shared walls

[pafty]

A dividing garden wall fell down. It's part of my side wall and neighbour's end wall. they are absentee lanlords (living in Channel islands) I told their agent that the wall had fallen down. they came back immediatley to say that they would rebuild and would start next Monday which they did. Now wall is built they are saying its a shared wall and we should share costs. My feelings : They should have mentioned this before rebuilding. By taking it on they made an unspoken agreement that it was their wall.
They need to prove to me its shared.
I shouldn't (if it comes to it) have to pay for the removal of the tree which was rooted in their garden- grew through the wall and weakened it in the first place.
Any thoughts? Thanks

[jackthehat]

They have shot themselves in the foot by not discussing with you, prior to the rebuild, the 'fine detail'.

It may be a 'shared-wall' but they essentially prevented you from securing your own quotes, etc. for the rebuild.
Invite them to prove that you have any responsibility at all for this wall. And then fight them on the grounds that their actions have prevented you from seeking your own satisfactory remedy for solving the problem.

[maclarencat]

I wouldnt even discuss wether it is shared or not. The tree was not yours that caused the damage and they accepted liability by having the job done without your prior agreement. They are just trying it on. It is probably the agents fault in that he may have agreed to do this without consulting the owner and when he did consult them they told him it was shared and said they would only pay half and so he is trying to recoup his losses.

[pafty]

Thanks both. That's what i thought. Back to the fray

[tonywiltshire]

There is such a thing as The Party Wall Act 1996, but I do not think this is for your situation, more where there is a party wall between two dwellings.
If the wall is on your neighbour's land it is their wall.
If it is in the middle the agent should have agreed the cost with you before the work started if they expect you to contribute.
The agent has instructed the builder of the wall and it is nothing to do with you.

[buildersmate]

Tony
The Party Wall Act 1996 can (in some situations) apply to the partitions between adjacent plots where they have masonry structures on the boundary. The terminology is a 'party fence wall'.

[ubasses]

what do your deeds show?

[buildersmate]

Ubasses
1) Deeds irrelevant these days apart from the small number of unregistered properties - it is what the Land Title at Land Registry says that is important.
2) In any case, the vast majority of Land Titles / descriptions say nothing about the absolute position of the boundary (and hence) walls ownership. Though more recent estate developments often show ownership of the (typically flimsy) wooden fences that developers erect between meagre-sized plots.

[cassa333]

What does it say about boundry marker ownership at land registry? These cost generaly less than a tenner to get.

Even if it is a party fence wall you cannot be compelled to contribute (unless stated in the deeds etc). Any contribution should be agreed in advance and as already suggested, the agents probably were too quick off the mark and are trying it on to recoupe some of their losses.