Neighbour trouble

I know it makes you blood boil, but step back, count to ten, try not to get too stressed (easier said than done, I know) and avoid any unnecessary confrontation. The advice Dr C has give is OTM, whatever happens now, play it by the book, let the authorities deal with it, it's their duty and responsibility to investigate it.

The Neighbours From Hell have escalated from having a loud party out in the garden every few months to doing it every weekend.

This past weekend was particularly bad - they were out until 2am on Saturday night, playing music in the garden really loud, bellowing along, shouting at one another at the tops of their voices.

You'd think they'd be too hungover to make much of a noise on Sunday night, wouldn't you? NO! They were out again last night until well after midnight, shouting and bellowing and making a racket until well after midnight.

I've left notes (we asked them to turn their music down the first time they did this, last year, and were greeted with verbal abuse and threats of violence for out trouble). I've called the Noise Nuisance hotline for the Council. My housemate is trying to get hold of their landlord.

I'm reaching the end of my tether. I moved out of Central London to the suburbs to GET AWAY from this kind of thing. I can't believe that any human being can be so inconsiderate and show so little respect for their neighbours. It wouldn't be so bad if they were in their own house, but they go out in the garden so the WHOLE NEIGHBOURHOOD has to be exposed to their noise. Sometimes they even have the radio on in their kitchen, turned up so loud that they can listen to it in their garden - never mind that the window for my room is CLOSER TO THAT RADIO than they are.

I don't know what else to do.

Seeing as how I'm a musician and all, I should be the worst noise pest in the world, but I'm so TERRIFIED of being loud and disturbing people that I won't even play my stereo at all after 11pm.

http://www.lambeth.gov.uk/Services/Environment/Pollution/NoiseControl.htm

They never bothered getting back to us. If it happens again, I'm not waiting until 1am to call, I'm calling the minute that they start up.

Norman, what happened with your neighbours? Are they still being a nuisance or is that passed now?

I saw shithead's mother at the bus stop a couple of days after the argument. She was apologetic, and said it wouldn't happen again, and so far it hasn't. Last wintertime, the guy who has the allotment next to ours had a run in with shithead. His car got broken into, and there were a row of footprints leading back from the car to shithead's mother's house. Allotment man went to see shithead, shithead gave him attitude, so allotment man beat him down.

Jill spoke with shithead's mother a month or so ago, and she can't afford to run the place, because of shithead. She'll probably sell the place in a year or so. It's very sad, actually.

If he was my son, he'd have come home to find his bags packed and the locks changed years ago.

Another bunch of skeeves who live just up from us are in the process of moving out, so the place is perhaps looking up a bit at the moment.

What I have learned is this:

People who pull shit like this are inconsiderate fucktards w/massive entitlement issues, and reasoning with them is a waste of time. If you do not complain, they will escalate, like Kate's party a month turning into weekend of hell every week. If I am confronted with such issues in future, I will call the police out straightaway, write down incident numbers every time, contact the environmental health dept immediately, contact their landlords immediately if applicable, contact other local residents and see if they will do the same.

Kate, it is pointless to call the enviro health dept at midnight or 1am, you need to call during office hours, and speak to someone, describing your problems. Call the cops out on the fuckers EVERY TIME, and ask for/write down the incident/log number every time as well. Make a nuisance of yourself - hassle environmental health and their landlord/letting agents.

I feel for you about this, obv, having been in this situation. As a result of my trouble with fucking selfish morons, I have had to have anxiety management therapy. What pisses me off the most is that when I went to see the doctor, he didn't give a shit until I told him I had murderous feelings for shithead. What this tells me = I am officially worth less than the well-being of a selfish waster.

Thanks for the tips, Pash. Perhaps I'll pass the details on to my housemate since he is the houseowner and see if he can get anything out of them.

I have never seen of experienced "happyslapping" or anti immigrant hysteria round here yet.

Oh noes my weekend is ruined!

sunday morning 8am, bloke with machete turns up, informing he would like the noise turned down...NOW

the approach worked. im not sure they'll be having another one for some time.

While holding a hammer.

There is a pick axe in our back garden.

However, when I've not had a lot of sleep, I don't trust myself not to use it. (e.g. right f*cking now, for instance.)

-- MIS Information (masonicboo...) (webmail), July 11th, 2005 8:47 AM. (kate) (later) (link

Lighten the fuck up, you old self-important hag.

Anyway, the best method to deal with this is to cut their fucking power (if you can).

Jon, remind me again why you haven't drowned in your own vomit, you walking abortion?

Hahaha you should definitely do this. And take pictures.

x-post

I guess letting your neighbours know you're planning on a party is no good as the neighbours will probably object in advance anyway - still it would be courteous to give warning before inflicting your rubbish music on others, in many cases. People are selfish eh?

These people do it EVERY FREAKING WEEKEND at this point.

I don't think it even crosses their mind that they might be doing something which others might object to - as evidenced by the first time it happened last year, when not just myself, but two other neighbours, separately, asked them to turn the noise down, and were ignored at best, and threatened at worst.

that's where the machete comes in.

xpost to kate

Deep breath, count to ten.

Deep breath.

Which one are you?

http://entimg.msn.com/i/io/ar/0209/liljohn_200x250.jpg

Yes, but why should we have to change for you? I think it is a "community standard" that people should be given more leeway for noise on a weekend.

Like it's not unreasonable to expect that a thread requesting genuine helpful advice will continue on a helpful tone and not degenerate into trolling and spamming.