Damaged Boundary Fences; whose responsibility?

When boundary fences are damaged, either through high winds or simply due to age, it is a common query as to who is responsible for replacing them.

Sometimes, the deeds will make specific reference to who is responsible for maintaining and repairing the boundaries on one or more sides of the property. Many times however, the deeds will be silent.

In any event, it is unlikely that a neighbour will take legal action to enforce the position to try to oblige a neighbour to repair a blown down fence, when the cost of the fence itself will be a fraction of the legal costs associated with such action.

In practice the best course of action is often to either replace the fence yourself, or to approach the appropriate neighbour to seek to share the costs of repairing or replacing the fence together.

This is also often the most practical suggestion even where the neighbour has an (often historical) obligation to maintain a particular fence, as good neighbour relations are usually preferable to being right in addition to the cost and stress of engaging in legal action.

More information

​If you have a Residential Property issue then please feel free to contact our Residential Property Team and they will be happy to assist you.This article was written by Paul Berry, Partner in the Residential Property Team at Pinney Talfourd LLP. The contents of this article are for the purposes of general awareness only. They do not purport to constitute legal or professional advice. Specific legal advice should be taken on each individual matter. This article is based on the law as of February 2020.