A man planned the “ultimate revenge” on his neighbour after they built an extension on top of his home.
The man who owned a terraced house in Wales explained how his neighbour recently constructed an extension onto the back of the garden, leaving his walls and roof damaged.
The resident took to the social media forum Reddit to share the incident.
He wrote: “[My neighbour] also built their extension overlapping my roof slightly, which is now preventing my roofer from repairing my roof.
“My roof is very old, it’s leaking and the ‘work’ that the neighbour has done has led to damage of the electricals. But to fix my roof, the neighbours new roof will need to be removed first, otherwise it cannot be fixed.”
He further explained how his neighbour has been avoiding having a conversation about the issue.
He added: “I have even sent them written letters to ensure that they’re receiving my requests to speak with them about the roof but with no response.
“I’ve tried to catch them when I see them out in the street, and they always make an excuse not to speak to me. I’ve sought some legal advice and have been given a range of answers and I am unsure what to do. I’ve been told that if I do the same thing they did, and simply remove their roof, that I can be sued for criminal damage, even though it is on my land and property.
“I’ve also been told that suing them for criminal damage in order to get the roof removed will be too difficult and not worth the effort and the lawyer said the best option is to speak to them. Obviously this method is not working. I also think that they haven’t built their roof according to planning permission, but not sure how to find this out. Not sure how they would get permission to build on top of my kitchen?”
The person added that taking his neighbour to court will be his “last resort” as he can’t afford it.
He asked the readers: “Is just taking their roof off my house another option, or will I end up being sued and them being in the right. The police are coming on Friday, they will check the house and if they think I can prove they have caused damage to the house, they said they will do everything they can to help.
“I will also be trying to get this sorted by seeking a damage claim with my insurance tomorrow, as opposed to seeking coverage for the legal costs.”
Social media users shared their views, with one user writing: “If they haven’t actually built it in accordance with their planning permissions (or even without one altogether), the council can issue an enforcement action for them to take this down.”
Another said: “Do you have house insurance with legal cover? If so contact the insurance company.”
