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Q&As
Covenant quandry
We live in a portion of a large old house. Above our kitchen there is a granny flat belonging to our neighbours. We obtained their verbal permission to build onto the shared wall and built a sun room with planning permission. When we finished the sun room, however, our neighbours objected. Their main issue is the new skylight, which does not fall foul of their windows but is now 300mm higher than we had expected. The council has no problem with the slight change in the design and has advised us to submit a new planning application. But the neighbours have said that unless the building complies with their original permission (which now seems structurally impossible) they will revoke their permission under the covenant that exists between our two portions of the house. How big an issue is a covenant? Does the covenant overide the planning process in law?
Answers
There are two quite separate factors at work here: planning, where you don’t appear to have a problem, and a private legal matter, the covenant, where you do. The granting of planning permission does not override the covenant. A key question is what the covenant says. frequently covenants that give mutual protection to two adjoining properties say that one side can’t build anything without the other’s permission, but that permission should not ‘unreasonably be withheld’. If the wording is along those lines, you could claim that because the planners are happy with it, it would be unreasonable to withhold permission. The vital thing is to talk to your neighbours and avoid a legal dispute. These sorts of issues can quickly run up exorbitant professional fees. Try to reach a mutually agreeable compromise as you are in breach of the covenant, which may put you at risk of legal action.
