[JohnG]

Well the good weather is here and once again the noisy gits over the back from me have their "music" on loud enough for the whole town to hear. I've got my radio on at a reasonable volume and can still hear the thump thump thump of theirs and this normally goes on until about 3:30 am.
The council have told me that it doesn't happen often enough for them to do anything about it, but I think they should do more. I had to go out last night to escape from the noise (not so loud as tonight) and am really fed up of having to go out to get some peace and quiet.
Do you think I can challenge the council legally ?

[ufitsy]

Sorry to hear of this John

I`m being reduced to video camera surveillance!

[Iccz]

You can lodge complaints, if you do so with a diary of events with times and dates they are likely to help your case, regular or not it is not acceptable.
You need to contact your council and get the right department! That being Environmental Protection, lodge your complaint and ask for a reference number of some sort.
The council has a duty to address this problem.
Try lodging a complaint via your councils website if phoning has no luck.

If they do not, you could consider taking your own legal action under the EPA (Environmental Protection Act 1990) Section 82, you can google it for more information if necessary.

If you really need/want the noise to stop tonight you might want to consider calling the police

[JohnG]

I've kept a diary of events for the last 3 years and the council have sent them letters telling them it's too loud. They just don't care. I dread to think how loud it would be if I opened my windows
I've tried the police in the past and they aren't interested as they say it's not down to them it's a problem the council has to deal with. I've even been round and asked them to turn it down and whilst one of them was reasonable about it at the time, the others were getting really arsey about it so I left before I got into a big fight.

[Iccz]

Originally Posted by JohnG

I've kept a diary of events for the last 3 years and the council have sent them letters telling them it's too loud. They just don't care. I dread to think how loud it would be if I opened my windows

That is shocking.
What I would do is:
Noise pollution - Nottinghamshire County Council

Find the local council for you, apparently there are 2 for Nottinghamshire?

Anyways, usually there is a 24 hour number for the Environmental Health department, explain the situation and if they are unable to do anything that you will call the police regarding the matter.

Northamptonshire council were quick to act on our neighbours that gave us regular trouble with music.


Also if you keep hassling the council, call them twice every time there is loud music once to report it another time to say you've gone round and that there was no acton taken by them (little white lie wont hurt), follow it up with a written letter or email, then follow up if you get no response.
Find out who your local council member is and raise this with him.

[reddevil63]

i had this kind of thing about 10 years ago, phoned the noise pollution team and they came out straight away.

I would keep on them cause quite frankly we shouldn't have to put up with this. Its fine up to a certain time which I believe is 10pm? but after that should be outlawed and offenders fined and/or equipment taken away if they persist.

[JohnG]

I just phoned the council 24 hour emergency line and they told me to ring the police as they should deal with it. I spoke to the police and they told me they have real crime to deal with and I should speak to the council. I lost my cool a bit and told them they were both equally as useless
Edit - the music has been going on since 7pm so you can understand why I've lost it!

[Iccz]

Originally Posted by JohnG

I just phoned the council 24 hour emergency line and they told me to ring the police as they should deal with it. I spoke to the police and they told me they have real crime to deal with and I should speak to the council. I lost my cool a bit and told them they were both equally as useless

Contact the Council again tell them that they told you to ring the police wrongfully, and that it is their duty not the police to deal with problems of this nature.

They're being lazy. Was it the Environmental Protection Agency you spoke to?

Start mumbling you'll burn their house down if it doesn't stop.
Milton from Office Space if you've ever seen it

Just keep hassling the council til their pull their finger out - give them no silence

[JohnG]

One time when it was still going on loud at 6am I said to the police that I was going round there to burn the house down and they told me they had to take that threat seriously and would arrest me unless I assured them I wouldn't do it.
I've come up with an idea:-

I will demand to see the council chief and ask him how he would like this happening to him. I know where he lives so will promise to sit in my car outside his house with the music blaring out until he sorts it out I wonder if that will work.

[Iccz]

Originally Posted by JohnG

One time when it was still going on loud at 6am I said to the police that I was going round there to burn the house down and they told me they had to take that threat seriously and would arrest me unless I assured them I wouldn't do it.
I've come up with an idea:-

I will demand to see the council chief and ask him how he would like this happening to him. I know where he lives so will promise to sit in my car outside his house with the music blaring out until he sorts it out I wonder if that will work.

