A WOMAN faces forking out £300 to demolish her driveway fence because neighbours complained it “blocks the view”.
Corinne Winslett says she can’t afford the fee, nor the cost to appeal the council’s order, so is prepared to fight the battle over the wooden structure in court.
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The homeowner, from Lliswerry, Newport, told WalesOnline: “The only avenues I have are to apply for planning permission at £460 or pay the gentleman who built the fence to take it down, but that would cost me £300.
“The only other option is to appeal, which would cost me £280.
“I’m not in a position to pay that so I’ll have to go to court.”
Corinne’s fence splits the driveway she shares with her next-door neighbour in two.
A handful of locals took issue with the barrier because they allegedly “couldn’t see off the end of the drive” and moaned to the local authority.
Corinne then received a letter in the post telling her she needed to tear it down.
“I thought it was a joke,” she said.
“If you drive around the estate you’ll see so many other similar fences.
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“They’re all over Newport – there are hundreds and hundreds of fences like it.”
Councillor Allan Morris is on her side, insisting: “It doesn’t make sense.”
He added: “We are talking about a time where the council can’t empty people’s bins every couple of weeks but they are prepared to spend money taking action in this way against people with fences that are attracting very few complaints.
“It’s a case of what the council sees as its priorities.”
A spokesperson for Newport City Council said: “We are legally obliged to investigate complaints in relation to breaches of planning regulations and, if necessary, take action including the serving of enforcement notices.
“Formal enforcement action is a last resort when negotiations have failed to resolve the breach of planning control.
“There is an independent appeal process for people who wish to challenge the notice or an application that has been refused.
“Court action is only taken if remedial action is not undertaken by the property owner and the council would be able to recover its costs.”
Fences taller than 3ft (one metre) on highways require planning permission.
What are my rights?
IF you think a fence has been built on your land or is disrupting your property, you need to prove your point, according to Chun Wong, head of the dispute resolution team at Hodge Jones and Allen solicitors.
Check the boundary
Boundary lines vary on a case by case basis – it’s not always true that your boundary is on a particular side of your property.
Confirm where yours sits by consulting the deeds to a property.
If you haven’t already got these, you can purchase them from the Land Registry on the government’s website for £3.
Try a mediation service
If you are sure that the fence was built on your land after checking the boundary lines, you can speak to your neighbour and ask them to reposition the fence in the correct place.
To avoid future hostile situations with your neighbour, it’s best to keep tensions low by talking things out if possible.
If you really can’t see eye to eye on the matter, mediation services like the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors could be a good place to go as they’re cheaper than court costs.
Can I remove the fence?
As any encroachment on land belonging to you can be considered trespassing, your neighbour is likely to be in the wrong here.
“You can either ask the neighbour to remove this within a reasonable period of time or warn them that you would take action to remove the fence,” Chun said.
If your neighbour fails to act, you could take court action against them but that is likely to be costly and stressful.
