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I live in a house which is on an un adopted lane, with several houses on it. with one house owning the lane. In my deeds it says i have full access to the lane and must pay a contribution to maintaining the lane and this is the same for the other two residents on the lane. We have all tried to maintain the lane or our little parts of it at some stage over the past four years as it is in a terrible state and have always been told by the owners of the lane to stop as they like the lane the way it is. Anyway they are now trying to sell there house and have issued me and my three neighbours with the bill for total rebuilding a of a new surface and told us if we do not pay a four figure sum each within 2 weeks when the work commences then our right of way will be withheld and we wil not be able to use the lane!!!!! can they do this???? where do i stand, as i want to get the lane fixed as its ruining my car but not paying that much without knowing what they are doing to the lane and do not know what the end result will be
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I would see a solictor as soon as possible.
Don't rely on the internet for advice in a case like this - two weeks isn't long.
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Can't be much help I'm afraid but it all sounds very dodgy to me. I bet one of our legal friends here will be able to shed some light on the issue. If not why not get some legal advice - either free via CAB etc, or perhaps contact the solicitor you bought the house through. Don't hang around though ! Good luck.
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You need to see a solicitor about this asap. There may be some guidelines on how much notice needs to be given for intended works. I would get a quote from someone else for the cost of resurfacing and make sure that the one they have is reasonable.
teabelly
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Like every one says get a solicitor NOW, Get him to go to court to issue a restraining order or injunction to prevent your neighbour doing anything until the matter is settled legaly.
This is a really good thing to do, as they will not be able to sell the house until the matter is settled (or they will have to lie on the statutary declaration of fact)
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...and if it were me, I'd drop a letter (keeping a copy of course) through his door tomorrow saying that you have not authorised him to spend any money on your behalf and therefore do not propose paying him a penny.
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This guy must be a real plonker. He is certainly going to get his come uppence when he finds a buyer and it then turns out he is in litigation with all his neighbours (he going to have to declare any disputes with his neighbours to the new buyers). I know I wouldn't buy a house while there was a legal dispute going on.
You should try to club together with your neighbours and seek the advice of a solicitor.
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Liam,
have a word with your local authority. They might well be able to advise you on rights where a road has not been adopted.
Or try Citizens'Advice.
Either way, I think th scenrario they seem to have tried to drop on you seems pretty implausible.
But read your deed very carefully. Even if they allow for the scenario you have described it may still be ruled unreasonable. So look out for a clause in the contract which effectively acknowledges that.
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Normally I would be the first to suggest going to a brief for advice. But if the house you own is mortgaged I would contact them initially, they have an interest in your property and may be in a position to bail you out. I would not advice you online about any legal steps you could take but I woujld strongly suggest that you seek legal advice, ideally from the brief that handled the house purchase. This needs sorting once and for all or it could become a major headache for you. It could render your home unsalable because if you fail to declare this dispute to any future buyer and it backfires on them they will sue you this happened quite recently and cost you a packet.
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Your houshold insurance policy might well cover this kind of legal dipute
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I suspect that your neighbour is confusing several issues. Usually there is a right of access and an obligation to pay for the maintenance. These are usually distinct and not dependant.
So if your neighbour will be liable if he does block the access.
So as everyone says see a lawyer PDQ, if you do not know someone ask at CAB. Dig out the paperwork for your house and check what it says, take that with you. Talk to the local authority about have the road adopted, it may be possible.
Before all else discuss the position with the others and see what they think. Try meeting with the landowner and understand their position. Try and negotiate on the price bearing in mind that they will get much more for their house if the drive is made up properly, but much less for the house if there are ongoing disputes over the work. Of course a nicely made up road will also be to your advantage and a legal dispute could be quite expensive if you lose.
Don't get angry get a good deal!
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This site might be worth a look, it's not just boundary disputes that are covered...
www.boundary-problems.co.uk/
Good luck, your neighbour sounds like one of mine!!
HTH, Moz.
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As others have suggested, legal advice ASAP. I would imagine you're best bet (again, as others have said) if your mortgage company as you'll need access to the deeds to see just what is said about this lane and your rights and responsibilities to it. (Unless you have a copy handy of course in which case the CAB may be a good starting point)
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Apologies for going slightly off-topic, but what is the difference between an unadopted road and a private road?
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