A barrister has laid out the legal steps residents can take when a neighbour’s dog won’t stop barking, from reporting a noise complaint to the council to taking action in the magistrates’ court under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
He advised residents to maintain diaries of incidents and make recordings(Image: Kerkez via Getty Images)
A barrister has shed light on the legal options available to those being driven “mad” by their neighbours’ barking dogs. Barrister Daniel Barnett, who boasts more than 57,000 YouTube subscribers and presents The Legal Layman on LBC Radio, outlined the law in a video focusing on neighbour disputes involving noise from animals.
In his video, entitled Neighbour Disputes: Barking Dogs, he detailed when councils are able to step in, what constitutes a statutory nuisance, and the steps residents can take if official complaints fall on deaf ears.
He began by acknowledging that while “dogs are supposed to be man’s best friend, a barking dog can become your greatest enemy,” disputes of this nature are generally best resolved informally.
“As with all neighbour problems, the best way to resolve them is by speaking to your neighbour in person. If this fails, how can the law help?” he said, before explaining how the Environmental Protection Act 1990 applies to such situations.
Local authorities are obliged to investigate noise complaints(Image: undefined via Getty Images)
Barnett clarified that local authorities are obliged to investigate noise complaints, including those involving barking dogs, but are only able to act where the issue amounts to a statutory nuisance, reports the Liverpool Echo.
Under the legislation, “any animal kept in such a place or manner as to be a nuisance is a statutory nuisance. This means it can be dealt with by the local authority.”
However, he emphasised that not every instance of barking will meet the required threshold. To qualify, the noise must “unreasonably and substantially interfere with the use or enjoyment of your property”.
He added that the law does not set out precise limits, instead relying on factors such as frequency, duration and intensity, measured against what would affect a reasonable person.
Not every instance of barking will meet the required threshold(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
“It is very unlikely that occasional barking in response to events will be enough to qualify as a statutory nuisance. For instance, if the dog sees another dog or barks at a passing cat, that won’t be enough,” he said.
Where a nuisance is established, councils can issue an abatement notice requiring the owner to bring noise levels down or face enforcement action. Barnett said owners “can be fined for every day that the barking continues”.
He also clarified that councils have separate powers to address night-time noise, typically between 11pm and 7am, even where the barking falls short of the statutory nuisance threshold.
Should warnings be disregarded, councils can issue fixed penalty notices of up to £110, or pursue prosecution, with fines of up to £1,000.
Barnett stressed that evidence is crucial in building a successful complaint, noting that “councils must take reasonably practicable steps to investigate complaints, but resources are tight. So the better your evidence, the stronger your case”.
He advised residents to maintain diaries of incidents and make recordings, adding that some councils offer apps to assist in measuring and logging noise levels.
Councils have separate powers to address night-time noise(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
Should residents remain dissatisfied with council action, he explained that they have the option of taking the matter to the magistrates’ court under Section 82 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
Barnett also drew attention to further legal matters associated with owning a dog, including fouling and dangerous behaviour. He pointed out that local councils have the power to issue fixed penalty notices for dog fouling in public spaces, while the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 makes it a criminal offence for owners to permit their dog to be dangerously out of control, especially in circumstances where injury is caused.
