John,

Firstly, welcome to the site and I'm sorry that you have to be here in the first place.

I can't offer you any professional advice, but all I can suggest is that tick some boxes and you and your other suffering neighbour write a joint letter (keep a copy) and deliver it to the noisy neighbour in question.  In the letter explain how it's affecting you, your health (if the case), sleep, family life and enjoyment of your own property etc.  Keep it polite and professional, and simply ask them if they could please reduce the noise.

Allow a short period of time, if it hasn't been resolved then either write a second letter or you should approach EH, or I suggest the other suffering neighbour as she seems to be closer.  As the noise is 24 hours a day, it shouldn't be too difficult to prove the source of the noise and without a doubt, EH should find in your favour.  You and your suffering neighbour need to make it clear that it's affecting you, and more importantly, that it's stopping you enjoying your own property.

They'll likely ask you to keep a log, 24 hour droning noise should be fairly easy to scribble each day, and come to witness it themselves after a couple of weeks when they've seen the log.  The source of the noise seems actionable, i.e. it can easily be turned off, and your health is more important than a jacuzzi.

All in all, you and your neighbour should not have to suffer this noise and you've every right to stop the noise, but the motions of informing the noisy neighbour and giving them a chance must be gone through first.

Good luck, please let us know how you get on.

Compost

PS - There's a poster on here by the name of Mac, he's very good and knowledgeable about the subject so hopefully he'll reply with more professional advice.

Thanks for the helpful replies.

On the same day as my first post, the noisy neighbour has in fact had a box fitted round the pump but it hasn't made all that much difference. But he is, at least, trying.  My neighbour who is suffering far more than I seems to be having reasonable "discussions" with him at the moment although they are very reluctant to contact EH because, apparently, they would then be legally required to notify potential buyers should they wish to move.

I will keep you informed of any developments... my apologies in advance if there's a bit of a gap while we see how things progress..

Thanks again,
John.

Mac99, yes, the more research I do the more I realize it's a difficult sound to block. That, obviously, is his problem, not mine.

Just an update on the progress so far....

I contacted the local Council and they sent someone round to listen.  They agreed that it was unacceptable at night and have contacted the noisy neighbour to that effect.  He has agreed to turn it off at night - I suspect this will be if he remembers or if he doesn't stay away at his girl friend's for half, or all, of the night.  I think he's likely to think that fitting a time switch would be more trouble than he's prepared to go to.

He's also been told to contact the manufacturer of the jacuzzi to find out how frequently it needs to run during the daytime.  The council officer didn't feel there was a particularly strong case for the annoyance in the garden (for the purposes of the Noise Nuisance Act) so felt that was as far as he could go.  As a downside of it being off at night, the first daytime cycle is obviously taking quite a bit longer.

If, after a couple of weeks, I see no change during the daytime, I'll be contacting the council again to ask them to confirm whether he has in fact been in touch with the manufacturer. I'll then decide which way to progress it from there.

John.

Hi Mac,

Thanks for the info about night times.  I'm half-hoping he breaches the  night time curfew because the council may then be more inclined to come down a bit heavier.

While the weather's turned bad, the garden isn't such a big issue and it would probably be hard to say the noise is a problem until we can actually get out and use the garden again.

John.

Hi Compost,

Thanks for the link.  Now that my neighbour and I have both put it in the hands of the Council, we'll have to give things a reasonable time to see how they go.

I have tried to give the noisy neighbour the benefit because, as you say, he has at least tried.  The problem is that his DIY attempts haven't worked and he's reluctant to accept that he needs professional experts to look at the problem....  I'm sure that he could at least get free quotations even if they turned out to be too expensive. Probably, from his perspective, calling in experts would be tantamount to acknowledging that he has a problem.

At least now that my neighbour and I are getting a decent night's sleep, we can tackle the problem with clearer heads and the daytime noise is (slightly) more tolerable!

John.

Hi John,

Yes a massive move forward. You are right he has 21 days to appeal but if appeals he will have to stand up in court and say he hasnt done what he agreed with EH Officer. Can I ask what county you are in?

Regards
Mac

Hi Steve,

Much of the information in this post will apply in your case. I am sure none of us would wish to be killjoys however I am of the opinion that such pleasures should not come at the expense of making other people miserable.

Your choices are two fold either put up with it or make a complaint. In making a complaint you should be aware that this may lead to bad feelings between you and possibly aggravation.

If you complain then your first point of call should be Environmental Health at your council.

Regards
Mac

Hi Steve,

Based on my solitary experience, I'd say your best bet would be to have another word with the neighbour and ask him what and when this "something" is that he's going to do.  Explain that, although you're asking politely, your intention is serious. Although you wouldn't want to complain officially, you'd be left with no choice if you can't come to an agreement.

Before I contacted my Council, i downloaded and printed some of these logs.  Your council may have something similar.

It was quite easy for me because it was 30 mins on, 10 mins off, 20 mins on, 20 mins off - then repeat.

I found my Council officer to be very friendly. he stayed for about an hour on each of his two visits - I guess to check that my log was truthful and to walk around "sampling" the noise in different areas.

The officer firstly gave him a friendly phone call and when it became obvious, by his second visit, that he hadn't taken any real action, the officer became more forceful and issued the letter.

I'd say you either have to live with it or bite the bullet and call the Council.

John.

Yes, a good result... again thanks to yourself and others on here.

I got in touch with the Council Officer just to thank him and he said that he'd told the guy he could run the jacuzzi for 10 minutes each morning and each night but he doesn't seem to have bothered.

A good point is that my neighbour and I now have a "reference point" as to what's acceptable should he decide to get a different model.  We were a bit reluctant to contact the Council initially in case he didn't find in our favour... which would have given the guy "permission" to let rip!

Thanks again all.... your being here is much appreciated!

Regards,

John.