should my guttering be joined to next door?

Question

I live on a terrace of four houses, at some point in the life of my house someone has replaced the front guttering and seperated it from the houses eitherside with stop ends. there are sufficient down pipes at the appropriate places for each houses run off. My neighbour is trying to tell me that the set up is wrong and that we should have joined guttering so that water flows from his house across ours also.

He said he will try and get a court order to do so - can he do this?

Answer 1

Normally an unbroken roof line will have a continuous gutter even across several properties.
It makes more sense as there is no risk of a gap between the stop ends which could cause a damp problem. In addition if your downpipe becomes blocked you have another escape route for the water minimising the risk of damage to your property.
It should be a simple enough job to do, just replace the stop ends with joining pieces.
Getting a court order to force you seems a bit extreme unless there is an existing problem caused by the situation.
Not sure on the legal case though. I live in a semi and all the gutters are shared as with all the other similar properties in the road.

Answer 2

Probably your new guttering was not compatible with your neighbour's so that's why it wasn't joined up to make a continous length. Continuous guttering is always better because the small section where the stop ends are will impair the flow of water as it runs off the roof. So long as the water doesn't hit that part of the guttering and spray all down the wall of your neighbours house then it should be ok.

Answer 3

If he does NOT have his own down pipe then he has a point.

Most terraces share the same guttering line and down pipes...a down pipe may be in your garden or the neighbours but it simply means that if there is a problem it has to be resolved amicably and shared.

i know the neighbour has taken an aggressive stance..but he must have stewed for long enough to boil over at you....Go talk to the man and find out what really is his problem..I bet he has an horrendous damp problem caused by the break in guttering...or perhaps his own down pipe has failed....not your fault..but whoever changed the guttering took away the safety net of your downpipe...it could happen to you. ...

I do not think he really has any chance of taking you to court, but he could fester further and cause other problems even to the point that it may become difficult to sell your home...you have to declare neighbour disputes now!

Better to have a good neighbour than an enemy...you have to work on it I am afraid.

would it really bother you if he got it all fixed back to how it should be???at his own expense...

Answer 4

He's right, and you're wrong.
The guttering should run unbroken for the full length of the terraced row.
The idea behind guttering is to stop rainwater from running off the roof and onto the street below, or down the walls where it can cause structural damage to the house.
If you introduce a break in the guttering, you allow the rainwater to get through and do whatever damage it wants to.

Answer 5

I think he is talking nonsense about the court order. Unless you are breaking a planning law or a local bye law there is little or nothing he can do.

If the change to the guttering system has resulted in his guttering overflowing for example and damaging his property then he could sue you for the damage. If there is no physical loss to him then he does not have a leg to stand on.

I say if it is working fine in its present state just leave it. Make sure you take some photographs of the present arrangement and the elevations of both your houses for future reference.

Keep your head low he sounds like a pain.

Answer 6

In your situation there should be a 'home owner's association' (HOA) that oversees all architetural modifications and designs. This will be the group that you pay your 'annual maintenance' to. Since all the 'homes' are joined into a single building there has to be an oversight committee that has the power to make and enforce any rules about the building structure.

My suggestion is to contact your HOA, explain your situation and ask for a review of your gutter system. Their ruling will be 'final' and if your neighbour has any problem with the gutters after their review... he can take it up with them.

Good luck and I hope this helps.

Answer 7

hi penelope, i have never seen any legislation regarding guttering , i can to some extent see your neighbours point and usually gutterings are are connected, the point being if one down pipe blocks water will run along the gutter to the next downpipe, and if your downpipe was blocked with leaves for example water would of course pour over the top, if you are not sure what to do next try consulting your local by-laws concerning surface water, hope this is of some help.

Answer 8

Let him try to get a court order, he will be wasting his money. what you do with your guttering is your business, all he is trying to do is get you to share cost, as long as your gutter is not causing him any problems he should just shut up, there is nothing that I know of to stop you having independent guttering.

Answer 9

The guttering on adjoining houses should be joined.
Come to an amicable agreement about sharing the costs quickly, before court costs soar.

Answer 10

He is being not nice about this, The original builder planned that the entire building be connected together as a unit, he also planned a certain number of downpipes.
When someone upsets the layout, then it has altered the original intention.
I'm afraid he might be correct, if a little bullish.
Do you seriously believe that he would take you to court ?
It would be cheaper for him to have the correction done himself.