The Party Wall etc Act 1996 (the Act) is a legislation which applies throughout England and Wales. The Act’s commencement date can be traced back to July 1997 and is the remodelling of several historic Acts including the London Building Act 1930 and Fire of London Disputes Act 1666.

The Act gives absolute enabling rights to an owner of a particular property or land
(known as the Building Owner) to carry out certain works which could affect the
neighbour (known as the Adjoining Owner). These works are notifiable under the Act.

The Act requires the Adjoining Owner(s) to be notified prior to the commencement of the
notifiable works by way of serving valid Notice(s).

Once Notice is received by the Adjoining Owner(s) they can either consent or dissent to
the works. If the Adjoining Owner(s) consent; no further action is compulsory to be taken.
If the Adjoining Owner(s) dissent this is known as a “dispute” under the Act.

Further, the Act details the protocols to be followed in the event a “dispute” occurs
between the Building Owner and Adjoining Owner, such as the statutory appointment of
Party Wall Surveyor(s) and the process they must follow to resolve it on behalf of the
Building Owner and Adjoining Owner in relation to the notifiable works.

Refer to Party Wall Matters For Building Owners for more information about what construction works are notifiable and the party wall process including timeframes.

Refer to Party Wall Matters For Adjoining Owners for more information about what the rights of Adjoining Owner’s and how appointing a Surveyor may safeguard their position.

As a Building Owner, you may intend to carry out work that may affect adjoining properties. Your obligation as the Building Owner is to notify any neighbour(s) of your proposals, which is usually done by serving Notice(s) referencing the works you intend to carry out which are notifiable under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996. 

Works are notifiable when carrying out the following:

If you are planning to carry out any construction works or would like confirmation on whether your works are covered by the Party Wall etc Act 1996, please get in touch or call our team of London party wall surveyors on 020 7117 2976.

Upon receipt of the Notice, each of the Adjoining Owner will have 3 options:

1. Consent

This is when the Adjoining Owners do not wish to appoint their own Surveyor and are happy for you
to proceed with the works (no further fees apply except service of the Notice). The Adjoining Owners
reserve their rights under the Party Wall etc Act 1996 and you will be at liberty (but no obligation) to
commence works once the Notice period has expired or earlier if agreed between the parties.

In order to avoid spurious claims of damage from the Adjoining Owner(s) we would recommend that
a Schedule of Condition (condition survey) is prepared, nonetheless. This usually involves one of our
adequately experienced and qualified party wall surveyors undertaking a visit at the Adjoining
Owner(s) property and recording its pre-existing condition in a descriptive and photographic format
prior to the works starting. So, in the event of an alleged claim of damage is made; this can be dealt
with quickly and efficiently. An example of one of our Schedule of Condition reports can be shared
with you upon request.


2. Dissent and appoint their own Surveyor

This is when the Adjoining Owner(s) wish to appoint their own Surveyor(s) to exclusively represent
them. The Building Owner would be obligated to cover the fees of the Adjoining Owner(s) Surveyor(s).

In this instance the Building Owner will need to appoint his/her/their own surveyor to represent and
safeguard his/her/their interests under the remit of the Party Wall etc Act 1996. The two Surveyors
will then administer the Act, negotiate, and then subsequently agree the Party Wall Award (a legally
binding document which outlines the rights and obligations of both parties in relation to the works
covered by the Act.

The Building Owner will be responsible for the Adjoining Owners Surveyors reasonable fees.
Adjoining Owners’ Surveyors’ usually work on an hourly rate and provide a breakdown of their time
before agreement of fees by the Building Owner’s Surveyor. We will ensure that savings are
demonstrated where possible and that the Adjoining Owner’s Surveyor does not charge for
unproductive time.


3. Dissent and appoint the Building Owner’s Surveyor as the Agreed Surveyor

This is when the Adjoining Owner(s) wish to appoint the Building Owner’s Surveyor as the Agreed
Surveyor. This is the best and most economical option for the Building Owner, as only one set of
Surveyor’s fees will need to paid.

As an Adjoining owner, you have the statutory right to receive Notice(s) from your neighbour if their works are covered by the Party Wall etc Act 1996. Once received, the Notice starts a procedure under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, giving you 14 days to
respond.

As the Adjoining Owner, you can either:

Once a response has been decided, if the works are dissented to, the party wall surveyor(s) then compile and serve a Party Wall Award (a legally binding document between the two parties). This document outlines any rights, obligations, and restrictions to help safeguard the interests of the adjoining owner and provide a protocol to follow in the event of damage or unnecessary inconvenience caused by the works next door.

