TelBoy

Austin, when you say i "can" repaint it the right colour, is he obliged to accept that offer or can he refuse and still pursue his claim for a brand new gate, do you know for a fact?

TelBoy

Just looked up the Royal Mint page, i could pay £90 in £1 coins but no smaller.

oldsplice

I think the best option is to offer to repaint or buy him another fecking gate that he can paint whatever colour he chooses. At least if it does go further, you've made him the offer. You could also put up a whole new fence and gate inside your boundary and paint it the colour you want. Also, I would nit pick over everyting possible if/when he starts building his extension. Take photos and get the building inspectors out at every opportunity.

darren...

My viewpoint:

1. Take a photograph of the gate now so that, in the event that it does go to court, it's totally clear that the painting wasn't malicious and was an attempt at increasing the aesthetic appearance.

2. Write to him saying that you painted the fence to get it to match the rest of the fence as you felt that would improve the appearance and hence marketability of his house.

3. Offer to repaint it in an alternative shade if he can supply details of the stain that the rest of the fence was coated in.

If it's rough sawn then forget trying to sand it down - you'd end up changing it's appearance totally.

Personally I'd be loath to give him £90 just for him to decide if he wants to replace it or just pocket the money!

It might also be worth checking the deeds as some deeds have a covenant on them covering fencing (I know ours does).

Good luck

Alan-G

Think I'll just sit on the fence with this one

All Torque

Offer to repaint or renew whichever he prefers, then build a new fence on your side with a gate 18" higher than his fence. Paint his side before it is fitted, I'd do it White with black spots tbh, then you can paint your side whatever colour you want. Of coarse you may have to take on the chin the outcome which I honestly don't think will be to bad.
Two neighbours near me who had been friends for 30 yrs or more fell out when the one went on his summer holidays there was a 7 foot block wall built between them with all the joints left seeping out but pointed up neat and tidy on his own side. The neighbour had no option to build another wall on his own side.

wagrain

Its simple really . . .

After he put up the new fence / gate you asked him if he was going to paint your side of the gate to match the fence. He said he couldn't be bothered as he didn't have nay more paint / stain left. You said, I have some brown ronseal stuff, do you want me to use it to do my side of the gate for you. He said, yeah, thats fine with me.


If he's now changed his mind thats not your problem.

Its his word against yours that this conversation didn't take place!

Enough doubt for it to get thrown out of court even if it did get that far!

Tell him the full postal address of the court he needs to serve the papers at, mention you know it off pat as you have won many cases there in the past and are looking forward to another sesh!

And if he is intent on selling his house, he would have to disclose any legal wranglings with neighbours, which won't do him any favours in selling (remind him of this fact and he may think twice about proceeding)

Alternatively, can he PROVE it was you that painted the gate? Does he have a witness? Its open access so anyone could have done it not just you?

Deny Deny Deny, even with cctv footage of you painting it, if you Deny doing it, its his job to prove 100% that it was you that did it.


I've been to small claims court a couple of times, as the defendant so to speak, and each time I've been the one with the big smile on the way out. Its easier than you think. Stuff him, let him work for his 90 quid


Waggy

TelBoy

Yeah we could do that, Waggy. But the downside is that it escalates the whole issue, big-time. This w@nker would pursue each and every tiny trivial transgression, and we just don't want the hassle, although if it was me on my own i'd be more than happy to cause him as much grief as i could.

I think we're going to pay him his £90 with a covering letter explaining how disappointed we are that he has resorted to such ridiculously inappropriate action over the colour of a gate, and how we want nothing more to do with him.

If anybody on Scoobynet is like this *****, reading this thinking "i'd have done what he did too", please, please take a step back and look at yourself in the mirror. If you've ever been - or tempted to be - as much of a **** over anything as trivial as this, get a life for God's sake. Of course there will always be genuine grievances, but the colour of a gate? Give me a break.

Daryl

I am surprised you are going to give in to him and hand him £90! It sets a terrible precedent, do you really think he won't see it as an invitation to try it on with you again?

In your position I would write to him and ask if there is anything you can reasonably do to remedy the situation - make it clear that you don't accept that what he wants is reasonable.

If he than pursues this in the small claims court, you can demonstrate to the judge that you have acted in a reasonable manner and your neighbour has not. In any case, I doubt that the court would be prepared to hear his claim.

TelBoy

Daryl, yes up to a point. We aren't law breaking people or nuisance neighbours to any extent whatsoever, this was just an honest mistake, ironically from trying to be helpful.

But if this is the way he reacts, his card is marked. You can only imagine the deep resentment this has caused. Going to court means having communication with him, and we simply don't want to associate with tossers like this. We broke the law inadvertently, we've paid the price the hard way. Lesson learned. And a real eye opener to the type of dick this little man really is. We'd just prefer to handle it this way, but i do appreciate what you're saying.

little-ginge

f you are going to go down the monetary route, make sure you get some sort of receipt or something acknowledging that you have paid for the gate from him and that he will take it no further, otherwise he might take your money and still be an absolute **** wipe about it and persue it. Even if it means going to his front door and handing him the money, ask for proof that it has been taken by him Unless it's cheque of course, then you can trace when it has been banked, doh! why didn't i think of that before!!

bish667

iTrader: (1)

Shows you that there are some people who need to get a grip on life.
Sounds like he's not doing it to be annoying its just the way he is. People like this should be taken into a dark alley and have the living **** kicked out of them.

