Noisy tenants

[barsark]

Can anyone help with regards to complaints about tenants noise?

I have been receiving lots of calls from a neighbour of a flat I look after about the amount of noise, music and loud voices.

I have spoken to the tenants about it twice and the complainee has regularly confronted them too.

I will be mediating a meeting tonight between all parties to try to resolve the issue but am at a loss as to what to do next if it fails.

Can anyone please tell me the usual course of action to take in this situation?

[Editor]

"All landlords, whether social or private, have powers to take action against tenants who are breaching their tenancy agreement including taking injunctions or possession proceedings. Acceptable behaviour agreements or contracts can also be effective in setting out the standards of behaviour that an individual causing nuisance should maintain."
See Home Office web site here for help:
http://www.together.gov.uk/article.asp?aid=1516

[Poppy]

You should be proud that you have the situation enough under control to be able to organise such a meeting.

Does the flat's lease specify any "no noise outside xyz hours" clauses? If so, this is your main ammunition.

Look for positives, such as "you keep the flat looking nice". If there are no positives - oh golly!

Make sure the neighbour is not being unreasonable about the timings of the noise.

As a very last resort, you could remind your tenant that if they continue to make noise audible outside the property during the night you will have no choice but to take the matter to court and evict them.

Afterwards, write a letter to all parties summarising the meeting.

Whatever happens keep things cool, amicable and professional.

[Worldlife]

I am not sure that barsak is an independent mediator here. If he/she is satisfied that a nuisance exists he/she will be obliged to take action (in accordance with Editor's links) to deal with the matter. Maybe this should be explained at the start of the meeting.

The evidence so far seems to be hearsay from the neighbour of the alleged source of nuisance. Before coming to any conclusion that an actionable nuisance exists one would need to look carefully at the quality of the evidence.

One would be looking at a diary from the neighbour giving the exact times and durations and the description and details of each event alleged to be causing the problem and the effect of that nuisance on the complainant (e.g it was late at night and the complainant was trying to sleep). It is important to to ensure that there is evidence that the noise originated from the property subject of the complaint and not some other property!!!

There is a danger in accepting the hearsay evidence that the landlord could become involved in a counter allegation from the tenant that the landlord was unreasonably preventing the tenant's enjoyment of the use of the property.

barsak - have you by any chance been present at any of the alleged nuisance incidents?

Dependant on the quality of the neighbours evidence. and the reaction of the tenant concerned, it might be best to confirm that you will keep a record of the meeting and send a copy to both the complainant and the tenant and for them both to confirm it to be a true record. Hopefully this meeting will resolve any problems but if it does not you have a record of your attempts to resolve the matter.

[P.Pilcher]

I would be tempted to ask the neighbours to take their complaint to the local authority environmental health department. They have the necessary equipment to gain solid evidence to support such complaints and will, I believe, take legal action involving the confiscation of the noisy equipment if necessary. Of course said neighbours may have already tried this, not been satisfied with the result and are therefore trying a complaint to the appropriate landlord instead.

P.P.

[Worldlife]

@ P.P.

That's the advice I would have given before reading Editor's links.

I modified my advice to accord with the information given in those links.

Perhaps PMS could advise if it is current practice for Environmental Health Offices, having regard the the link information, to be less inclined to deal with certain types of noise complaints.

[Paul_f]

Poppy something you should consider!

Does the flat's lease specify any "no noise outside xyz hours" clauses? If so, this is your main ammunition. This is a dangerous clause as it implies the tenant can make as much noise as they like within these hours so specifying times is to be avoided

Make sure the neighbour is not being unreasonable about the timings of the noise. Noise at anytime that is a nuisance is unreasonable!

As a very last resort, you could remind your tenant that if they continue to make noise audible outside the property during the night why only during the night? you will have no choice but to take the matter to court and evict them.

Afterwards, write a letter to all parties summarising the meeting. Good idea

Whatever happens keep things cool, amicable and professional. Even better!

[Worldlife]

It is not being professional to take vague hearsay evidence of a neighbour alleging noise nuisance to be proof that a noise nuisance exists.

As in my earlier post you will need detailed evidence describing the type of nuisance, where it could be heard, indications of loudness and the times and duration of each event.

It is even more useful if similar but independent evidence can be presented by a second neighbour or other witiness.

Don't forget the entire responsibility need not be that of the tenant. Say the sound insulation of the property was particularly bad or windows were so ill fitting that the tenant could not contain the noise a tenant would make in the reasonable enjoyment of his/her use of the property. Without a full appraisal of the complaint it is somewhat ridiculous to suggest there is an actionable nuisance.

[Poppy]

Hang on a sec. Don't y'all sense that Barsark is trying to sort things out amicably and importantly face to face before resorting to environmental health and the like. According to Barsark's original post the tenant, the neighbour and the landlord are going to openly discuss the matter. I think that's marvellous.

Barsark, how did the meeting go?

[pms]

@ P.P.

That's the advice I would have given before reading Editor's links.

I modified my advice to accord with the information given in those links.

Perhaps PMS could advise if it is current practice for Environmental Health Offices, having regard the the link information, to be less inclined to deal with certain types of noise complaints.

Vic: The EH department have specially trained officers to deal with all types of noise and abatement.This usually involves some officers who go out at night to investigate complaints(usually loud music) and if be this is monitiored and a diary kept.There are "mediation" sessions available where all parties are sat around the table and away forward is discussed.Many offenders usually get off with a warning and a letter informing them of what the EHO will do if the excessive noise continues.I can only recall about 3 times where court action has been taken and equipment has been confiscated.More recently the EHO'S have been gathering the evidence together and then passing it on to the Housing Officer's who then use the ASB law contained in the HA(1996) this usually doe's the trick.I applaud the OP for taking the inititive to try and resolve the dispute but I think in this circumstance he would be better contacting the EHO at his local authority.

[Worldlife]

Thanks PMS.

The information in Editor's links for me implied that Environmental Health Departments were taking a less active role in certain complaints.

As the Environmental Health Department still remain the principal decision makers as to whether or not noise is a nuisance I would agree it best that those affected by noise nuisances should look to the Council rather than the landlord to resolve matters.

People have varying sensitivity to noise and different lifetyles can easily cause conflict. A tenant is entitled to reasonable enjoyment of the rented property. A landlord must not harass a tenant by suggesting that because one person has complained that there is a case for mediation - some complaints can be completely ill founded.

As a landlord I would be very reluctant to take action against a tenant for infringement of tenancy conditions concerning noise without solid evidence that the Environmental Health Department had investigated and established the existence of a nuisance.

[pms]

Vic: You've also got to bear in mind that the EHO can also bring legal action under S79 -S82 of the EPA(1990) which actually helps as a detterent.I agree with you that before the Landlord get's involved all evidence should be gained from EH