I'd really love to know if anyone has knowedge of building rules with regard to blocking a front door within a block of flats. My local authority freeholder is electrical rising works on me and I have walked out of my front door onto the common hallway this morning to discover chalk marks on the lino of where they intend to install - 13 inches in front of my front door. So basically they intend to put a box with electrical cables about 13 inches away from my front door on the LHS ( side with hinge) as you exit. The markings suggest a box 18 inches by 8 inches protrusion from the wall which is at right angles to the door( if that makes sense). Are there any building regs etc that could possibly stop them placing this there. At the moment I can't telll for sure but it looks likely it will make it more difficult to get my buggy etc in and out of the door (not impossible but certainly much less easy) I am pretty much in anguish over this project and this is the final straw - if it looks bad right outside the front door it might make it harder to sell the property and I have no choice to sell because I cant afford the works forced on me. This was their solution as to how I pay the bill, even though I'm on my own with a one year old! Bill is £10k of of works on me alone this financial year, with an additional £3k to go outside contractors ( who I must pay contract and pay seperately, although Freeholder's electricians will cut off my electricity if I don't do it, because it wont math their upgraded electrics.) I am also being forced to pay for further works next financial year of £3-5k ( they've refused to give proper notice of the next bill to come). Anyway. the workmen are here with their drills today ( only got notice at 5pm last night drilling today) so if anyone knows of any urgent way to stop them blocking the door thats most urgent and I'd really appreciate it.

Hi I'm a sole trader, and at the moment I'm busy paying off a council tax debt. The council were round last week doing a load of work next door, making noise from 8 in the morning and stuff, didn't bother to inform me despite the fact this is their legal responsibility. Anyway, the path I share with my neighbour is now a mess, it's not that bad but the guy didn't hose all the detritus off right which has left it in a worse state than it was before. I have been keeping very clean this summer, and now I have to sweep it and hose it again. As a sole trader, if I was to perhaps go out and clean it up, how much would I be in my right to send the council the bill for it?

Hi Guys, I had some guttering repaired last year, albeit a shoddy job, as I have now found out. We had noticed that the outside wall seemed to be getting wetter and upon further inspection by a friend, we have realised that instead of informing me that the guttering section was fitted incorrectly by previous workmen ( the section is roughly 1 inch lower than the joining section ) they just carried out a poor repair. This has now resulted in the guttering collecting water and it has been running down inside the cavity, causing damp to now appear on our interior walls. I have removed as much of the so called repair so that the water can run out of the gutter and drip away instead of causing further damage. I am now unsure as to who I approach to get the problem rectified, the workmen or my insurers