The British just love talking about the weather, not surprising as every day we seem to get something different thrown at us. And today & tomorrow we are due to be receiving some high winds with Storm Eunice heading in ....
Fences take a battering in the wind and of course it should not be unexpected that some will blow down or get damaged. Unfortunately, when it's not clear who owns the fence, then that is when boundary disputes can start to brew.
Following storms, we regularly get calls asking for advice on "who should pay for the damage". Here are some common claims that we always hear, and we can certainly say these are NOT true-
"The good side faces me, so that's the neighbours fence!" : No, this is not a way to decide.
"The boundary to the left is always this property's!" : No, not at all.
"The boundary to the right is always this property's!" : Left/Right... We hear it both ways! No.
"The neighbour the other side said he replaced their left-hand fence, so that must mean the right-hand one is mine!" : No, sorry.
"I measured from the Land Registry plan...and [......]!" : best stopping there; anything that followed "measuring from the Land Registry Plan" is probably mis-using the purpose of those plans.
What we need to be doing is looking at documents, deeds, dimensioned title plans, past replacements, evidence of maintenance or repair - Then you might start building a starting point with some sound basis of putting together a case.
But, if you are talking just a single panel or short section of fencing, then the cost of appraising boundaries is certainly going to be more than the cost of DIY repairs : and so you might just want to consider offering to share the repair costs with the neighbour this time....
....and then sit down, have a cup of tea together, and chat about the weather.