Property clinic: what can I do about my neighbour's noisy dog? Contacting your local council is a significant option, and legal action against your neighbour can be extremely time-consuming and costly. We would always advise speaking to your neighbour at the earliest opportunity to remedy the situation. During the recent cold weather, we suffered a few problems with frozen and burst pipes. Ridiculously, our landlord has still not rectified the problem several weeks later. What legal responsibility does he have to get this sorted? Lisa, Newcastle The first place to look is your tenancy agreement, which as a legally binding contract will set out the respective obligations between yourself and the landlord. In addition, the law implies certain obligations into tenancy agreements even if not expressly stated in the contract itself. Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 provides that in short residential leases of less than seven years, the landlord is primarily responsible for keeping the structure and exterior of the property in repair, "including drains, gutters and external pipes." A landlord's duty arises once a tenant has given notice of the disrepair and a reasonable time has elapsed, so you should give notice in writing to your landlord of the problem and keep a copy of the letter. Remember, though, that it is common for a tenancy agreement to include an obligation for the tenant to keep a flat suitably heated, so that pipes do not freeze and become damaged. If there is such a term, your landlord might argue that you should meet the cost of the repair. If your landlord does not take steps to remedy the problem you may wish to contact the tenancy relations officer at your local authority, who can intervene in disputes with private landlords and occasionally contact them on your behalf. If the problem continues, you can seek advice from a property solicitor who can advise on whether you can bring a housing disrepair claim against your landlord. You should keep a diary of the interference in the use and enjoyment of your flat caused by the problem as this will be important as evidence. However, I would advise you not to withhold rent without seeking advice first, as your landlord may pursue you for rent arrears. I rent a ground-floor flat and my neighbour keeps leaving food out for foxes. I'm concerned they will start to come into my apartment, so mentioned this to the landlord who owns both mine and my neighbour's flat. However, he says he can't do anything about it - is this true? Naomi, London The duties of the landlord will be outlined in the specific terms of your lease. For example, it is common for leases to state that a landlord must allow his tenants to have peaceful enjoyment of any property which he has leased, as long as they comply with their own contractual obligations. Generally speaking, this requirement refers to your landlord's conduct and not your neighbour's. So, when a landlord leases a piece of land he loses control over it subject to any terms of the lease which might allow him to re-enter - such as non-payment of rent or repairs. Your neighbour's lease may require them to refrain from causing a nuisance or annoyance to you, and occasionally a landlord is required to enforce their compliance. But bear in mind that if your lease is drafted in this way then it will normally require you to cover any of your landlord's costs incurred in making the neighbour comply - i.e. solicitors" letters. By leaving out food for foxes, and thereby attracting them to the area outside your flat, your neighbour might be directly liable to you in terms of a private nuisance. But an issue can only be deemed a nuisance if your neighbour has breached a duty of care to you which has caused you a loss. This can be financial or it can simply reflect a reduction in your use or enjoyment of your land. If the area surrounding your flat is infested and unusable, then you might be able to force your neighbour to cease her actions by way of an injunction. However, if the incidents of foxes affecting your use and enjoyment of your flat are only minor and occasional, then it is unlikely that a court would put such measures in place. The most important factors in a case such as yours is the severity of the behaviour complained of and its effect on your use and enjoyment of your home. You should in the first instance contact the environmental health department of your local council to see if they can assist.