You could keep phoning them up playing music at them.

Tell them that's all you can hear all night so thought you'd share it with them.

Or just put on a good film and turn your system up to the max, then if enough neighbours complain maybe they'll catch your neighbours in the act of loud music when someone is sent out

[JohnG]

Engage rant mode
It's not just a matter of not being able to sleep, I can't watch my telly properly because of their noise. there's a couple of houses between me and them so god knows what it's like for those who live closer!
Disengage rant mode

[JohnG]

I've got much bigger speakers and a bigger sub then they have ( I know because I saw what they were using when I went round to complain) so I could make a lot more noise. But there's an elderly woman next door to me and I don't want to disturb her.

[Iccz]

Originally Posted by JohnG

I've got much bigger speakers and a bigger sub then they have ( I know because I saw what they were using when I went round to complain) so I could make a lot more noise. But there's an elderly woman next door to me and I don't want to disturb her.

Go round at 9am when they're still suffering from the drinking and light night, keep knocking til they answer to inform them that it appears someone broke the windows on their car

[reddevil63]

Maybe you should see the other neighbours and get their thoughts and would they help to gang up and complain to the council too.

Problem is others sometimes just don't want the aggro and will put up with the noise.

Its that thump, thump. thump, boom, boom, boom that gets on my nerves so can totally understand your frustration.

[JohnG]

I've tried with a few neighbours but they're mostly older women on their own and a couple of them just take sleeping tablets to get to sleep. I know that the houses alongside the noisy one tend to change hands regularly so I assume they are rented and they just move to get away from it.
I don't want to tempt fate, but I think it might have stopped at about 12:30.... please let it be so! I know from previous experience that I'd assumed it had stopped at 2am only to find it start up again at 2:30. I think the ****** falls asleep and then wakes up and starts the cd player again.

[reddevil63]

As said I have had this in the past but have people behind me that sometimes break the sound barrier....solution - I invested in a good pair of headphones so when they do have one of these noisy nights, on go the headphones. Once bedtime beckons I wear earplugs and they have really helped, cuts out noise very good.

But really, I and others like yourself shouldn't have to tolerate this. It just shows how society as a whole has no respect anymore!

[Singh400]

Originally Posted by JohnG

I've got much bigger speakers and a bigger sub then they have ( I know because I saw what they were using when I went round to complain) so I could make a lot more noise. But there's an elderly woman next door to me and I don't want to disturb her.

Invite all your good neighbours round to watch a film, and whack it all the way up. And BLAST them down.

Or get yourself an EMP

Or get drunk, and go and join in the party.

Or get drunk, and kick the **** out of them

Council and police are useless

[Abbeygoo]

Go and do a big poo on their doorstep.

And if the police catch you, stick two pencils up your nose, underpants on your head and plead insanity ....

[JohnG]

I'm drunk now Got my way through half a bottle of wine, a can of hobgoblin, a can of pedigree, a can of tanglefoot, 3 very large vodkas and a litre bottle of leffe brune.
When I got drunk before and went round to ask them nicely there were 3 of them and whilst I'd have had a good go, I'd have ended up worse than them I reckon! Tonight I could hear a lot more voices when I went out to put my empties in the bin.

[Perceval]

Don't even try and fight when you are drunk............you'll lose. Good to see you are being wise.

Tomorrow when you are hung over, feeling nasty and 'bear headed', go and have it out with your neighbour.

Verbally of course...............

[Singh400]

Originally Posted by JohnG

I'm drunk now Got my way through half a bottle of wine, a can of hobgoblin, a can of pedigree, a can of tanglefoot, 3 very large vodkas and a litre bottle of leffe brune.
When I got drunk before and went round to ask them nicely there were 3 of them and whilst I'd have had a good go, I'd have ended up worse than them I reckon! Tonight I could hear a lot more voices when I went out to put my empties in the bin.

Say the word mate and the [Microsoft] Calvary will assemble!



