If you feel as though you’re being harassed by your neighbour, a lawyer explained you should deal with it in the exact same way you would any other harassment…
Sometimes, through no fault of your own, the relationship with your neighbours may break down, and things can turn nasty quite quickly. Whether it’s an argument about a fence, parking row, or you’re attached to your neighbours and they won’t turn their telly down, there can be many circumstances that can cause tensions and lead to some level of “harassment”.
Just because it’s your neighbour doesn’t mean you have to suffer in silence, however, and that’s exactly what lawyer @crimdlawyer on TikTok shared when he was asked an important question. The social media user asked: “How do you deal with harassment from a neighbour? I have been polite up until now, but it’s getting to the point again where it’s every day.”
He explained that “harassment by a neighbour is dealt with in the exact same way as anybody else”.
The lawyer said: “It doesn’t have to be in a domestic setting. If there’s a course of conduct on two or more occasions of harassment against somebody else, it can be reported to the police.
“And a lot of cases of neighbour disputes are reported to the police, where people are keeping logs, or have set up CCTV cameras and say that they’re being harassed by their neighbour, so it doesn’t have to be in a domestic setting.”
The lawyer explained you could be harassed by someone at work or person who walks past you daily, but it “all comes down to that course of conduct, which the police look at”.
He then said if it was you “getting arrested” you’d have to give evidence of “contact back” and “issues between the parties”.
If you do have a dispute with your neighbour, he recommends you try to sort it so it doesn’t turn into “harassment”.
He ended the video saying that neighbour harassment is “dealt with in the exact same way as you would anyone else”.
The Met Police share the most common neighbour disputes occur over:
- Noise, such as loud music and barking dogs
- Parking
- Property boundaries
- Overgrowing trees and hedges
- Children playing in the street
The police “encourage you to raise your concerns with one another and find amicable solutions as early as possible” so it doesn’t escalate.
They said: “If you can’t resolve a dispute with a neighbour, it can really wear you down. This can have a serious effect on your quality of life, especially if it leads to you feeling threatened, isolated or scared in your own home or community. If this is the case, we would strongly advise you to take action.”
But, if talking to them doesn’t work, and perhaps has even made the situation worse, the police share that there are steps you can take.
If you live in rented property or social housing, your landlord or housing association may be able to help you.
But if the problem involves noise, such as a loud party or dogs barking, please contact your local council, as this isn’t a police matter.
If you disagree over boundary walls, fences, trees, or hedges, contact Citizens Advice for free information and support.
In some cases, you may also want to contact a solicitor. You can also refer to government guidance on the Party Wall etc Act 1996.
For more information on reporting a civil dispute, use the police’s online civil dispute reporting service.
However, if you feel targeted or intimidated by your neighbours and you’ve been threatened, verbally abused, or personally targeted, please report the crime to the police.
