Overview
If you are carrying out building work near a shared wall, boundary or neighbouring foundations, you may need to serve party wall notices under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996.
It is legally possible to prepare and serve notices yourself. However, whether that is a good idea depends on the nature of the work, your understanding of the Act and how likely your neighbour is to have concerns.
Understanding when the Act applies
The Act may apply where a building owner intends to:
- build a new wall at or astride the boundary;
- carry out work to a party wall, party fence wall or other party structure;
- excavate close to a neighbouring building or structure and to a lower depth than the neighbour's foundations.
Not every job near a neighbour is covered by the Act. Equally, some works that look straightforward can still require a notice.
Can you serve party wall notices yourself?
Yes. The law allows a building owner to prepare and serve the relevant notices without using a surveyor.
The difficulty is that the notice must be valid. It must be served on the correct owner, contain the required information and be served at the correct time. If it is wrong, the process can be delayed and confidence can be lost.
Possible benefits of serving notices yourself
There are some potential benefits.
- It may save the cost of instructing a surveyor at the notice stage.
- It allows you to communicate directly with your neighbour.
- It may be suitable for very simple and low-risk projects, provided the correct notice is used.
Risks of serving notices yourself
The risks are often underestimated.
1. Invalid notices
Party wall notices have statutory requirements. If a notice is incomplete, inaccurate or served on the wrong person, it may be invalid. That can cause delay and may encourage the adjoining owner to seek their own advice.
2. Increased chance of dispute
A neighbour who does not understand the work may become anxious. Poorly drafted notices can make that worse. Once confidence is lost, the adjoining owner is more likely to dissent and appoint their own surveyor.
3. Complex projects
Works involving excavation, structural alterations, chimney breast removal, loft conversions, steel beams or basement works are rarely good candidates for a casual DIY approach.
The technical and procedural details matter. Getting them wrong can lead to delay, additional fees or a threat of injunction.
4. Liability and damage claims
If damage is alleged and the party wall process has not been dealt with properly, the building owner may be in a weaker position. A properly prepared schedule of condition can be valuable evidence if a later damage claim is made.
Why instruct a party wall surveyor?
A competent party wall surveyor can:
- identify which notices are required;
- check who must be served;
- prepare and serve notices correctly;
- explain the process to the neighbour;
- prepare a schedule of condition where appropriate;
- help reduce the chance of an unnecessary dispute.
When DIY notice serving is particularly risky
You should be especially careful if the project involves significant structural work, excavation near the boundary, works to a party wall, chimney breast removal, roof works or a neighbour who is already concerned.
In those situations, professional involvement at the start is usually cheaper than correcting mistakes later.
Final thought
Serving party wall notices yourself may appear to save money, but it can create avoidable risk. For simple projects, it may be manageable. For anything structural, contentious or time-sensitive, a professional party wall surveyor is usually the safer and more cost-effective route.