We take all reports of antisocial behaviour (ASB) seriously and will work with you to address the problems.
We would always suggest, in the first instance, that you approach your neighbour calmly to discuss what is annoying you – they may even be unaware that they are causing a problem. It is better to do this than let things build up and have a shouting match, or writing angry letters.
We have an ASB Toolkit online to help you work out what is, and what isn’t, ASB and what steps you can take to resolve the issue or progress it with us if you cannot solve the issue yourself. Please remember, if the ASB puts you, your family or your property in immediate danger, you should call 999. If the ASB is a police issue, but not an emergency, please call 101.
All ASB cases take a considerable amount of work by us and our partner agencies and the time cases take to get into court can be frustrating to all concerned, particularly those subjected to the ASB who want a quick resolution. However, the process we undertake is there to ensure all avenues are explored to support the perpetrator to modify their behaviour in order to protect their tenancy.
Each case varies greatly as to the most appropriate action to take, however when all necessary interventions fail we are left with no option but to proceed to court. Before we reach eviction stage, more work to resolve the situation must be demonstrated to convince a judge that eviction is the most appropriate action. ASB cases are very costly and time consuming for all involved and legal action is not taken lightly.
Whilst customers are often reluctant to record everything on incident sheets or report appropriate nuisances to the police or Environmental Health, it cannot be underestimated how valuable their information is to us and ultimately to the courts. Those that take the time to proactively record nuisance, potentially reduce the time taken overall for us to effectively manage the nuisance and give us the strongest chance of a successful court application.
Each case can cost in the region of £20,000 and, if successful, we do ask for court costs against the perpetrator.
Case study
We were receiving continuous and persistent complaints of noise nuisance from an elderly private neighbour about one of our customers. These complaints consisted of loud arguments which took place almost every day, beginning late afternoon and going on into the early hours of the morning. The noise was significantly impacting on the private neighbour’s sleeping pattern and on their mental health.
The housing officer tried to work with our customer to resolve the nuisance but unfortunately the customer would not take the necessary action needed. Our customer began to intimidate the private neighbour who then began to sleep on friends’ sofas for respite.
Our housing officer worked closely with the private neighbour, the police, (who were also attending regularly) and Environmental Health to gather information about the level of disruption being caused. The noise was also witnessed by one of the housing team leaders on a visit to the private neighbour.
Despite initially trying to resolve the case without the need for legal action, the decision was eventually made that the nuisance was so persistent and detrimental to those around them, that legal action was the only course of action to take.
The private neighbour was meticulous in sending in their incident sheets on a regular basis and continued to do this throughout the entire legal process – this was vital to our success at court.
After a lengthy and costly court process, which began in early 2019, and with the nuisance continuing throughout the protracted court process, it finally resulted in the bailiffs attending to evict our customer. The private neighbour reports how wonderful it has been to sit and enjoy the quiet of the evening and to have uninterrupted sleep, they report that their mental health is also much improved.