Neighbour problems usually fall into four groups: noise, a high hedge, branches or roots crossing the boundary, and building work on the boundary. Each has its own law and its own route, through your council, your own trimming or a written notice to the neighbour. This guide covers England and Wales, with Scotland and Northern Ireland noted at the end.
Key points
✓Noise: if the council agrees a statutory nuisance exists, it must serve an abatement notice. If it does not act, you can complain to the magistrates' court yourself, after giving the neighbour at least three days' written notice of a noise complaint.
✓High hedges: a council complaint under the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 covers a line of two or more evergreens, over 2 metres high, forming a barrier to light or access. The council can charge a fee.
✓Overhanging branches and roots: GOV.UK says you can trim them back to the property boundary, but in a conservation area or where a tree preservation order applies you might need the council's permission.
✓Boundary building work: the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 requires a notice of at least one month for a new wall at the boundary, and at least two months for work to an existing party wall.
✓GOV.UK says mediation is usually quicker and cheaper than going to court, and that court should be a last resort.
Noise nuisance
A statutory nuisance is something that unreasonably and substantially interferes with the use or enjoyment of a home, or injures or is likely to injure health. Noise from premises can be one, and so can noise from vehicles, equipment or machinery in the street. A barking dog or loud music can qualify.
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1. Try talking or mediation first
GOV.UK says you should always try to solve the problem by talking to your neighbour or through mediation before contacting the council.
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2. Report it to the council
Your council has a duty to investigate any statutory nuisance. If it agrees one is happening, has happened or will happen, it must serve an abatement notice, usually on the person responsible.
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3. Go to the magistrates' court yourself if the council will not act
Under section 82 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, a person aggrieved by a statutory nuisance can make a complaint to the magistrates' court. For noise from premises you must first give the neighbour at least three days' written notice of your intention to bring the proceedings.
An abatement notice can require whoever is responsible to stop the activity or limit it to certain times, and can include specific actions to reduce the problem
Failing to comply with an abatement notice without reasonable excuse is an offence, and the council can prosecute
Someone served with an abatement notice can appeal to a magistrates' court within 21 days of getting it
If the court is satisfied that the nuisance exists, or is likely to recur, it must make an order requiring it to be abated, prohibiting its recurrence, or both
For most other kinds of statutory nuisance, the written notice you must give before going to court is at least 21 days
The three-day notice applies to noise emitted from premises and to noise from vehicles, machinery or equipment in the street.
High hedges
This is a narrow power, not a general complaint about an untidy garden. It covers a barrier to light or access formed wholly or predominantly by a line of two or more evergreens that rises to more than two metres above ground level. GOV.UK's guide says a council cannot deal with a single tree or shrub, or with problems caused by roots.
A hedge with gaps at more than 2 metres above ground level that significantly affect its overall effect as a barrier to light or access is not a high hedge under the Act. The council can also reject a complaint if you have not taken all reasonable steps to settle the dispute without involving it. If the council mishandles your complaint, our council complaints guide covers escalating it.
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1. Try to resolve it directly first
GOV.UK says you must try to settle a dispute about a high hedge informally before the council can intervene. Note the steps you take, because your complaint will need to explain them.
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2. Check it meets the legal definition
The hedge must be on land owned or occupied by someone else, be a line of two or more evergreen or semi-evergreen trees or shrubs, be more than 2 metres tall, and be a barrier to light or access.
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3. Make a formal complaint to the council
The complaint must be in writing, and many councils recommend using their form. If the council accepts the complaint you will most likely have to pay a fee, which the council sets within a maximum set by the government. Some councils offer reduced fees for people on a low income or benefits.
The complaint goes to your council under Part 8 of the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003, not to a court
The council decides whether the height of the hedge is adversely affecting your reasonable enjoyment of your home, and if so what action should be taken
If it decides action should be taken, the council issues a remedial notice
A remedial notice cannot require the hedge to be removed or its height reduced to less than two metres above ground level
It is an offence to fail to do what a remedial notice requires, punishable with a fine of up to £1,000, and the council can enter the land and carry out the work
In England, either you or your neighbour can appeal the council's decision to the Planning Inspectorate
Overhanging branches and roots
GOV.UK says you can trim branches or roots that cross into your property from a neighbour's property or a public road, with one significant exception.
✓Yes: You can trim branches or roots that cross into your property from your neighbour's property
✗No: You cannot trim beyond the property boundary: GOV.UK says if you do more than that, your neighbour could take you to court for damaging their property
In a conservation area, or where the trees are protected by a tree preservation order, you might need your council's permission to trim them
Cutting down, uprooting or wilfully destroying a tree in contravention of a tree preservation order is an offence, and the court must have regard to any financial benefit the offender gained
In a conservation area, a tree not protected by a tree preservation order is covered by section 211 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, which requires you to notify the local planning authority six weeks before certain work, unless an exception applies
The work may go ahead before the end of the six weeks if the local planning authority gives consent
GOV.UK says you must tell your neighbour if you want to build on or at the boundary of your two properties, work on an existing party wall or party structure, or dig below and near to the foundation level of their property, in England and Wales. There are different rules in Scotland. You do not need to tell your neighbour about minor changes such as plastering, replacing electrical wiring or sockets, or drilling to put up shelves.
