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Have you ever had a neighbor put up a fence for no good reason? Has your neighbor ever refused to contribute to the repair of a boundary line fence? Learn more about Delaware’s fence regulations, including spite fences. A spite fence is when a neighbor’s emotions get the better of them, and he erects a fence just to annoy a neighbor. The fence might be unsightly or it may even cover just a portion of the boundary.
Fence Law Basics
Like many states, Delaware uses English common law rules for fences. Basically, when a person builds a boundary fence, the person who shares that boundary pays for half of the fence, plus half of the maintenance for the fence, even though that person doesn’t need a fence. The fence laws are also based on whether people have farm animals. A person who does not have cattle is not required to fence their property to keep the cattle out. The owner of the cattle is the person who must build the fence to keep their cattle on their property.
Although Delaware statutes have fence laws, counties and cities also have local fence laws. Before building a fence or contacting an attorney over a fence dispute, make sure you know what your responsibility is for fences. The local laws also dictate the type and height of fence you are allowed to build.
Spite Fences
While Delaware does not have a specific law regarding spite fences, the state does not allow someone to build a fence just to annoy their neighbor. The fence-building neighbor might have a right to build a fence, but that right does have limitations – and one of them is that you can’t build a fence to be annoying. If the court finds that the fence-building neighbor did, in fact, build the fence just to be annoying, the court might order the fence-building neighbor to remove the fence and pay monetary damages to the person they purposefully annoyed.
Tree Damage
If a neighbor’s tree falls on your house or outbuilding, you are responsible for repairs – unless the neighbor knows the tree or the tree’s branches are hazardous. If you cannot get a neighbor to trim or cut the tree, document that you advised the neighbor of the hazardous tree by sending a certified letter, along with pictures of the hazardous tree. Make sure you keep a copy of the letter and pictures. Should you have to go to court over the matter, you will have proof that you advised the neighbor that the tree would eventually cause damage to your property.
If a tree is growing on the property line, both neighbors own the tree. One neighbor cannot cut or trim the tree without permission from the other neighbor. Delaware has trespass to timber laws that allow for certain consequences if you cut a tree down that is on someone else’s property or a shared boundary tree without permission. The violations vary depending on whether you did it purposefully or if it was a mistake because you didn’t know where the boundary line was or thought it was on the other side of the tree.
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