Does the Party Wall etc Act Apply?

The purpose of The Party Wall etc Act 1996 is to give rights and obligations to building owners and adjoining property owners. If construction work is contemplated at or near a property boundary, The Party Wall etc Act 1996 probably applies:

The Act deals with building walls or 'Party Structures' which separate parts of a building and have separate access. A Party Wall can be a wall standing on the land of two or more adjoining properties to a greater extent than projecting foundations i.e. the boundary lies within the wall or structure. Additionally, a Party Wall is one in which the structure above ground is shared e.g. one properties roof is supported by his neighbour's wall. An 'Owner' is anyone with more than a yearly tenancy and a property can have a number of 'owners' such as a tenant, long leaseholder and freeholder. A 'Party Fence Wall' is a wall at the boundary without a building structure attached. The person who initiates work is called the 'Building Owner' and the person(s) on the other side are called the 'adjoining owner(s)'.

Under the Act, an owner has many rights to enter adjoining properties for the purposes of strengthening foundations or making repairs but has obligations to the adjoining owners. These include the issuing of notices regarding Party Wall matters with prescribed notice periods, making good at his own expense and payment for the Party Wall surveyor employed by the adjoining owner.

For further information - please call Bernard Sims Associates on 01483 467270 or e-mail bsims@bsims.co.uk