Have/Are you keeping a log of all the disturbances? If not. Start doing so, and get the neighbours to do the same and present the evidence to the muppets at the council and the plonkers at the police station.

[Iccz]

Originally Posted by Singh400

Have/Are you keeping a log of all the disturbances? If not. Start doing so, and get the neighbours to do the same and present the evidence to the muppets at the council and the plonkers at the police station.

Originally Posted by Iccz

You can lodge complaints, if you do so with a diary of events with times and dates they are likely to help your case, regular or not it is not acceptable.

Originally Posted by JohnG

I've kept a diary of events for the last 3 years and the council have sent them letters telling them it's too loud. They just don't care.

[Singh400]

Originally Posted by Iccz

*cough*

Originally Posted by Singh400

You plonker. It's a GREAT mix. Some of the best posts are made after 1am drunk as ****!

:D

[JohnG]

Yes I've got 3 years worth of notes, I've even made recordings on a little camera, but the council won't listen to those and will only listen to their own recordings. They put a recording machine in my house for a couple of weeks but that coincided with not many noisy events from them (sods law!) and they said it had to be happening more often for them to do anything. I'd have thought that a few recordings of loud music after 2am was enough for anyone.
Another large vodka is on it's way down now so I doubt I'd be able to walk that far round to their house to cause bother
As expected the thumping has started once again

[Ethics Gradient]

I empathise with you ... had the same when I lived in a flat some years back.
Guy downstairs used to turn his sound system on .... then go out at night leaving it going till early morning.

.... I just pulled out his main electrical fuse.

It almost came to me getting a prison sentance when after repeated arguments the guy brought his brother round in an attempt to intimadate me an I was that ill and frustrated from the noise and sleeplessness I went out with a hammer and offered to murder the pair of them ... they ran off and the mrs calmed me down and took the hammer off me.

[Iccz]

Originally Posted by Singh400

*cough*



:D

Haha, I wouldn't class it as the "best" post you've ever made, but it sure beats some of your posts about IE

[Perceval]

Originally Posted by Ethics Gradient

I empathise with you ... had the same when I lived in a flat some years back.
Guy downstairs used to turn his sound system on .... then go out at night leaving it going till early morning.

.... I just pulled out his main electrical fuse.

It almost came to me getting a prison sentance when after repeated arguments the guy brought his brother round in an attempt to intimadate me an I was that ill and frustrated from the noise and sleeplessness I went out with a hammer and offered to murder the pair of them ... they ran off and the mrs calmed me down and took the hammer off me.

Doesn't it just make you sick that we the good guys, the innoccent party ALWAYS get it from the police.

Soft targets we all are indeed.

[JohnG]

I finally went to bed about 2:30 and the noise was still going on, but I had my telly on fairly loud and fell asleep to that. The alcohol helped of course!

[PJTX100]

My mum went through 20 years of hell with the neighbours from hell who got up to every sort of antisocial behaviour imaginable, all-night loud music included.

About 5 years ago she started to get somewhere because legislation was changed so that councils had powers to evict if the antisocial behaviour continued after warnings.

So the council should deal with these complaints. My advice is to get as many other people to complain too, they take far more notice rather than a 1 vs 1 situation.

[PoochJD]

** THIS POST HAS BEEN EDITED SINCE ITS ORIGINAL POSTING! **

Hi JohnG,

I had this problem awhile back, and - as others have said - the police DO NOT and WILL NOT come out to deal with this kind of incident. Alas, they are right, which is a complete pain in the arse for the likes of you, I and every other "normal" person who just wants to get to sleep at night.

However, one tactic you might like to consider - even if in jest:

Go to a local call box, and anonymously call the police on 999. Say that there may have been illcit substance usage going on at the offender's address, give the relevant details (enough to get the police out, but not so much that the police keep you online long enough to identify you personally). Say that "usage" usually occurs during "parties" and you believe that such a "party" is going on right now. Do this, then hang-up and for obvious reasons make your phone call as short as possible. Do not use your mobile phone, nor landline, for obvious reasons.

Hopefully, the police should be around to the noisy neighbour's sooner rather than later! Best of luck!


Pooch

P.S. For obvious reasons, I can't condone any breaking of the law as it stands!