QUESTION: My neighbour and I live in houses with adjoining balconies that are supported from a common boundary wall. The balconies need replacing and our insurer has agreed to pay up. Planning permission has also been granted. My neighbour objects to certain details of the new approved structure and has prevented work commencing for more than a year. What can I do?

ANSWER: The insurance company may well want to deal with both balconies together to make it cheaper to carry out the work, but in legal terms you need to think about the rights of each landowner separately.

Let us assume first that your balcony needs repairing because of a specific problem on your neighbour’s side of the boundary. Anything on your neighbour’s property that deteriorates to such a degree that it affects the use and enjoyment of your house is a nuisance. Furthermore, a building that relies on structural support from an adjoining building will generally acquire an easement or right to be supported by the property next door. In either case you could bring a claim in the county court to force the owner to carry out works on his land to stop the continuing damage and claim compensation. The local authority also has powers to deal with any dangerous structure under the Building Act 1984 or the London Building Act (Amendment Act) 1939.

If your balcony needs attention for some other reason (such as a specific problem on your side of the boundary or because of storm damage), the options are rather different. You are entitled to carry out repairs to your balcony separately to your neighbour, so long as you don’t interfere with his side of the boundary. Since the legal boundary between the properties generally runs down the middle of the party wall, you will have to go through the procedure in the Party Wall etc Act 1996. The full procedure can take many months and will involve service of notices and the appointment of an independent surveyor to make a party wall award. However, once you have a party wall award you will then be able to carry out any necessary works perfectly legally. Section 8 of the Act gives extensive rights for your builders to enter your neighbour’s property to carry out work set out in the award and to remove furniture and so on. What is more, the courts have taken the view since at least 1878 that the party wall legislation supersedes any private rights that your neighbour has in the boundary wall. In short, once you have a party wall award, you can carry out whatever works to your balcony that you and your insurer want.

The writer is a barrister at Tanfield Chambers. E-mail your questions to:

brief.encounter@thetimes.co.uk

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