Neighbours new Window!

C

ca6leguy

Guest
Hi all, after some advice...

We live in an End terrace house. There is a right of way across the back of our house for the neighbour to access their garden. The boundary between the 2 houses is off centre by about 2 metres in our favour, this means that the neighbouring house has a window that looks directly into our garden. This window had obscured glass and was originally the bathroom. The house has now been sold to a developer and they have turned this room into a kitchen and replaced the existing window with a new upvc unit with Clear glass. This means that the view from their kitchen window is directly into our garden. I can stand in our garden and press my nose to their window and look into their kitchen. We feel that our privacy (and theirs) has been compromised. We are not happy, do we have the right to complain? I can provide a picture if it helps...:confused:
 
I'm not an expert in planning but i would assume that changing the glass type does not require planning

I know you probably dont want to reduce your garden size, but would you consider selling a portion of your back lawn to neighbour so that the boundary can be aligned? The alternative i assume is to plant a hedge behind the window to allow the view to / from the window to be hidden. Do you own all the space up to the wall/window or does the neighbour own the footpath in front of the window?
 
Hi, Thanks for the reply. I own all the land, they have a Right of way across to get to their garden. Have not considered selling part of the garden... Don't think I want to do that.
 
It's a pity you didn't spot this on the plans before permission was granted. However I know that in England people have been forced to change glass in windows from clear to obscure because of privacy complaints.
 
I would check with the county council if they got permission to change from opaque to clear glass. If they did not, then they may need to replace.
 
Keep staring in the window and waving and smiling at them as often as possible, they'll soon change to obscured glass!
 
ca6leguy said:
I can stand in our garden and press my nose to their window and look into their kitchen.
Click to expand...

Once youve spent a few days doing this I am quite sure they will obscure the glass!!!

In the meantime, you could speak to the developer and point out the issue?
 
I understand that in relation to extensions Irish planning law dictates that a window should not be less than 1m from any boundary it faces on the ground level. Don't know if this would apply to your neighbours window; it may depend on how long the window has been there and it may be too late to object. Would it be helpful to contact the planning dept/building enforcement section of your local council?

Also would it be possible to erect a trellis directly in front of the window and grow a nice screening plant on it?
 
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