Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex

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Sat 5 Jul 2014 15:03
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - shaunclark

My parents have been living in there bungalow for approx. 2 years. I have a small building business. There existing garage was dilapidated so I am going to build them a new one. The old man who lived there before my parents was by neighbouring reports suffering from dementia. The boundary line is shared to the right hand side with two neighbours, both have dug up sections of the boundary hedge and erected fencing on my parents land within the last 5 years by there admission. The neighbour directly to the right have reluctantly relinquished , However the neighbour to there back garden is the ex-chief constable of sussex . He visited my parents and told them that there was nothing they could do about the fence and if they touched it he would cause them trouble in a round about way. The very next day my brother (who lives with my parents ) was pulled over by the police feet from the driveway. He also stated to my father that the oak tree (that used to be in the old mans garden but is now is in his ) he bought from the old man for £50. I would really appreciate some feed back on this as my parents do not have the money to go through the courts. I have posted the situation on you tube here is the link. www.youtube.com/results?search_query=ex+chief+cons...e

or type in, Buondary issue ex-chief constable of sussex refuses to move his fence.

Can I remove the fence without his buddies arresting me.

Edited by shaunclark on 05/07/2014 at 15:07

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Sat 5 Jul 2014 16:13
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - RobJP

It is a legal matter. You might not want to use a solicitor, but you NEED a solicitor - preferably, a specialist in conveyancin, who will be able to tell you EXACTLY where the boundaries are, and will be able to enforce the matter through the courts.

If your parents own their house, then there will be deeds, etc. and those will show where the boundaries are.

Unfortunately, in this case, you need to do it right - one and only chance to get it right.

Oh, one last point : if you damage his fence - even if you believe it is on your land, you commit the offence of criminal damage. Don't weaken your case.

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Sat 5 Jul 2014 16:32
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - shaunclark

So if I where to erect a fence on his ground he can not remove it is that what you are saying.

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Sun 6 Jul 2014 10:36
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - Avant
RobJP is right - your parents need a solicitor. They should have title deeds to their property which should show exactly where the boundary is. It sounds unlikely that title could pass to a tree for £50!
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Sun 6 Jul 2014 11:43
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - shaunclark

Thanks for your input. Does this mean I can erect a fence within his garden that he can then not take down without going through a solicitor.

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Sun 6 Jul 2014 12:28
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - Sofa Spud

If you have access to a clear site plan showing the boundary as it should be, and the neighbour can't provide any documentary evidence that he owns the 'encroachment', then he doesn't have a leg to stand on, ex-chief constable or not. But you'd still need to see a solicitor.

Edited by Sofa Spud on 06/07/2014 at 12:28

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Sun 6 Jul 2014 12:43
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - shaunclark

My parents have no money they are old.So it seems to me that if you are rich and powerful you can do as you please. There seems to be an awfull lot of people in positions of trust recently i.e police ,law, councils, entertainment , goverment that can do as they please and we all seem to scared to do anything about it. It is affecting our children and we all stand by and take it .

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Sun 6 Jul 2014 14:31
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - daveyjp
Level head time, don't get personal about who the other party is.

Order a land registry plan of each property.

www.landregistry.gov.uk/public/property-ownership


www.landregistry.gov.uk/public/boundaries

Use this to compare the boundary, but even then the plan is only indicative. Then see if there are any major discrepancies.

An expert boundary dispute surveyor will be cheaper than a lawyer.

Edited by daveyjp on 06/07/2014 at 14:32

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Sun 6 Jul 2014 15:14
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - shaunclark

Thank you daveyjp .Even if they aquire the evidence they would still need the funds to persue this am I correct.

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Sun 6 Jul 2014 15:34
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - Falkirk Bairn

Check the house insurance....your parents may be paying legal expenses and are unaware of the policy.

You cannot "buy a tree" for £50 and move a boundary - this has to have plans to be registered with the land registry.

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Sun 6 Jul 2014 16:35
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - RobJP

You say that your parents own the house, but then that they can't afford a solicitor ? OK, I can understand that, a lot of people have money locked up in the house. But you also say they only moved in there 2 years ago ? Something doesn't quite add up here, to me.

