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If you require a scaffold to be erected on your home, depending on your property type, you may need to ask your neighbours for access to certain areas of your property from their garden, alleyway, or driveway. In most circumstances, neighbours are accommodating if for no other reason than being neighbourly and knowing a favour can be returned at a later date.
However, they can refuse access to scaffolding erected on their land.
When erecting scaffolding, we aim to avoid encroaching on a neighbour’s garden or land by beaming and bridging up and over areas, or by finding another access point to the location you need to get to; however, on some occasions, it is unavoidable, no matter how hard we try.
If, in the unfortunate situation, your neighbour refuses to have your scaffolding in their garden or land, you could check to see if you have the “right to access” written in your deeds; if that is not possible, you may have acquired one over time. This means if a “Prescriptive right of way“, which is a property right held by someone besides the property owner to use a property in a precise way, shows that you have implemented it without force, secrecy, or permission continuously and uninterrupted for at least 20 years, you may have the right to access.
If none of the above applies, you could ask the court to grant you an access order for “basic preservation works” under the “Access to Neighbouring Land Act 1992”. However, it must be for one of the valid reasons below:
The work where scaffolding is required must relate to preserving an existing structure, not a new build, extension or conservatory.
Courts can still refuse the order if it causes your neighbour hardship or financial loss, or they may ask you to provide compensation as a condition of access, as scaffolding could cause damage to paving, walls and fences.
This situation is infrequent, and most neighbours are accommodating when adding a few tubes in their garden or encroaching on their driveway or alley.
When we have permission to add a scaffold to your neighbour’s land, we will ensure that there is no damage and as little disruption as possible for them; we will also tidy up the area when dismantling. We want to ensure your relationship with your neighbours is not affected by our scaffold being erected.
If you have an area that may need scaffolding to go up next door, please get in touch, and we will find the best solution to get you the access you need.
