Millions complain of nightmare neighbours

Updated
evil neighbor
evil neighbor



A third of Brits - more than 18 million people - have rowed with their neighbour in the last year.

Of these, nearly four in ten say they don't feel safe in their own homes any more, or struggle to sleep because of the stress - and a quarter want to move to a new area to escape.

Most victims have suffered from more than one problem, mortgage broker Ocean Finance found. The commonest problem was noise, affecting 57%, and covering everything from arguments to parties.

Around 30% say their neighbours have been rude or abusive, and another 15% said they'd used intimidating or threatening behaviour.

And half complained that their neighbour wasn't looking after the exterior of their property, or that litter and rubbish were being dumped.

"The research highlights the devastating impact that problem neighbours can have on the lives of people in our communities," says spokesperson Gareth Shilton.

"Loud noise, dumped rubbish, shabby houses, even threats and abuse are causing misery for millions of people who live in fear."

Regionally, London has by far the worst neighbours, with 52% of those questioned saying they've had some sort of problem during the past year.

The Welsh were least likely to have had a dispute with their neighbours - just 26% said they had done so.

But people in Northern Ireland, the North West and South West were the most likely to have an intimidating or threatening neighbour, while those in the North East were the least likely.

Many disputes between neighbours can appear bizarre to outsiders - like the row over a set of shared gates that cost two couples £100,000 between them over the years.

But some cases involve serious harassment, such as the couple who threatened their neighbour in order to try and get her to move out, and even attempted to have her sectioned.

Official advice when dealing with a nuisance neighbour is to speak to them first; then, if the neighbour's a tenant, to contact their landlord.

If this gets you nowhere, you should contact the police, planning department or environmental health department, depending on the problem. If all else fails, you can take legal action.

There's more information from Citizens Advice here.

Lines You Don't Want To Hear Your Neighbours Say
Lines You Don't Want To Hear Your Neighbours Say


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