You also say that you're a builder, with the time and funds to build them a new garage, though. So why not use that money that you would have spent on the garage to pay for a solicitor to do the job PROPERLY.

This is legal matters you're dealing with here. Don't screw it up, don't take any precipitous action. Get it wrong, and it'll come back and bite you on the a***, big style.

Whatever you do, keep a cool head, at all times. If you find yourself getting into arguments with this guy, then don't even speak to him. Don't react, don't do anything.

Let a solicitor deal with it all.

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Sun 6 Jul 2014 17:51
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - shaunclark

I do not understand what does not add up, to you.Is it the fact they only moved in 2 years ago.How is this confusing,to you

You are saying that they should not have a garage on there property and that I,they should pay to prove this guy has stole part of there garden.

The cost to me to build them a garage is a few hundred pounds and mainly mine and my brothers time as and when we are free.Usually weekends and evenings.

The cost to prove this guy wrong thousands.

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Sun 6 Jul 2014 19:01
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - RobJP

I do not understand what does not add up, to you.Is it the fact they only moved in 2 years ago.How is this confusing,to you

You are saying that they should not have a garage on there property and that I,they should pay to prove this guy has stole part of there garden.

The cost to me to build them a garage is a few hundred pounds and mainly mine and my brothers time as and when we are free.Usually weekends and evenings.

The cost to prove this guy wrong thousands.

No, I'm not saying that they shouldn't have a garage on their property. If you can point out to me where I did say that, then please do so.

The cost to prove this guy wrong - IF he is wrong - will not be in the thousands. Quite simply, you get the deeds from land registry.

In fact, assuming that your parents did it properly when they bought the house, theyshould have a copy of the land registry documents, I'd imagine. It would have been supplied to them by their solicitor when they did the purchase.

Go and speak to a solicitor. Take a copy of the deeds with you, and also take some photographs of the land as it is. Most solicitors will do an initial free consultation, or will tell you exactly how much the initial consultation (and possibly a visit to the land to look at the situation on the ground) will cost.

IF you approach this lot in the right way, the cost will be minimal, or quite possibly even nil. If the other person refuses to be reasonable, (assuming the solicitor and land registry say you are in the right), then you end up taking him to court, and when you win, you get the court to order him to pay your costs.

Remember, I am not your enemy here. You've taken what I've said (and I've said what I have done very clearly), and twisted it so that I'm saying your parents shouldn't have a garage !

Keep a cool head. Get deeds. See a solicitor. That's it. End of story. The other person can come up with any bull**** they want about the old boy who lived there before selling a bit of garden to them for £50, if there's nothing on paper, then it has no bearing in law at all. In addition, if the last person there had alzheimers, then there is their word, versus the official legal documents of the land registry. No contest

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Sat 12 Jul 2014 10:00
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - Armitage Shanks {p}

First step, possibly at no cost depeneding on where the deeeds are, is to inspect them re the boundaries. Solicitor next if the answer is not clear.

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Sun 20 Jul 2014 16:10
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - Leif
My late mother was involved in a boundary dispute, which re-ignited after her death, and I dealt with it.

Maybe it was said, but you are responsible for the boundary? And a fence was built on your side? What do you think is the width of land taken by the neighbours? As said earlier, get the deeds. They are not very accurate. Are there facts on the ground that suggest where the boundary lies?

The problem with a boundary dispute is that it can get very very expensive and you could lose if the judge is in a bad mood. Each time a lawyer writes a letter, it costs. £200 per hour is not unusual. In my case we threatened the neighbour with legal action until they revealed a surveyors report they had commissioned, it was in our favour. We then drew up an agreement that I erect a new fence on the boundary. Then while the house sale was in progress, they took down my fence, and erected a new one on our land. There was not much I could do. The sale did complete. The cost was £1000 in solicitors fees, ten years ago. You could easily pay more. The people i dealt with were bullies, and liars, and I was shocked that their lawyers supported them, passing us evidence that was pathetic.

In your case the neighbour sounds like a bully, and I bet he was lots of readies at hand, so he could exhaust you financially.

The fact that the other neighbours have conceded is in your favour. But if the width of land taken is no more than six inches, then you are on shaky ground. If it is several feet, it should be obvious from the deeds.

