"Andy Cap" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 3 May 2007 22:00:09 +0100, "Dave Baker" wrote:

Similarly however, if you don't give PW notice then in nearly all cases
nothing will happen when you do the work. Your problem is in having given
the notice and revealed your hand.

Where in *your* scheme is there any protection for the completely innocent
neighbour, from having work performed on *their* property, which may have
serious consequences for the structural integrity of their home ? There is
clearly something wrong with your reasoning, if you have to be so
deceitful.

If the boundary runs down the middle of the party wall then technically each
person owns one half of it up to the boundary line. This is the situation
that applies to most terraced or semi-detached houses and works done by one
party on his side of the wall wouldn't be on the neighbour's property
anyway. In addition the PW Act covers situations where work is done near a
boundary and again not actually on the neighbour's property. His protection
in law is what it always has been since before the PW Act came into force in
1997. Trespass and criminal damage if work is done without his consent on
his property and a claim for costs if work done near a party wall causes
damage to his property. The PW Act doesn't change any of that or in most
cases give any additional protection compared to works done properly and
with due care without it. What it does do is add a lot of extra cost like
Part P and other similar legislation to try and prevent a problem that
hardly ever occurs anyway.