Our experts answer your queries
Neighbours bogged down in dispute over ditch
Q I had a ditch along the side of my holiday home in Wexford. It was filling with water and offered a comfortable shelter for rodents. A tall hedge separated this ditch from my neighbour’s property. Because of all sorts of potential hazards, I filled in this ditch at a cost of €6,000. It had to be piped and the overgrown vegetation removed.
My neighbour entered my property, caused damage to fencing and lawn and erected a very strong fence on my side of the newly filled-in area. He had no permission. I wasn’t there at the time.
To date, the family is maintaining that the ditch area was and is theirs. In other words, they wanted nothing to do with the ditch when it was a health hazard, but now that it is landscaped, they are claiming the area as theirs. The newly erected fence is both unsightly and bounds what is now a strip of land – 3 metres wide – between our property and their tall trees.
At no stage would they enter into discussion with us, even before we filled in the ditch. This problem has been going on for two years. I could do very little as the owner became quite ill and has since died. I had to respect this.
A It is unfortunate that your neighbour didn’t engage in discussions with you before you proceeded with the works, as it may have been possible at that stage to agree between yourselves where the boundary was. You may now need to examine any land records relating to your property to establish where the boundary is.
From your description of the boundary it sounds like a hedgerow, which is typical of the Irish countryside. Hedgerows consist of a strip of land with a ditch and a bank either on one or both sides. It is normal for shrubs, interspersed with trees, to grow along these banks. Hedgerows are manmade boundaries where excavated soil from the ditch has been used to make up the bank.
In your case it is important to determine if the ditch has a single or double bank. Judging from your letter it sounds like originally there was a single bank with a hedge on top and the ditch running along your property.
If this was the case then I’m afraid to say that your neighbour could have been within their rights to erect a fence where the edge of the ditch was but this fence should have been on his own side to avoid encroaching onto your property.
This is based on the presumption that where two pieces of land are separated by an artificial ditch next to a bank, the boundary of the property is along the edge of the ditch on the side furthest from the bank.
The reasoning being that the person who originally dug the ditch did so on their own land and all excavated soil was placed back on their land which formed the bank.
However, there are exceptions to this, for example, where the boundary was originally part of an internal layout of a larger estate and then subdivided more recently. This can only be determined by an examination of the original deeds. Should you wish to pursue this further then it would be advisable to employ the services of a professional chartered Geomatics surveyor to assist in this task
Niamh O’Reilly is a member of the Geomatics Professional Group of the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland
Not content with insurers
Q I have properties which are rented out. When obtaining insurance quotes through insurance companies or brokers, I am being forced to have contents insurance included as part of the policy.
I tried to get building-only insurance but the insurers insist on contents also. I do not require this as it is an unnecessary expense.
Their argument is it is included or "free". However, if this is universal policy throughout the industry, surely there is no actual choice and it is in effect costed in. In essence, is it not unfair trading and contrary to Irish and EU consumer rights?
A It is not universal policy throughout the insurance industry to have contents insurance included as part of a buildings policy. However, having adequate insurance cover is a critical step in ensuring that you protect your investment and avoid any financial losses associated with your rental properties. Unlike owner-occupied properties, landlords do not normally need full contents cover. Generally the policy should provide cover for the building and liability arising from the ownership, with the option of insuring any contents that belong to the landlord that are inside, such as electrical appliances, carpets, curtains, blinds etc.
A rental property would typically involve a much lower contents figure than an owner-occupied property, as the tenant is responsible for arranging insurance on their own contents.
With the varying levels of cover available it is worth doing your research and reading through the terms and conditions of the various policies you are offered to understand exactly what you are/are not going to be covered for.
There is a wide range of insurance brokers offering insurance solutions for landlords. It would be my recommendation that you shop around and choose a broker that has experience of investment property policies – they will have experience in identifying the best policy to meet your requirements. There are also a number of websites offering online quotations for landlords.
Siobhan O’Dwyer is chairman of the Property Facilities Management Professional Group of the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland.
Charge could apply to chalet
Q I refer to your article of April 12th on the Household Charge, especially re mobile homes. I have a chalet in Co Sligo which I am told can be moved, but when I rang the Department I was told I had to pay the charge. However, a staff member of Sligo County Council told me I was not liable. I don’t receive any services from the County Council. I do pay a service fee to the owners of the site, for water and sewerage.
A Under the EU/IMF programme of financial support to Ireland, the Government was committed to introducing a property tax in 2012. Accordingly the Household Charge is being introduced by the Local Government (Household Charge) Act 2011/Local Government (Household charge) Regulations 2012. Under the legislation in Section 2, residential property is defined as “a building that is situated in the state and that is occupied, or suitable for occupation, as a separate dwelling, whether or not the occupier shares, or would be entitled to share, in connection therewith, any accommodation, amenity or facility with any others”. The legislation goes on to define a residential property as, a house, maisonette, flat or apartment including a bedsit. It does not explicitly address chalets. There is a list of seven exclusions, such as people living within certain unfinished housing estates or property vested in local authorities or charities, but none appears to identify a chalet-type structure as being excluded from the charge. I am aware that a number of local authorities are advising people that mobile homes are not liable for the charge. However, there is a clear distinction between a mobile home and a chalet given the latter is a more permanent structure despite the fact it might be capable of being moved.
Accordingly I would be of the opinion that you will be liable for the charge. The fact that you do not receive any services from the local Authority is irrelevant as this does not negate your possible liability to the charge.
There is a website, householdcharge.ie, which has been set up to address questions that might arise. In addition there is a support service (Tel: 1890-357357) which might be able to definitively answer your question. This tax is very new and understandably there is some confusion surrounding its adoption. However, for most of us, it is a tax that I suspect we are going to become only too familiar with in the years ahead.
Gerard O'Toole is a Chartered Surveyor scsi.ie
