Get off the fence: How not to fall out with your neighbours

You might wonder why a TikTok clip of a fence being dismantled has been viewed almost 20 million times this week.

A homeowner known on social media as @unbewreathable seems to have become involved in a bitter dispute with a neighbour over a fence that encroached on part of their garden. Having initially attempted to reach a friendly resolution with their neighbour by requesting that the fence be put back to where the property lines were drawn, the neighbour refused. Claiming to have been left with no other option but to take matters into their own hands, the homeowner had the fence removed plank by plank, and had the lumber stacked up neatly for the neighbour. The dismantling was filmed on and shared online in a three part series that has gripped viewers and sparked a heated online debate.

As a property dispute lawyer, this kind of issue is fairly commonplace for me: in fact, the Covid lockdown has resulted in a huge surge of fall-outs between neighbours as they were forced into much closer and longer proximity. Disputes can arise over many different issues but most often tend to involve arguments over boundaries, noise pollution, extensions, invasion of privacy and anti-social behaviour.

It might seem like a source of amusement to TikTok viewers, but having a neighbour take over land that rightfully belongs to you is no laughing matter as it can have long-term implications on both the value and the sale-ability of your home. Homeowners should avoid taking matters but should take sensible legal advice who will often consult Land Registry plans in the first instance. You might think that ‘possession is nine tenths of the law’, but on the ground, it’s what is on the ownership documents that counts!

Woman gets 'ultimate revenge' on neighbour who built fence across her garden

TikTok user @unbewreathable was stunned when her neighbour staked claim to a chunk of her garden.


A woman got the 'ultimate revenge' on her neighbour after they tried to steal large portion of her garden by building a fence through it. TikTok user @unbewreathable was stunned when her neighbour staked claim to a chunk of her garden and politely requested that the new fence be moved back to the property line.

However, the neighbour point-blank refused, sparking a row between the two landowners. The dispute eventually reached a stalemate, at which point the woman took matters into her own hands and had the fence taken down - plank by plank.

A clip of the fence being dismantled has since been viewed almost 20 million times.