As the adjoining owner, you may not be happy to see if they’re building works taking place on a party wall. It’s important to make sure that you understand how the act is going to benefit you, because while it is primarily meant to facilitate the development of the project, there are certain rights and benefits it gives to you.
What Responsibilities Does a Building Owner Have?
The building owner, the person who is completing the work, has to abide by the Party Wall Act in order to successfully complete the work in a lawful way. For example, this means that they have a legal obligation to notify you before they start the project.
The building owner is also responsible for correcting any damage that is caused during the project, even if the damage is caused by a contractor or building company.
You cannot stop somebody from completing the building work by using the act, but you can influence how the work is completed.
If you choose not to respond to the notice provided by a building owner, then a dispute will be generated. If this happens, and you are in the middle of a dispute, and you then don’t agree with the surveyor that is appointed for the two of you, and you don’t appoint a surveyor of your own, then the building owner will appoint a surveyor for you to make sure that the dispute resolution process can carry forward.
Whilst the act does allow for the pair of you to share a surveyor, the majority of adjoining owners choose to appoint a surveyor independently, to ensure that they have somebody on their side they trust.
What Rights Do You Have?
As an adjoining owner, you have certain rights. For example, this includes the right to appoint a surveyor who can handle the dispute. You have the right to request reasonable measures to be taken to protect your property from damage and to ensure your security.
You also have the right not to endure any unnecessary inconveniences, and to be compensated for any damages caused by the building works. You are also allowed to request security for any expenses that are covered by the work, to make sure that you are protected against potential loss.
Your surveyor will settle the dispute for you by making an award. This will be a document of details when the work is carried out, how the work is carried out, the exact nature of what is being done, and also specifies what extra work is required, like for example installing protective measures around your home to prevent damages.
Furthermore, the award usually contains information about the condition of your property prior to the work beginning. This is to make sure that we can identify any damage that was done to the property during the process, and make sure that everybody knows what damage is already present.
It’s important to know that your surveyor will often inspect the property and the work as it has been completed to make sure that the building owner is complying with the regulations laid out by the award. In the event that the work requires underground tasks and labour, the award will reflect this by being more complex, and having more conditions.
Surveyor Fees
It is usually the responsibility of the building owner to pay any of the costs which are associated with the award and the work involved. This means that they will often be paying for the fees of your surveyor, especially if the works they intend to carry out or solely for their benefit.
Your survey I will keep a record of the time that they have spent working on the project, as well as any other expenses such as travel costs and all the paperwork involved. Once everything has been resolved, they will submit the fee towards the building owner for agreement. In the event that the two cannot agree on a final price, a third-party will be required to arbitrate.
What to do Now
As the adjoining owner, there are many things in place to protect you from any unnecessary damages, but it is important to remember that the actor is not designed to allow you to prevent the works from being carried out, however it does allow you to raise a reasonable dispute.
Dispute resolution is often very simple, and once it has been decided, it is usually the end of the matter. If you wish to contest it further, you would have to invoke the power of the courts.
Party Wall procedures can be confusing at the best of times, with multiple different sources of information available.
At Stokemont, we pride ourselves on ensuring that our Surveying approach is not only impartial, but that our fees are competitive and our Party Wall Surveyors are both experienced and qualified. If you would like to discuss how we can be of assistance, give us a call today.