I would suggest you ask on forums that deal with boundary disputes since our advice may be poor, or missing something important. Then it might be worth writing a letter to the neighbour, sent by recorded delivery, giving a summary of the issue, and photocopies of the deeds to prove that you are in the right. Explain that the neighbour could not have bought the land without a legal agreement being drawn up. This might work if he was trying to intimidate. If it does not work, you might have to engage a solicitor to write to him. That might call his bluff. If he fights back, it could get costly. But these are my views, I have no legal training.

My experience of dealing with a solicitor is that they love exchanging letters, kerching. The other party's solicitor may well want to fight, kerching. I have a low opinion of some solicitors, some are rogues, many aren't. The solicitor who dealt with my late mother's estate was nice. The one who handled the dispute was okay. The partnership closed a few years later when it was discovered that one solicitor was stealing money. The one who represented my mums neighbours was a rascal. The photographic evidence looked like modern art and was unrecognisable as anything.

The fact that he threatened your family with trouble is frightening. I would be tempted to stick a digital sound recorder in a pocket, out of sight, and get him to repeat the threat. Then complain to the local police, passing them the evidence, and indicating your concern that a relative was stopped by the police near the house, the day after the first threat. And you might want to contact the press with the evidence.

My neighbour witnessed a chief police constable drive into his bus, then stagger out of the car blind drunk. When the police arrived, they told him to keep quiet or his life would be made very difficult. He did keep quiet.
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Sun 20 Jul 2014 17:08
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - Leif
I've been thinking about this and I have a suspicion I might know what is going on regarding your relative being stopped. The neighbour will be a clever and/or devious person having got to a senior rank. He will know lots of tricks to intimidate suspects for example. I have experienced tricks by police to implicate me in a crime I did not commit. Anyway, what was your relation stopped for?

I bet the neighbour checked out the car and saw a fault, such as a non working light. So, after threatening your family, he saw the fault, and reported it to the police. They then stopped the driver, in good faith, with good reason. But, it looks to you as if the police are acting for the neighbour, carrying out his threat to make your family's life unpleasant if they pursue the dispute. So, in reality he has no power to get the police to persecute your family, it just looks like he does.

I wonder if it is worth complaining to the police about the stop, explaining why you are worried. They will have to follow up the complaint, and if the neighbour made the complaint, they might have a word with him.

Now I'm not a copper, so this is just my thoughts, no more.
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Wed 23 Jul 2014 14:16
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - Happy Blue!

I am a chartered surveyor with experience in this very topic.

You need the original deeds to the houses; the LR plan will probably not help you, as it is accurate only to within +/- 1m. Original deed plans may have dimensions on them or be of a higher scale.

Then you need to speak to a lawyer and a surveyor who is a Neighbour Dispute Resolution specialist. This will cost you and you must decide whether the reduction in the value of the house having this land 'stolen' from you is sufficient to start a case running.

If your parents have a mortgage, then tell the mortgage company that some of their security has been removed. That may help you with the costs. The household insurance may include Legal Defence Cover which you could use. It is certianly worthwhile asking the quesiton.

Some lawyers may take it on, on a no win no fee basis, but someone will need to commission a surveyors report to decide if there a reasonable case to fight. The deeds may show that the current fence line is correct.

I have been involved in a case in which the aggresor party went bankrupt when they lost the case. Be careful.

One final thought. However elderly your parents are, if they own the house outright they have lots of money to fight the case; its just locked up in the equity of the house. Is it worth try to release some of this by your making a loan to your parents in return for a share of the equity. This may be a good idea to consider estate planning at the same time.

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Wed 30 Jul 2014 13:12
Boundary dispute with ex-chief constable of sussex - tdc

It is my understanding that one can obtain a copy of a neighbour`s deeds if their property changed hands within a certain time scale.If the purchase was before that cut-off date then obtaining that info wont be possible without involving due legal process.

I have some bigoted and awkward neighbours who are averse to certain groups of people(aren`t we all?).It will be my pleasure to sell this property to one of that group ....there`s even an adjoining field the new occupant/s can utilise:)

I could give you tips on dealing with this cop.....all legal actions, but it wouldn`t be smart to reveal them on an open forum.

Don`t use solicitors,there`s only one winner from that scenario.

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