How to serve a party wall notice correctly

Who is an owner?

The Act's definition of owner is wider than the name on the deeds. It takes in:

• the freeholder
• a leaseholder, unless the tenancy runs only from year to year or for a shorter term
• anyone entitled to receive rent from the property
• a buyer who has contracted to purchase it

So if the house next door has been split into flats, you may need to serve the freeholder and every long leaseholder whose part is affected. A tenant on an ordinary assured shorthold tenancy is not an owner, although it is courteous to let them know.

Finding out who owns next door

Download the title register from HM Land Registry. It costs a few pounds and shows the registered owners and their address for service. Where the title shows joint owners, serve all of them, either on one notice naming them all or on separate copies.

Ways to serve

The Act allows a notice to be served:

• by hand to the owner personally
• by post, to the address where they live or work, or the last one you know of
• to a company at its registered office
• by email or other electronic means, but only if the owner has said they will accept service that way

There is one more route. A notice can be made out to "the owner" of the premises, naming the property, and handed to someone there. If nobody is there to take it, it can be fixed somewhere prominent on the building.

Keep proof

Whatever method you choose, keep a record: a dated copy of the notice, a certificate of posting, or a note of when and how it was handed over. If a dispute arises later about timing, you will need it.

Send something your neighbour can easily answer

It is good practice to include a short covering letter in plain English and a simple reply form with the options to consent or dissent. A neighbour who understands the notice is far more likely to reply on time.