Can I Report My Neighbours For Having A Party?
By
HuutiMoney
If you are wondering whether you can report your neighbours for having a party, you will find the answer to this question in the blog post below. We will also discuss how you can report it depending on the circumstances and the noise level; as well as suggest alternative approaches to deal with the situation.
Can I Report My Neighbours For Having A Party?
Yes, you can report your neighbours for having a party. If you are being bothered by noise from a party, you may be able to report it to the authorities. In the UK, the law considers noise from a party to be a statutory nuisance if it is loud enough to cause a disturbance.
If you live in England or Wales, you can report the noise to your local council. The council will then send an officer to investigate. If the officer finds that the noise is a statutory nuisance, they can serve an abatement notice on the person responsible for the noise. This notice requires the person to stop the noise or face legal action.
In Scotland, you can report noisy parties to your local environmental health department. An officer will then investigate and, if they find that the noise is a statutory nuisance, they can serve an abatement notice on the person responsible for the noise.
The noise from a party at your neighbour’s will be considered a statutory nuisance if:
- it interferes with the use of a home (or any other premises) in an unreasonable and substantial manner
- it can cause injury to health or be likely to cause injury
However, the noise from your neighbour’s party doesn’t need to qualify as a statutory nuisance for you to report them to the authorities. You can still complain about them if the noise from their party is above noise levels permitted between 11 pm and 7 am.
This means that if the noise level exceeds the below categories, the council will still be able to take action against your neighbour if you report them for having a noisy party:
- 34 dBA (decibels adjusted) if the underlying level of noise is no more than 24 dBA
- 10 dBA above the underlying level of noise if this is more than 24 dBA
The law in the UK is clear on noise pollution and states that any unreasonable noise that causes disturbance or annoyance to others is classed as a statutory nuisance. This means that if you believe your neighbours are having a party and the noise is causing you distress, you can report them to the local authorities.
If the authorities deem the noise to be a statutory nuisance, they can take action against the offenders. This can include serving them with an abatement notice, which orders them to stop the noise within a certain period. If they fail to do so, they could be fined or even jailed.
What Will The Council Do If I Report My Neighbour For Having A Party?
If you report a noise nuisance to your council they will investigate the matter by visiting the premises and talking to your neighbour about the matter.
If you have evidence from the incident(s), you can share it with the council; otherwise, they will gather some during their investigation. Once they have evidence to support your report; as well as feedback from your neighbour during the investigation, they may issue a warning to them first.
If the noise level from your neighbour’s party does not qualify as a statutory nuisance but it is still above the permissible noise level from 11 pm to 7 am, the council can still take action against your neighbour by issuing a warning, instructing them to maintain noise levels at the permissible level.
If your neighbour does not comply, the council can issue a fixed penalty notice giving them the chance to pay a fine of up to £110. Failure to abide by the notice or pay the fine can increase the penalty up to £1000.
The council can also issue an abatement notice to your neighbour. This will tell them to stop their actions or limit them to certain times of the day. If your neighbour does not follow the instructions in the abatement notice, they can be fined £5,000 by the local council.
What Else Can I Do To Stop My Neighbours From Having A Party?
While you may not be able to stop your neighbour from having a party, however, if you are having trouble with noisy neighbours, there are some options available to you before you report them to council authorities. Some of these are discussed as follows:
- You can start by talking to your neighbour about the noise from their residence and highlighting the inconvenience it causes.
- You can write a letter to them, explain your concerns and leave it at their doorstep if you are not comfortable having a face-to-face conversation or you are not sure of their reaction.
- You can approach a tenant’s association to discuss the matter with your neighbour if other neighbours are also being affected by the loud noise.
- You can contact your neighbour’s landlord to raise your concerns if you are unable to get a positive response from your neighbour after multiple attempts. This can be a private landlord, council authority or social housing landlord.
- You can use a mediation service to share your concerns on your behalf if you are unable to resolve the matter on your own even after trying all these methods, or would prefer an indirect approach. These are third-party individuals who are trained in conflict management and resolution and will work with both parties involved to try and come up with an amicable solution.
- You can also contact the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Defra as they are working on raising awareness of neighbourhood noise. To learn more about their noise policy, you can contact their helpline at 08459 33 55 77, email them at: helpline@defra.gsi.gov.uk or write to them at the following address:
Defra Customer Contact Unit,
Eastbury House, 30–34 Albert Embankment,
London SE1 7T
Conclusion:
The above discussion helps to conclude that you can report your neighbours to the council authorities or even the police for having a party that is too noisy. If you report your neighbours for having a party, the council will likely investigate the noise complaint and take appropriate action. However, there are other ways to stop your neighbours from having a noisy party, such as talking to them directly or seeking mediation through a third party.
References:
Noise nuisances: how councils deal with complaints – GOV.UK