Legal assistance for nuisance from neighbours | Legal aid centre

Questioner

Hello, I inherited my parental detached house after the death of both my parents. We have a beautifully maintained garden which borders the gardens of the neighbours on both sides. Very difficult subject but the neighbour has a huge pine tree and various blossoms which are planted too close to our conifer hedge. Now the pine tree has probably been there for a while, which cracks with every good storm and loses branches which end up in our garden and on the terrace which is above the indoor garage. Next to our house we have a staircase which borders our hedge and next to it is the garden of the neighbour one level lower. The pine tree and the blossoms ensure that during the high summer days we simply have no sun at all and we sit in the shade. My parents and even the farmer across the street have often asked the neighbour if the trees and blossoms could be pruned but that was then minimal but often just enough to retain the sun when we sit on the outside terrace - adjacent to our living room - and also in the garden. My parents died in 2012 and 2014 respectively and my husband and I live in this house permanently. We find it very difficult when we come home after work to sit in the shade on our terrace. There is nothing nicer than coming home and eating your evening meal on your own terrace, just like the neighbour herself does. Often asked but without result, the neighbour does not respond when we ask her to prune the trees properly. She does not care about our story. Two years ago, she slammed her front door in my face when I wanted to suggest with a glass of wine how we can do this because the beginning of summer is approaching and we want to get our own garden ready for summer but also want to enjoy the first sun. Our neighbour on the other side has also had enough of the fact that he and his family cannot really enjoy his terrace without a sweater or cardigan. How can we, without too much fuss, get the neighbour to prune her trees in order to get some sunlight on our side. The neighbours in the street wonder why we don't sit outside often, but to be honest, that is only possible when it is nice and warm and they are happy to have a breeze. Otherwise it is impossible. Our entire garden has some sun between 3 and 4:30 pm and then it disappears behind the trees. When does this problem fall under unlawful nuisance? Nothing needs to be cut down, but pruning is welcome. In this way we are deprived of the sunshine that we all need so much and as office workers we can really use this for our health. It is not about wanting unlimited sunlight, but please do not opt ​​for unlimited shade either. Thank you for your answer,

Lawyer

You may remove overhanging parts yourself. If the tree structurally and permanently blocks sunlight from the sun terrace, this constitutes unlawful nuisance to the neighbours and you may summon the nuisance-maker to do something about it, first overdue maintenance and then normal maintenance every year. You can ultimately enforce this through legal proceedings, but usually having a lawyer write a letter of formal notice also helps because it will establish the rights and obligations of neighbours and the possibilities to enforce them. Please feel free to contact us!

Questioner

Thank you for your reply. How can I use your services? Kind regards Monique van Esch

Lawyer

You can contact me directly by email via the direct contact button.