are working in the best interests of the wall.

The adjoining owners property will be inspected by the surveyor(s) and its existing condition recorded. Should any damage occur during or after the work, the Schedule of Existing Condition is used to prove it is as a result of the works.

The surveyor(s) will then agree the terms under which work can begin. They will also set out any precautions that might need to be taken to protect the adjoining properties.

These terms form the Party Wall Award, a legally binding document which is signed the surveyor(s) and issued to the property owner and the adjoining owner.

The properties are then inspected on completion to check for any damage. If there is damage, then the surveyors will agree how it gets resolved.

We are party wall specialists

We are party wall specialists with over 15 years experience in the industry. We are based in Thames Ditton, Surrey and operate throughout Surrey and South West London.

We hope this has been useful. If you have any questions please contact us at: partywall@whiteandlloyd.co.uk

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In usual circumstances 

It is the building owner that is carrying out the works and instigating the party wall process (by the serving of notices). It is, therefore, the building owner that is usually responsible for paying the surveyors fees for both sides.

What if the fees are not reasonable?

If the building owner feels the fees are not reasonable, there is a right to refer the matter to the Third Surveyor or appeal the award in the County Court (within 14 days of the award being served).

It is usually best to discuss fees with your surveyor in the first instance as they should be able to provide their timesheets as well as the timesheets for the other surveyor.

If surveyors are able to demonstrate their fees as reasonable then an appeal or Third Surveyor is unlikely to be successful.

See article How Much is a Party Wall Agreement?

When could the adjoining owner be Liable for fees? 

As a general rule, it is the person “desirous of carrying out the work” that will be liable for the fees, so usually the building owner.

The adjoining owner may become liable for fees in the following circumstances:

1. If they are asking the building owner to carry out work over and above what they intended to (ie: to build a party wall higher or out of different materials)
2. If they instruct their party wall surveyor on matters outside of the party wall act. The building owner is only liable for the surveyors fees within their remit as a party wall surveyor and in direct relation to the building owners works
3. If they (or their surveyor) refers a matter to the Third Surveyor and the Third Surveyor finds in favour of the building owner. The Third Surveyor will apportion costs as they see reasonable – usually to the party they find against. If the Third Surveyor determines against the adjoining owners then they are likely to apportion their fees and any other associated costs to the adjoining owners.

We are party wall specialists

We are party wall specialists with over 15 years experience in the industry. We are based in Thames Ditton, Surrey and operate throughout Surrey and South West London.

We hope this has been useful. If you have any questions please contact us at: partywall@whiteandlloyd.co.uk

Send us a Message

• Name*
  First Last
• Email*
• Phone*
• Subject:*
• Your message

Head Office

Devon House
11 High Street
Thames Ditton, Surrey
KT7 0SD
0208 191 7747

office@whiteandlloyd.com

London Office

Chester house
81-83 Fulham High Street
Fulham Green, Fulham
SW6 3JA
0203 637 2213

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The Party Wall etc Act 1996 allows notices to be served by Building Owners, but it is vital that the notices contain the correct information, are served in sufficient time and to the correct recipients. Without a valid notice, all subsequent action under the Act may also be invalid, so it is crucial this stage is handled correctly. Our senior party wall surveyor, Michael White, explains types of work that are notifiable and what is required of a valid notice…..

The serving of valid notices is a key requirement of the Act and, without it, no further action is under the Act is possible. A notice is the starting point from which everything else follows. It is therefore crucial to ensure that notices are valid, served at the right time, to the right recipients and cover all items of the notifiable work.

Notices are required when the Building Owner proposes to carry out work under sections 1, 2 or 6 of The Act. As a result, there are 3 types of notice that may have to be served upon an adjoining owner to make them aware of intended work. The Act sets out the detail that should be included in a notice and the requirements vary slightly for each type.

Line of Junction Notice (Section 1)

Served under section 1, a Line of Junction notice covers two distinct tasks:

1. The construction of a new wall built upto a boundary.
2. The construction of a new wall built astride a boundary.

The notice period is one month.

The section 1 notice must indicate the Building Owners desire to build. It is also a requirement that the notice describes the intended wall. The requirements are set out in sections 1(2) and 1(5) of The Act.

If the adjoining owner does not respond to a section 1 notice relating to a neighbour’s intentions to build a new wall up to the boundary, the work can commence when the notice period has expired (note: this is in contradiction to section 2 and section 6 notices, whereby a deemed dissent occurs if the Adjoining Owner fails to respond to a notice).

