The short answer
You must serve every adjoining owner affected by the work. “Owner” under the Act is broad: it includes the freeholder and anyone holding a lease of more than about a year, so a single flat can have both a leaseholder and a freeholder to serve. On a terrace you may have neighbours on both sides, and excavation can affect owners you do not share a wall with. Identify them all before serving — a notice that misses an owner does not protect you against that person.
Why it matters
Freeholders and long-leaseholders (broadly, leases over a year) are all “owners”, so a block of flats can mean serving several people. For excavation under section 6, any owner of a building or structure within three or six metres can be an adjoining owner, even if they are not immediately next door. Short-term tenants are usually not “owners”, but it is courteous to keep them informed. Where ownership is unclear, the title can be checked at HM Land Registry. Getting the names right matters; “the Owner” can be used only where a name genuinely cannot be found.
What to do now
- List every property affected — both sides, plus anything within the excavation distances.
- Check the Land Registry for the freeholder and any leaseholder names, and serve all of them.
- If anyone dissents, a single agreed surveyor acting for both owners is the quicker, cheaper route — the one Coburns recommends.
Common mistakes
- Serving only the neighbour you share a wall with.
- Missing the freeholder of a neighbouring flat.
- Forgetting owners who fall within the excavation distances.
- Serving short-term tenants instead of the owners.
When to call Coburns
We identify all the adjoining owners and serve them correctly, free of charge — so nobody is missed.