What statutory powers are available to local authorities when a private landowner fails to maintain their land and that failure causes dama…

The issue of the negative impact of the condition of one person’s private property on neighbouring property is primarily a private property matter. Homeowners may wish to consider seeking advice from a local advice agency or solicitor on what options may be available. Local authorities do not have general powers to intervene in neighbour disputes.Local authorities do have various enforcement powers under different legislation where the public interest is involved, which may be applicable depending on the circumstances of a case. These include ‘amenity notice’ powers under the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 where the authority considers the condition of land is affecting the amenity of an area. There are also powers under the Roads (Scotland) Act 1984 to serve notices requiring remedial works where vegetation, including trees, is overhanging a road carriageway or public footway and, for example, endangering or obstructing the passage of vehicles or pedestrians.The High Hedges (Scotland) Act 2013 provides a statutory process for qualifying high hedge disputes (which can include trees in certain circumstances). Where reasonable attempts to resolve the matter have been unsuccessful, a householder may apply to the relevant local authority, who may investigate the complaint and, if it considers that the hedge is adversely affecting the reasonable enjoyment of domestic property, issue a high hedge notice specifying the action that must be taken.All three of the abovementioned powers to issue notices allow the local authority to take the actions specified in the notice where the recipient fails to comply, and to recover the costs they incur in so doing.The Scottish Government has no plans to amend the abovementioned powers and procedures.Local authorities also have compulsory purchase powers which might be applicable to land in a poor condition depending on the circumstances of the case. For example, the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 allows authorities to compulsorily acquire land for the purpose of improving the amenity of a predominantly residential locality in their area. Powers under the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 have been used to acquire, for example, vacant or derelict land for development or regeneration purposes. An authority considering the use of compulsory purchase powers must demonstrate that there is a sufficiently strong case in the public interest to justify the interference in the owner’s private property rights.