What is planned
Section
Notice at least
A new party wall, party fence wall or wall wholly on the building owner's land at the boundary
Section 1
1 month before the work starts
Work to an existing party wall or party structure
Section 3
2 months before the work starts
Excavation near a neighbour's building that goes below the bottom of its foundations
Section 6
1 month before the excavation starts
Section 6 applies to excavation within three metres of the neighbour's building where it goes below the bottom of their foundations, or within six metres where it meets a 45 degree plane drawn down from the bottom of their foundations
If the neighbour does not consent within 14 days of a section 3 or section 6 notice, they are deemed to have dissented and a dispute is deemed to have arisen
For a new wall under section 1, if the neighbour does not consent within 14 days, the building owner may only build the wall at their own expense, wholly on their own land
If you cannot agree, you must appoint a surveyor, together or each your own, and the surveyors then agree a party wall award that says what work should happen, how and when, and who pays
You can appeal against a party wall award at a county court within 14 days of receiving it
The Party Wall Act deals with building work. GOV.UK says that in England or Wales there is usually no record of the exact boundary between two properties, and that a dispute about exactly where it runs can be difficult to solve, so get legal advice. A boundary agreement or a determined boundary can record it more precisely.
Where a letter genuinely helps, and where it does not
GOV.UK says to try to solve the problem informally by talking to your neighbour first. If you are worried about approaching them, write a letter explaining the problem clearly and sticking to the facts. If the problem affects other neighbours, involve them as well. A letter does not replace a formal route: for a high hedge, the council can reject your complaint if you have not taken all reasonable steps to settle the dispute first.
GOV.UK describes mediation as confidential and usually quicker and cheaper than going to court. Taking someone to court can be expensive, so it says to treat it as a last resort. If you reach that point, our small claims guide covers how a court claim works. You can get free legal advice from a law centre, advice centre or Citizens Advice.
If you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland
Issue
Scotland
Northern Ireland
Noise
Section 82 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 lets the sheriff act on a summary application by a person aggrieved by a statutory nuisance
The district council can serve an abatement notice, and under the Noise Act can issue a warning or fixed penalty notice for noise in night hours (11.00 pm to 7.00 am)
High hedges
The High Hedges (Scotland) Act 2013 covers a row of two or more trees or shrubs more than 2 metres high that forms a barrier to light
You pay the council a fee, with a maximum of £360, refunded if your complaint is justified and remedial action is taken
Party walls
GOV.UK says there are different rules in Scotland
The Party Wall etc. Act 1996 is described by GOV.UK as applying in England and Wales
Can I complain to the council about a noisy neighbour?
Yes. Your council has a duty to investigate any statutory nuisance, and if it agrees one is happening it must serve an abatement notice. If the council does not act, section 82 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 lets you complain to the magistrates' court yourself, after at least three days' written notice to the neighbour for a noise nuisance.
What counts as a high hedge I can complain about?
Under the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 it is a barrier to light or access formed wholly or predominantly by a line of two or more evergreens, rising to more than two metres above ground level. GOV.UK says a single tree or shrub cannot be the subject of a council complaint. The council then decides whether the height is adversely affecting your reasonable enjoyment of your home.
Can I cut branches that overhang from my neighbour's tree?
GOV.UK says you can trim branches or roots that cross into your property, but only up to the property boundary, and if you do more your neighbour could take you to court for damaging their property. In a conservation area, or where a tree preservation order applies, you might need your council's permission first.
How much notice does my neighbour have to give me before building on the boundary?
Under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, at least one month for a new wall at the boundary (section 1), at least two months for work to an existing party wall (section 3), and at least one month for excavation near your building that goes below the bottom of your foundations (section 6). If you do not consent within 14 days of a section 3 or 6 notice, you are deemed to have dissented and a dispute is deemed to have arisen.
Should I try mediation before making a formal complaint?
GOV.UK says you could use a mediation service if raising the issue informally does not work, and that mediation is usually quicker and cheaper than going to court. For a statutory nuisance, it says you should always try to solve the problem by talking to your neighbour or through mediation before contacting the council.
Know Your Rights UK. "Neighbour Disputes: Noise, Hedges, Trees, Boundaries (2026)." Know Your Rights UK, https://www.knowyourrightsuk.com/consumer/neighbour-dispute