If you live in a flat, a terraced house, or a semi-detached home, chances are you’re well accustomed to sound transmission from one property to another.
A question we’re being asked more frequently is:
Does the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 allow an Adjoining Owner (the neighbouring owner to the works) to stipulate or require the Building Owner (the person carrying out the work) to install soundproofing during any construction works?
The short answer to this question is no.
There is no legal requirement under the Act for the Building Owner to install sound-deadening insulation on the party wall.
That said, if one of the owners adjoining the party wall (or party structure, in the case of a flat) is suffering from the nuisance of sound transmission, it’s likely the other owner is experiencing the same issue.
It’s also common for the Building Owner to be installing insulation elsewhere in the property; therefore, adding soundproofing measures to the party wall is often a mutually beneficial agreement.
However, it’s important to note that this would be a private agreement, and is not enforceable under the Act.
It’s also worth noting that thermal insulation and sound insulation are not the same. One reduces heat loss, while the other reduces sound transmission.
This means their properties differ, and in our experience, sound-deadening insulation is generally more expensive than thermal insulation.
Another key point is that very few Building Owners will have included party wall insulation in their original design.
As such, Adjoining Owners should raise the matter early with the Building Owner so that appropriate steps can be taken if an agreement is reached.
From the perspective of the Act’s notifiable works, insulation is unlikely to be fixed directly to the party wall (or party structure), but instead placed in front of or onto it.
As a result, such works are unlikely to require the service of a Party Wall Notice.
