Bingham Life (May issue)
Q. I’ve lived in my house for 23 years and enjoyed uninterrupted views and plenty of light through my living room window. Now my neighbour has told me that he is going to erect a single storey extension, which will replace our current boundary fence of 5 feet with a brick wall of 10 feet. I think that this will interfere with the amount of light I get into my living room. Do I have a right to this light and if so, what can I do about it?
Kax Matharoo, Solicitor in Dispute Resolution at Fraser Brown Solicitors in Bingham, answers:
A. This is an interesting question that not many people think about but there is longstanding legislation that deals with precisely this issue.
The Prescription Act 1832 states that "a right to light may be acquired by anyone who has had uninterrupted use of light over someone else's land for 20 years without consent, openly and without threat, and without interruption of more than a year."
This basically means that because of the amount of time you’ve been in your house without any restrictions on the light you receive, you do have a right to it. However it should be noted that this right only extends to a certain amount of light and not to all of the light you enjoy.
If the new extension restricts the amount of natural light entering the window so that it falls below an accepted level (a surveyor will be able to calculate this) then it is likely that your right to light has been infringed.
In the event that your right to light has been or may be infringed it is possible to seek an injunction. A court has the discretion to award an injunction that will either prevent a development being built, order that a newly erected building be demolished, or order damages to be paid.
Fraser Brown is a dynamic law practice working at premises in Nottinghamshire through its branches in Nottingham, Radcliffe on Trent and Bingham.
Its philosophy is to deliver superior legal advice through a personal and highly professional service for both commercial and private clients. Since 1990, Fraser Brown has acquired eight established and respected local firms as part of its major growth strategy for doing business in the 21st Century.
Fraser Brown is one of the region's longest established firms of solicitors. Over the last 12 months, it has experienced significant growth in areas such as property, contract work, construction and general litigation.