Give him the money and just take nothing to do with him again, maybe spit on him over the gate if you get the chance tho

little-ginge

Alot of people seem up for kicking the poop out of him etc.. why not just go OTT the other way, and go out of you way to be smarmy nice.. an ultra cheesy good morning/evening etc would get at him more.. then you aren't doing anyting which could be construde as being nasty, and show him who is the bigger of the two

dpb

- Its obvious really

little-ginge

well you know that, and I know that, but as i said there are a few commnets on what they think should be done to him..

bish667

iTrader: (1)

I think "dpb" means its obvious who the bigger man in the situation is, ie "Telboy" and not the dufus that lives beside him

little-ginge

Hmm, you could see it that way too

TelBoy

It's a crap situation, i wouldn't wish neighbours like this on anyone (with a few exceptions) - your house should be somewhere you can relax, not live under a cloud of tension and negative energy. I'm just dismayed that humans like this can exist, and apparently flourish too.

LG, we'll be asking for a receipt. He even said on his letter he had "prooof" of what woodstain had been recommended to him. I am clueless as to how these people operate, i'm just thankful i'm not like it.

dpb

Tel you havnt asked him if he wants decking instead ,already ?

Jay m A

iTrader: (2)

I think paying the £90 is fine as long as it puts the situation to bed. Not only in the neighbours eyes but your own. As in its pontless paying up then stewing on the situation for years to come. Of course you've washed your hands of the neighbour and hopefully in 6 months time when someone japes about the gate - its just a funny story rather than the catalyst that sparks fury within your mind!

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

does the neighbour smoke? he could accidently set the fence on fire, you could call the fire brigade and save his house. You become a hero, everyone else will think he is a tw@t if he continues to be a ****

Lee247

The neighbour of Tel



Some peoples aim in life is to aggravate the life out of others, we have one exactly the same. Once it is sorted, do what we do, whenever we see him, we turn our back on him.

TelBoy

I'm not sure i'll be able to resist verbally abusing him, but you can bet your last penny he'll have the Police round before you can say "petty little ****" if i do. As you say, Jay, we need closure in our minds. That, at the moment, seems unlikely, but we'll see what happens.

Devildog

Tel,

Ive read all this through and I think you are proposing the correct course of action under your circumstances.

Just make sure you get him to sign (and have witnessed by any third party) a disclaimer to the effect that he accepts the £90 in full and final settlement of all matters relative to the painting of the gate.

Forget all disapointed type comments, just keep it absolutely simple and to the point.

Then after a couple of months go to an internet cafe or a phone box and anonymously report him as a peadophile and sign him up (you've got his name and address) to all manner of (legal) teen **** etc, etc.

That should do the trick

(you could also utilise the free, anonymous "shop a benefit scrounger/tax evader" type phone lines as well, that could cause him a bit of grief - again from a phone box, of course)

TelBoy

I like your way of thinking, DD. I like the benefit cheat thing especially, but if he isn't claiming any benefit or evading tax (which he isn't to my knowledge), that would get no further would it? Mailing lists for **** is also an option. Any other ideas that my mind is too pure to contemplate?!

Devildog

LOL

That's the point - especially the tax evasion. You say he appears to be running various "enterprises" from his house and you've overheard him "in the pub" brag about how he's raking it in but never paid tax.

HMRC may well investigate his affairs. If nothing else it will give him some grief.

Subscription to the gay times with a postal order?

little-ginge

Free stuff out of magazines - sex accesory catalogues - you know the ones Tel Someone sent my F-I-L one and he now gets them every few weeks.. not that he has ever considered cancelling them

free samples such as tena lady, adverts for viagra etc etc.. which may just embarress him. just remember to use a different handwriting on the coupon as most companies scan these

Alan-G

Going off topic for a moment - the 3 bed semi we had last with the **** of a fireman and his bint of a partner (both prev. divorced surprise surprise) wasn't very sound proof and every morning we heard slimeball and fatar$e scraping the legs of their chairs in the kitchen tiles whilst maneouvering in and out of the table. Annoyed the t!ts out of us - so - cunning plan.

I knew the postie well and he knew how much of a to$$er this **** was so he agreed to post a packet through his letterbox for us. It was addressed to us with an invoice from 'floormaster Ltd' printed to our address knowing that $h!te face would open it.

Inside the packet also was a packet of those felt sticky tile protectors for the bottom of the legs of chairs in all different sizes.

Didn't hear a peep out of those F****ng chairs again

Cheer up Tel - always 2 ways to skin a cat

Midlife......

iTrader: (2)

Just back to the OP..... for a claim to succeed won't the neighbour have to prove that the gate was actually damaged or that the paint was construed as graffiti.

Shaun

TheHappyAngler

Some cracking advice here, although i am of the opinion of keeping the peace and then nailing the f*cker on a technicality later.

From what you have mentioned about the neighbour, i would be surprised if he did actually have any mates. However on the off chance he does, and he does have BBQ's a well placed phone call to your local noise complaints department after about 9pm, should result in a visit of men in hivis jackets and a possible ASBO.

What is sauce for the goose is clearly sauce for the gander.