Your neighbour's party wall notice: schedule of condition, award and your options
A party wall notice means next door is planning building work near the wall you share. Here's how to read it, what your options are, what a schedule of condition and an award are, and what you can sort out without paying anyone.
On this page
A party wall notice is a letter from your neighbour telling you they plan to do building work on, or close to, the wall your homes share. If that’s what’s landed on your doormat, this guide covers your options, plus the two documents you’re likely to hear about next: a schedule of condition and a party wall award. It can look very official. It’s actually a sign your neighbour is following the process, which is good news for you.
You have time to think, and you have options. Here’s how to work through it.
Start by talking to your neighbour
Read what you’ve been sent
A notice should tell you what work is planned and when. Under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, which covers England and Wales, a notice for work on the shared wall must give your neighbour’s name and address, describe the proposed work and say when it will start. A notice about digging near your foundations must come with plans and sections showing where the digging will be and how deep. The GOV.UK explanatory booklet adds that a notice should be dated and say clearly that it’s a notice under the Act.
Check the date on it. You have 14 days, starting with the day the notice was served, to reply in writing. Make a note of that date somewhere you’ll see it.
If the notice is hard to follow, you’re in good company. Building drawings weren’t written with bedtime reading in mind. Ask for a plain-English summary of what’s happening on your side of the wall.
Your options
There are broadly three ways to respond. Which one suits you depends on how comfortable you are with the work and with your neighbour.
Agree to the work
If you’re happy, you can give your consent. Consent is given in writing. The GOV.UK booklet says you don’t lose any of your rights by agreeing. Your neighbour must still avoid causing unnecessary inconvenience, and must compensate you for any loss or damage the work causes.
Whatever you agree, keep a copy of the notice, the drawings and your reply.
Disagree with the work
Saying you disagree is often called “dissenting”. It isn’t the same as falling out with your neighbour, and you can still be on friendly terms while the details get worked out. Once you dissent, there’s a formal dispute under the Act. It’s settled by surveyors, either one agreed surveyor or a surveyor each, who draw up a party wall award setting out how the work will be done.
Appoint a surveyor
You can choose to have a surveyor involved, either one surveyor shared with your neighbour or one of your own. Our guide to party wall surveyors explains the difference. If your neighbour asks you in writing to appoint a surveyor and you haven’t done so within 10 days, they can appoint one on your behalf so the process can carry on.
If you don’t reply
For a notice about work on the shared wall, or about digging near your foundations, if you don’t give written consent within 14 days you’re treated as having dissented, and a dispute is deemed to have arisen. The surveyor process then starts, and if you don’t appoint a surveyor within 10 days of being asked, your neighbour can appoint one for you. For a notice about building a new wall on the boundary line, if you don’t consent within 14 days your neighbour can only build it wholly on their own land, at their own expense.
Not replying is rarely the easiest route, even if you’re happy with the work. A short written reply keeps things clear for both of you.
What a schedule of condition is
A schedule of condition is a dated record of the state of the wall before any work starts. Think of a written description with photos: existing cracks, damp patches, loose plaster, sticking doors. If something changes during the work, it gives everyone a clear starting point to compare against.
You can ask for one whichever option you choose.
The Act doesn’t require a schedule of condition, so it doesn’t set out what one must contain. The GOV.UK booklet still calls one most prudent, and says it’s usually done by describing the walls, floors and ceilings, backed up with photos. Where surveyors are appointed, the award often includes one.
If the schedule is made as part of an award, it’s part of the award costs. The surveyors decide who pays those, and it’s usually the neighbour doing the work.
Ask to see a copy, check it against your own walls, and keep it with the notice.
What a party wall award is
If surveyors get involved, they produce a document setting out how the work will be done. This is usually called a party wall award, and it’s often what people mean when they talk about a party wall agreement. When you get a draft, check what it says about working hours, protecting your side of the wall and what happens if there’s damage, because those are the things that affect you day to day.
The GOV.UK booklet says an award sets out the work to be done and when and how it will be done, specifies any additional work needed, often records the condition of your property before work starts, and lets the surveyors in to inspect the work as it goes on. It’s final and binding on both of you unless a county court cancels or changes it on appeal.
The surveyors decide who pays for the award. Usually it’s the neighbour doing the work, including your own surveyor’s fees, if the work is only for their benefit.
You can appeal to the county court within 14 days, starting with the day the award is served on you. The court can cancel the award or change it.
Read the award when it arrives, even if it’s long. If something in it doesn’t match what you were told, ask your surveyor to explain it before work starts.
Before the work starts
Whatever you decide, take dated photos of your side of the shared wall. Note any cracks, damp patches or uneven plaster. Keep the photos with the notice. If anything changes during the work, you’ll have a clear before-and-after.
It’s also worth asking your neighbour for their builder’s contact details, so you have someone to call if there’s a problem on the day.
Who pays
If surveyors get involved, you’ll want to know who covers their fees. Usually your neighbour, as the one doing the work, pays all the costs of the award, including your surveyor’s fees, if the work is only for their benefit. You may have to pay a share if the work is needed because of defects or disrepair you’re partly responsible for. The surveyors decide. There’s more in who pays for a party wall surveyor.
When to take action
If work starts that wasn’t in the notice, or starts before the notice period has passed, speak to your neighbour first. If work starts without proper notice, the GOV.UK booklet says the neighbour affected may be able to get a court injunction to stop it, or take other legal action.
Sources
- The Party Wall etc. Act 1996: explanatory booklet, GOV.UK
- Party Wall etc. Act 1996, section 1: New building on line of junction, legislation.gov.uk
- Party Wall etc. Act 1996, section 3: Party structure notices, legislation.gov.uk
- Party Wall etc. Act 1996, section 5: Disputes arising under sections 3 and 4, legislation.gov.uk
- Party Wall etc. Act 1996, section 6: Adjacent excavation and construction, legislation.gov.uk
- Party Wall etc. Act 1996, section 7: Compensation etc., legislation.gov.uk
- Party Wall etc. Act 1996, section 10: Resolution of disputes, legislation.gov.uk
Related guides
- Do you need a party wall agreement?
A party wall agreement is the everyday name for the paperwork that settles building work on a shared wall. Here's what people usually mean by it, which jobs it tends to come up for, and where to start.
- Agreed surveyor or two surveyors? Party wall surveyors explained
An agreed surveyor acts for both neighbours, or each of you can have your own. Here's who each kind of party wall surveyor works for, and when you'd come across them.
- Party wall surveyor costs: who pays, and how much?
Who pays for a party wall surveyor depends on who's doing the building work and who appoints the surveyor. Here's what affects party wall surveyor costs and how to keep the bill down.
- Party wall notice: how to serve one, step by step
Planning building work on or near a wall you share with next door? Here's how to serve a party wall notice, in order, starting with the free bit, a chat with your neighbour.