Are you fed up with nuisance neighbours?

According to our latest survey, 27% of Brits have had a problem with nuisance neighbours in the last year. Loud voices, arguing and loud music top the list of annoyances in our survey. But incidents involving drug use and police being called to properties were also cited.

The effect this can have on people is no laughing matter – 53% were left feeling angry, 42% said they felt stressed and 11% admitted to feeling afraid.

We also found that 10% resorted to getting their own back by creating annoyances for their neighbour, and 8% argued with their partner about it.

Repeat offending, the time of day and a lack of apology are factors that compound the frustrations felt by people when dealing with problematic neighbours.

Young people don’t know where to turn

Our survey also found that young people were more likely to suffer from a nuisance neighbour, with 33% of 18-24 year olds experiencing a problem in the last year, compared to just 17% for those aged 65+.

However, 86% of people aged 18-24 who experienced a problem told us they didn’t know where to go to get advice or help, compared to 44% of those aged 65+.

How to resolve neighbour disputes

When it comes to dealing with disputes, 32% of people calmly spoke to their neighbours to try and resolve the issue and 23% said they kept a record of what occurred and when. But only 22% contacted their local authority or environmental health department.

I was pretty shocked at this. Regardless of whether you rent or own your property, local authorities have a duty to investigate excessive noise, anti-social behaviour and rubbish dumping that affects local communities. They have powers to take action against people whose behaviour is unacceptable, so you need to make sure you get in touch with them. Don’t suffer in silence.

Have you had a nuisance neighbour? Was it easy to resolve the problem? Did your local authority help?