The building owner may place any necessary footings and foundations (with the exception of reinforced foundations known as ‘special foundations’) under the adjoining owner’s land provided that it is necessary.

The building of a new wall astride the boundary is the only type of work covered under the Act which the adjoining owner can prevent. If the adjoining owner does not respond in writing within 14 days, the building owner will have to build the new wall entirely on his side of the boundary line. Again, the building owner may place any necessary footings and foundations (with the exception of ‘special foundations’) under the adjoining owner’s land.

Party Structure Notice (Section 2)

Party Structure Notices are served under section 3 of the act but cover works described in section 2. They cover alterations that directly affect the party wall and may include (but are not limited to) the following items of work:

1. to underpin, thicken or raise a party structure or a party fence wall
2. to make good, repair, or demolish and rebuild, a party structure or party fence wall
3. to demolish a partition which separates buildings belonging to different owners
4. to cut into a party structure for any purpose
5. to cut away from a party wall, party fence wall, external wall or boundary wall any footing or any projecting chimney breast, jamb or flue
6. to cut away or demolish parts of any wall or building of an adjoining owner overhanging the land of the building owner or overhanging a party wall
7. to cut into the wall of an adjoining owner’s building in order to insert a flashing or other weather-proofing

The notice period for a section 2 notice is 2 months.

Section 3(1) sets out the information needed within the section 2 notice for it to be regarded as valid:

3(1)        (a)          the name and address of the building owner;

(b)          the nature and particulars of the proposed work including, in cases where the building owner proposes to construct special foundations, plans, sections and details of construction of the special foundations together with reasonable particulars of the loads to be carried thereby; and

(c)           the date on which the proposed work will begin.

Notice of Adjacent Excavation (Section 6)

Notices of Adjacent Excavation are concerned with works notifiable under section 6 of the Act. There are two types of excavations that are covered under section 6:

1. Excavating within 3 metres of the adjoining building and to a depth lower than the bottom of the foundations
2. Excavating within 6 metres of the adjoining building, if any part of that excavation intersects with a plane drawn downwards at an angle of 45 degrees from the bottom of the adjoining foundations, taken at a line level with the face of their external wall.

The notice must contain the same information as a Party Structure Notice. In addition, section 6(5) requires a statement as to whether the Building Owner proposes to underpin or otherwise strengthen or safeguard the adjoining owner’s foundations. Section 6(6) also sets out that notices must be accompanied by plans and sections showing the extent of the proposed excavation.

Serving Notices

Notices may be served in the following ways:

1. Delivered to the Adjoining Owner(s) in person
2. Sent via post
3. Sent via email if the adjoining owner has confirmed a willingness to receive the notice electronically.

In instances that the name of the Adjoining Owner is not known, the notice may be addressed to “The Owner”, adding the address of the premises. In this case the notice must be served in person and hand delivered to a person on the premises. If the adjoining property is unoccupied, the notice should be fixed to a conspicuous part of the premises.

Counter Notices

Having been served a valid notice, the Adjoining Owner may serve a counter notice on the Building Owner stipulating certain conditions required for the benefit of the Adjoining Owner. The Counter Notice should set out what additional or modified work the Adjoining Owner would like to be carried out, and should be accompanied by all necessary particulars.

Section 4(3) sets out that the requirements contained within a counter notice must be complied with unless the works required would:

1. Be injurious to the Building Owner
2. Cause unnecessary inconvenience to the Building Owner
3. Cause unnecessary delay in the execution of the works

A counter notice must be served within one month of the service of the original notice. If the Building Owner does not respond a counter notice within 14 days, then a dispute is deemed to have arisen and should be dealt with under the provisions of section 10.

About the author:

Michael White has been working in the construction industry for 18 years and is a Chartered Building Engineer (C.Build.E) and a fellow of the Chartered Association of Building Engineers (FCABE). He is also a fellow of the Faculty of Party Wall Surveyors (FFPWS) and a member of the Pyramus & Thisbe Club.

Michael has a first class honours degree in Building Surveying from the University of Reading and now practices as a Party Wall Surveyor and Building Engineer. He is one of two directors at White & Lloyd Ltd, a chartered construction consultancy based in Thames Ditton, Surrey.

The practice is accredited by the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) and regulated by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

We thrive on your feedback, if you have any comments or questions on the above article we would be delighted to hear from you:

Telephone: 0208 191 7747

E-mai: partywall@whiteandlloyd.com

Twitter: @whiteandlloyd

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