It can be difficult to know where you stand in terms of garden boundaries. While it is commonly believed that you own the side of a fence facing your garden, that is not always the case. Actually, you won’t know for sure unless you check the title deeds for your house.
If you own your home, you should have been given a copy of the deeds when buying the property. However, if the information isn’t listed on the plans, or if you rent, you’ll need to check with the Land Registry.
When looking at the plans, ownership of a fence is indicated with a “T” which will mark one side of the boundary. If you can see two Ts joined together, which might look more like an “H”, the boundary is shared by both parties.
But what does this mean you are allowed to do? According to experts at Knight Fencing Ltd, you cannot do anything to the fence owned by your neighbour without their permission – this includes painting, staining or varnishing, even if it’s on your side. In fact, doing so without permission could be classed as criminal damage.
They said: “As with leaning something against or hanging something on your neighbour’s fence, you should only paint, stain or varnish your neighbour’s fencing with their permission. However good your intentions, if you do it without their say-so, it’s criminal damage.”
This is backed by information from Citizens Advice. On its website, the organisation said: “Your neighbour doesn’t have to change a wall or fence just because you want them to, for example making it higher for privacy. You can’t make changes to your side without their permission, such as painting it.”
However, if the fence is in serious disrepair and they don’t fix it, you can report it to your council.
Citizens Advice continued: “If the wall or fence seems dangerous, point this out because your neighbour might not be aware. If they don’t repair it, you can report a dangerous wall or structure to your council on GOV.UK.”
Knight Fencing Ltd adds: “There’s nothing like damaged or broken fencing to strain neighbourly relations. However, regardless of the state of your neighbour’s fencing, you are not allowed to do any repairs, including painting, staining, varnishing, or installing new panels or trellis.
“What you can do is to put up your own fencing alongside your neighbour’s fence, or pop down to your local garden centre and pick up some free-standing plants or shrubs to hide the damage.”
For more information, see the Citizens Advice website here.