If your neighbour is making a noise that is causing you distress you are not alone as noise disturbance is by far the most common anti-social behaviour reported to the police, local authorities and housing associations. It could include anything from loud music and parties, lots of banging, excessive shouting, construction or DIY at night, dogs barking to alarms going off.
Here at Horizon Management, we have put together a few tips on what you can do if you find yourself in this situation.
We always recommend to keep a detailed log whenever the noise occurs.
Include:
If possible take recordings of the noise as well. Keep any correspondence you have with your neighbour as evidence as this will be useful if you decide to escalate the situation.
As a first point of call, and only if you feel safe to do so, speak to your neighbour. They may be totally unaware of how loud they are or how the noise is impacting you and a simple, polite conversation could be all it takes to resolve the issue. If you feel like the situation could turn aggressive do not use this approach as it is likely to make the situation worse or cause harm to either party.
If talking to your neighbour doesn’t work, or you don’t feel comfortable doing so, reach out to someone who may be able to help. As property managers, we will always do our utmost to help our residents and are happy to act as the go between or mediator in these situations. Our block manager, Lisa, has come across this issue many times and is always on hand to give advise on how best to deal with this situation. Most leases contain covenants that say leaseholders should not cause nuisance and annoyance to their neighbours, and a gentle reminder of this can resolve the issue.
If the above has not worked it may be time to contact the environmental health department of your local authority. You can find your local authority and how to start the complaints process at GOV.UK. Be sure to give them as much information and evidence as possible as neighbour disputes are often one person’s word against another so it can be hard to prove. Speak to other residents to see if there are other people who can support your version of what is happening.
If the council decides your neighbour is causing a statutory noise nuisance they will issue a ‘noise abatement’ order telling the person to stop making a noise nuisance or else face legal action. If someone breaks an abatement order they can be fined up to £5,000.
During these COVID times, the police have been given more power to issue fines and break up social gatherings. If you believe your neighbour is breaking any of the rules, call 111 immediately and report them to the police.
If you are unsure whether your neighbour’s behaviour is anti social, you can talk it through with an adviser at your nearest Citizens Advice or contact us here and we will be happy to discuss the matter with you. Don’t forget that many noise problems can be solved between you and your neighbour and in most cases your neighbour may be genuinely unaware of the problem they are causing, so serious action isn’t always required. With Horizon Management as your property manager we are happy to assist you and advise you on any issues you may have with other residents as your safety and well-being is our priority.
Click here to contact one of our friendly team who will be happy to help
