We frequently receive complaints about neighbour nuisance eg
- noise from loud music,
- barking dogs, and
- crowing cockerels;
- smoke from bonfires, and
- light nuisance from misdirected security lights: domestic or commercial
Your neighbours actions or inactions could be disturbing you for the following reasons:
- neighbours are behaving unreasonably;
- neighbours are behaving normally (eg sound insulation in your home may not be good enough to cut out the sounds of everyday living);
- sensitivity of people to different types of disturbances (eg sounds that are enjoyable to some people may annoy others).
We do encourage complainants to discuss any nuisance problems with their neighbours as they are going to have to continue living close to the source of their complaint whatever the outcome of our involvement.
There is no legal requirement for complainants to do this, but in many cases the problem might be resolved quicker or more amicably by making an informal approach to the source themselves rather than jeopardising relationships through a formal intervention from us.