Reply to your neighbour’s party wall notice, and ask for what you need

A party wall notice and a ticked counter notice passed back and forth with arrows, beside a reply stamp and a pen

For neighbours in England and Wales who have a notice to answer, and for building owners who have been sent a counter notice. Compare quotes from party wall surveyors.

A party wall notice comes with a clock. The neighbour who receives it has 14 days to answer. They can consent, dissent (which means not agree) or, where the work is to a shared wall or floor, serve a counter notice. A counter notice asks the building owner to include extra work that suits the neighbour, such as a flue, a pier (a thickened section of wall) or a recess (an alcove). If nobody replies within 14 days, a dispute is treated as having arisen and surveyors are appointed. A party wall surveyor can help you choose, write the reply and meet the dates.

How a professional can help

Choosing between the three replies: Consent lets the work go ahead as described, with no formal award. Dissent brings surveyors in to set the terms. A counter notice adds a request for extra work. A surveyor explains what each means for your home and your costs before you commit.
What a counter notice can ask for: The Act lists things like chimney breasts, flues, piers and recesses, and similar work reasonably needed for your convenience. It is not a way to block the project or to ask the building owner to improve your house at their expense.
Writing a reply that holds up: A reply should be in writing, dated and clear about which notice it answers. A surveyor drafts it, describes any extra work with a sketch where that helps, and keeps proof that it was delivered to the right person.
Getting your conditions into the formal terms: A schedule of condition, set working hours or protection for your garden are reasonable requests. A promise made over the garden fence may not bind anyone, so a surveyor helps you get them written into the terms.
Working out who pays: The building owner normally pays the reasonable surveyors’ fees. Extra work you ask for to benefit your own property can be at your cost. Your surveyor explains where that line falls before you serve a counter notice.
If you have been sent a counter notice: A building owner usually has to include the requested work unless it would cause them harm, unnecessary inconvenience or delay. A surveyor tells you which requests are reasonable and what building them in involves for your design and programme.

Is this right for you?

You’ve received a party wall notice and the reply date is close.
You’re not sure whether to consent, dissent or ask for something to be built in.
You want a flue, pier or recess included while your neighbour’s work goes ahead.
Your neighbour has replied to your notice with a counter notice and you want to understand it.
You’ve already replied and want to check that the wording was right.

How the project usually runs

Note the date and the notice type: Write down the day the notice was served and which kind it is. The 14 days to consent or dissent, and the time allowed for a counter notice, both run from that day.
Decide what you want to say: List your worries and any extra work you would like built in, such as a flue, pier or recess. The surveyor tells you whether to consent, dissent or serve a counter notice, and what each means for costs.
Write the reply: Put your answer in writing, say which notice it responds to and what you are asking for. A counter notice describes the extra work, with a sketch or plan where that helps.
Serve it and keep proof: Deliver the reply to the building owner by hand or post, and keep a dated record of how and when. Replying in time keeps more of the decisions in your hands.
Settle the terms: If you dissented, or a dispute is treated as having arisen, one agreed surveyor or two surveyors set the terms in a party wall award, including any work you asked for in a counter notice.

What affects the cost

Whether you consent, or dissent and bring in surveyors, since a formal process involves more work.
Whether a counter notice is needed, and how much extra work you want to ask for.
Whether you choose your own surveyor or share an agreed surveyor with the building owner.
The size and complexity of the work you are responding to.
Who pays: the building owner normally pays the reasonable surveyors’ fees, but extra work for your own benefit may be at your cost.

Replying: what to bear in mind

A counter notice is part of the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, which covers England and Wales. If your home is in Scotland or Northern Ireland, different rules apply, and party wall surveyors across the UK can explain them.
Commenting on a planning application is separate from replying to a party wall notice. One doesn’t stand in for the other.
The Act is about how the work is done and how your property is protected. Keep a copy of the notice, your reply and proof of when you sent it.

Questions people ask

What is the difference between dissenting and serving a counter notice?

Dissenting means you do not consent, so surveyors are appointed to settle the terms. A counter notice goes further for work to a party structure, setting out certain extra work you require, such as piers or recesses for your convenience. They are separate steps, and a surveyor can advise whether you need both.

What happens if I do not reply in time?

If you do not reply within 14 days, a dispute is treated as having arisen and surveyors are appointed. Not replying doesn’t cancel the work, and the Act has a process for appointing a surveyor on your behalf if you don’t appoint one. Replying in time keeps more of the process in your hands.

Can I consent and still ask for protection?

Consent means you are happy for the work to go ahead as described, and no formal party wall award is made. If you want conditions, such as a schedule of condition or agreed working hours, you may prefer to dissent, so the terms are recorded in a party wall award. Otherwise, ask a surveyor how to record what has been agreed.

Can the building owner refuse my counter notice?

Not just because they would rather not. They usually have to carry out what it reasonably asks for, unless doing so would harm their interests or cause unnecessary inconvenience or delay. If they object, the surveyors settle it. A party wall surveyor can tell you whether your request is likely to be seen as reasonable.

Is there a deadline for a counter notice?

Yes. A counter notice must be served within one month of the day the building owner’s notice was served, which is longer than the 14 days to consent or dissent. Check the date as soon as the notice arrives and ask a party wall surveyor to confirm it, because a late counter notice may not have the effect you want.

Available across the UK

Party wall surveyors cover the whole of the UK. The Party Wall etc. Act 1996 applies in England and Wales; Scotland and Northern Ireland have different rules, and a professional can tell you what applies to your property.