Today, in this instalment of our property surveying blog, we are going to be taking an in-depth and focussed look at boundary disputes, boundary determination and boundary surveying.
A boundary dispute will commonly arise when two different and respective owners of properties or land that adjoin one another have some form of dispute.
The dispute could include, for example, the location of the boundary separation, the direction of the boundary separation, trespasses or projections, rights-of-way issues, along with a raft of other matters.
First and foremost, here at Stokemont, we would advise that owners take as much of a proactive stance and procedure as possible to try and avoid a boundary dispute in the first place.
Boundary disputes, while being one of the typical services that we provide here at Stokemont, can indeed be incredibly stressful for the owners that we provide the service to.
The boundary dispute will be logically approached with the end goal and result being to provide our client with an informed boundary surveyor’s report.
However, in some cases, simply having receipt of the report does not necessarily mean that the matter is resolved.
The client is still likely to have to then present that report to their neighbour, with the aim and intent of opening up some type of informed discussion, ultimately moving towards boundary dispute resolution.
However, as with any neighbourly discussion, there are scenarios whereby the neighbouring owner simply does not want to engage in that discussion, or refuses to.
Should this be the case, ultimately it will mean that the client and recipient of the boundary surveyor’s report will have no choice but to pursue their neighbour through common law.
Pursuing them through common law ultimately means progressing through Court procedure.
It goes without saying, that Court procedures are not only going to be highly costly (Court procedures being anywhere from £5,000 plus), but Court proceedings are also going to be highly stressful.
The way we would describe our boundary surveying reports, is that they are the first step towards resolution.
The all-important first step giving our client the ultimate understanding that they are indeed of the correct opinion and position when it comes to the boundary matter at hand.
Once they have obtained this report from us, they can then present it to the neighbour, validating their position, and ultimately hopefully starting on the road to resolution.
If you have a boundary surveying matter that you would like to discuss with our team of experienced and qualified boundary surveyors here at Stokemont, please feel free to give us a call today, and we will be more than happy to assist and advise you.
