A-Z of DIY & Building Guides How To Cope With Noise

Date Published:

27/05/2008

Is your life being ruined by wild parties next door? Or perhaps your over-enthusiastic approach to DIY is upsetting your neighbours? Here's how to get it sorted.

By Sarah Jagger

Get To Know Your Neighbours

Dionne Atkinson from Milton Keynes knows too well how noisy neighbours can ruin your life: 'We lived next door to a rented property which was fine until a new tenant arrived. She would play loud music at all hours and bang around the house. At the time our children were just 20 months and three months old so it was disturbing them, too. It was a nightmare.'

Dionne’s story isn’t unique. More than 1.1m households have been affected by noise from next door, according to a survey. Noisy adults and children, loud music and parties, barking dogs and even the humble wind chime are particular culprits, says Allianz Insurance. But what can you do if your neighbour is noisy?

How Noisy Does It Have To Be?

There is no set level at which a noise becomes a nuisance but it must amount to a substantial interference with the quiet enjoyment of your home. But the law won’t take into account your particular lifestyle if it differs from the norm - because you work nights, for instance, you can’t reasonably complain about noise waking you up if it wouldn’t disturb someone who was awake at that time.

So, if the noise is serious enough to cause an offence, an abatement notice will be served on your neighbour making it clear that he or she must stop the noise or restrict it to certain days and times. Your neighbour has 21 days to appeal against the notice. Anyone who doesn’t comply with the notice can be prosecuted by the local authority for statutory nuisance in the magistrates’ court. If found guilty, your neighbour could be fined up to £5,000.

Defra publishes a useful booklet on the procedure.

Reason With Your Neighbour

Start by talking to your neighbour. Most people don’t like doing this because they fear confrontation. But many noisy people don’t realise they’re causing a problem and are happy to put things right. If the noise affects other neighbours or tenants, get together with them to help solve it.

Get useful advice on how to approach your neighbour from noise action groups:

www.noiseabatementsociety.com
www.noisenetwork.org.uk
UK Noise Association
www.noiseconcern.org/

When Good Neighbours Become Good Friends

Simon Coughlin at Allianz Insurance believes problems arise because neighbours are virtual strangers these days. 'You cannot help thinking that so much of the stress between neighbours could be avoided if they just got to know each other. I would encourage householders to consider other residents and to try and resolve any dispute amicably,' he says.