We provide Third Party Obligations Reports for developers who need a tactical approach to discharge all of their obligations under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 and want more information on Neighbourly Matters affecting their development project.

As experienced London party wall surveyors and neighbourly matters consultants, we understand the importance of thoroughness and attention to detail regarding significant development projects that are over and above your smaller residential projects. We prepare extensive reports on behalf of clients to advise them, not only on their obligations under the Act but also of neighbourly matters which could affect their development. These include but are not limited to the following:

When it comes to large and complex developments, we understand that our clients cannot afford delays or issues with neighbours. That is why we provide sound and understandable advice in our reports that fully informs the developer of any obligations and foreseeable risks relating to their proposals. Once we familiarise you with the third-party obligations, our report will also detail the strategy we would adopt to manage the party wall and neighbourly matters on your behalf.

We recommend that these reports form part of a developer's due diligence process before any works are carried out. The advice within the report can also support the design team to amend any proposals should their preliminary concepts be impractical from a Party Wall or neighbourly matters point of view.

If the leaseholder intends to carry out the following structural works, changing windows, inclusion or re-position of wet areas or changing floor coverings from soft to hard coverings; it is likely their works would require a License to Alteration under the terms of the Lease. Working closely with the freeholder, their solicitor and leaseholder we ensure the smooth obtaining of a License for Alteration where one is required. From the initial review of the design and Lease we identify whether the works would require a license to alter from the freeholder.

We then request the necessary information, once in receipt of the information which would include method statements and possible structural design. We produce a specification of the works and drawings if requested. If required by the Leaseholder we can deal with requests for any security deposits on behalf of the freeholder to be placed in an independent escrow account.

In order to prevent and limit disputes. We can carry out schedules of condition in conjunction with the freeholder’s surveyor of the building fabric in close proximity and finalise the content of the conditions of the License for Alteration.

Once we are content with the information in the License the Freeholder’s solicitor would issue to both parties for agreement and signature. The work can subsequently commence subject to any conditions in the License.

The freeholder’s solicitor would issue a draft license for alteration to both parties surveyor’s for agreement and signature. We would check the draft agreement to ensure that the contents of the agreement were fair to both parties before recommending the leaseholder to agree and sign.

It is not recommended that works progress without a license. Unauthorised works can usually be flagged up by the prospective buyer’s solicitor, stalling sales, affecting value and the likelihood of re-finance.

If works are carried out and completed without a License agreement a freeholder can legally insist to reinstate the property to its previous layout and condition.

The leaseholder is usually responsible for the fees incurred the Freeholder in granting a license by way of his solicitor and surveyor.

Additionally, we can offer services of managing the works on behalf the leaseholder.

We facilitate meaningful discussions between the client / developer and the neighbours whose homes and buildings are situated close to the development scheme in question. This helps the community to be understanding of the requirements of the development and to ensure that relationship are maintained during and after the construction phase.

The ultimate purpose of a Schedule of Condition is to safeguard the legal position of the developer and their neighbour(s). We undertake condition surveys of properties of historical or local significance within the structural zone of influence. Older properties can be more sensitive to adjacent construction works. Carrying out a Schedule of Condition can also avoid spurious claims of alleged damage from the neighbour(s), alternatively it can provide validity to a claim of damage for the Adjoining Owner.

Only in two instances can access be permitted into the neighbouring land. One is under the Party Wall etc Act 1996, where the Building Owner intends to carry out works in pursuance of the Act. The other is under the Access to Neighbouring Land Act 1992. The latter Act only allows for maintenance works. All other access requirements must be dealt with by way of a License Agreement. We are highly experienced when dealing with these matters both on behalf of the Building Owner and neighbour and always conclude matters to the satisfaction of both parties.

Regularly a cause for hostility between neighbours, boundary disputes need not to be onerous or time consuming. A legal boundary line separates the land of particular properties. All physical features, subterranean elements and airspace on either side of the boundary belong wholly to that owner. A physical Boundary line and legal boundary line are not the same. A Boundary dispute is when two owners are in disagreement as to the boundary. We carry out site visit(s) to carry out initial measurements and look at the historic evidence for the boundary line and can advise the owners of the accurate boundary position with the intention to bring the cessation of any contention between the neighbours.