The Party Wall etc. Act 1996 covers three distinct types of work; alterations to party structures (usually walls but may also be floors), the construction of new walls at the boundary and excavation close to neighbouring properties.
These are some typical examples of work that is likely to be covered by the Act:
Where work falls within the scope of the Act it is necessary for a building owner to serve notice and obtain the affected adjoining owner’s consent; if that consent is not forthcoming the parties are deemed to be ‘in dispute’ under the Act and surveyors must be appointed so that the dispute can be resolved by way of a Party Wall Agreement (technically called an ‘Award’).
If the two appointed surveyors fail to agree upon any of the issues in dispute they can make a referral to a previously selected Third Surveyor.
At Peter Barry we have a 12 strong team of experienced party wall surveyors, assistant surveyors and specialist party wall administrators to help ensure that everything runs smoothly.
We cover the whole of the inner M25 area from our network of London offices so if you are planning on undertaking work that falls within the scope of the Act or have received a notice informing you of proposed works that may affect your property you are very welcome to contact us for some advice.
Often an adjoining owner only becomes aware of their neighbour’s proposed works when a party wall notice lands on their door mat. An adjoining owner has the option to either consent or dissent to the notice – if no response is made within 14 days the adjoining owner is deemed to have dissented and the parties are ‘in dispute’ under the Act.
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An owner planning to undertake works that fall within the scope of the Act should start planning early; notice periods are either 1 and 2 months depending upon the type of work but where complex works are to be undertaken it can take longer than that for an award to be agreed.
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Extending in to a basement or underpinning a party wall is considered high risk work and the associated party wall procedures tend to be more complicated than for ground based extensions of loft conversions.
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