Building regulations

[Malagabob333]

I am concerned that the soffit /facia on the extention that my neigbour is building will extend to far over my property I have been contacted the council building inspector that is overseeing this build and he informs me they dont get involved with disputes?? He advise to contact a solicitor that its a civil matter. Is this right??

[buildersmate]

Yes it is. Building Control assures that your house is built to minimum standards - not that your civil rights to the land that you own has been infringed.
No part of your neighbour's structure can extend beyond vertical line drawn on the boundary (unless it specifically says so in property register). If it mentions it in the property register and you live on a recent estate development, it will be because the building developer was covering itself against disputes from overhanging eaves etc. when it put all the houses up.
However that has no bearing on any future extension overhanging, as is happening now.
Go and take pictures of the status quo (suggest secretly - no point antagonising), then ask your neighbour for a meeting to discuss. Ask to see the plans and satisfy yourself about the distances. Remember to check that the space for gutterings is allowed for - not on plans typically.
If still unhappy, write a letter yourself to neighbour confirming that you do not expect that the boundary line will be breached by any structure associated with the new extension.
Otherwise you are into solicitors to do it for you.

[buildersmate]

No, Roaldo, it is not a Planning matter. Planners will not assure that an extension may be legally constructed or fit onto the land proposed.
They will assure that the proposed extension is acceptable to the planning policies of the local authority in size, mass and use of materials.
Indeed it is perfectly possible that this extension does not require PP.

[tezestwing]

surly this raises a question that if your neighbour has/is going to incorporate a protruding soffit + gutter that is clearly going over your line,this intrusion will prevent you
from possible extensions to your property in the future who will sort that out then hth Tez

[buildersmate]

Its even more subtle than that, Tez.
If the neighbour just goes up the line, including, say, enough space for a guttering not overhanging, it effectively prevents the neighbout from doing a similar extension because one can't build a second wall adjacent with a tiny gap between the two. And one couldn't join to the original extension either.

[DaisyMae]

Is it not the case now then, that when someone submits plans for an extension to a domestic property, a notice has to be displayed prominently in the immediate neighbourhood stating what building work is planned and that if anyone has any objections they must be made in writing to the planning office within a set time? My husband was an architectural draughtsman and often did plans for people and this was definitely the case then (some 5 or so years ago).

[jenniprice]

Site notices are not always required these days, only for larger developments which affect the community. However the planning department do write to all the immediate neighbours to inform them, so should have recieved a letter, thats if they did require planning.

Sometimes though people through these away as the Planning dept do not know who lives there, so just write to "The occupier", so many throw it away as junk mail.

I'd go to citizens advice first of all, as not a council matter, and they give free advice.