Homeowner ordered to pay neighbour £25,000 for rule-breaking conversion

A DISPUTE between homeowners in Goring has seen a judge order thousands of pounds to be paid in compensation amid a battle over a “spectacular” view.

The squabble over scenery saw two homeowners in Fairfield Road lock horns in a fight which escalated to the Royal Courts of Justice over a rule-breaking loft conversion.

In a judgement handed down on Tuesday last week, it was ruled the owners of the offending property should pay out £25,000 in compensation for the conversion.

But it allowed the home’s changes to remain amid the “unfairness of the objectors’ behaviour”.

Korobe, a modern three-floor home with large glass windows looking out over Goring Gap, was purchased by Stuart and Anita Hunt — the objectors — in 2019.

Downhill, and overlooked by Korobe, is Hillside. Originally a bungalow, it was purchased by Kevin and Elizabeth Harrison-Ellis — the applicants — in 2020.

Both homes peer out over the Goring Gap, a valley at the confluence of the Chiltern Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the Berkshire Downs, between which winds the River Thames.

Views of the gap from Fairfield Road, the private road access to Korobe and Hillside, were described as “spectacular” in the court judgement.

Trouble began when Hillside’s owners were granted permission by South Oxfordshire District Council for a “first floor extension” which was completed in late 2020.

That extension resulted in new bedrooms in the roof space of the bungalow, a new bathroom, as well as new windows looking out over the Goring Gap — and uphill at Korobe.

The land on which both homes sit had historically been under the same ownership. But when it was sold off into separate plots in 1965, it was done so under several rules favouring Korobe.

No development was permitted to take place over one storey high and, while new bedrooms and windows could be added in a house’s roof, this had to remain within strict constraints.

The roof conversion at Hillside had broken the rules, but the Hunts took no action for more than two years. That was until a bin store was put up in view of their house.

In 2023, long after work at Hillside finished, solicitors were drafted in by the Hunts as legal gears began to grind over the breach of those historic rules during Hillside’s revamp.

An Oxford County Court judge found in favour of the Hunts, following a hearing in July 2024. Mr and Mrs Harrison-Ellis then sought an application to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) Courts to approve the changes to Hillside.

That court judgment, handed down by Judge Elizabeth Cooke and Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (MRICS) member Diane Martin, thrashed out the dispute.

Arguments centred on changes to the view from Korobe, the protection of privacy, claims of lost property value and the precedence set for other homes.

Questions were also raised over how the Hunts had become aware of the regulations they had complained the Harrison-Ellises had broken and the “sincerity” of the objections.

Before building work began at Hillside, Mr Harrison-Ellis asked their estate agent to deliver a letter to the Hunts, which outlined the rules and a request to have them removed or changed.

Giving evidence to the court, Mr Hunt said he had chosen not to reply to that letter, and it would be years before the historic rules would enter their heads again — after building work began at Korobe.

Work to demolish a bungalow at the site and build the existing three-floor timber-clad house, featuring roof terraces, a swimming pool and wine cellar, began in 2023.

Mr Hunt told the court it was the introduction of the eyesore bin store, years after work on Hillside had finished, which had prompted his decision to obtain a copy of the regulations.

There, he found the wording of the rules was different to that included in the original letter — an alleged attempt to mislead would-be complainants of the Hillside work.

The court judgement said: “In failing to engage with that letter the objectors missed a golden opportunity and it is not right to penalise the applicants now for the objectors’ inaction.” Expert evidence from surveyor Malcolm Kempton, on behalf of the Hunts, argued in court that the changes at Hillside had come at a cost to Korobe’s value of up to £230,000.

Rival evidence from surveyor Nicholas Green, on behalf of the Harrison-Ellises, proposed a £13,000 figure — £10,000 for the loss of privacy and £3,000 for the visual impact.

A joint statement from Mr Kempton and Mr Green agreed the value of Hillside had increased to £1,055,000 as a result of the work, while the value of Korobe was estimated at £2,300,000.

The judges acknowledged there had been a loss of privacy and ruled a payment of £25,000 compensation.

However, the judgment found that the development at Hillside could remain. It added: “Any carelessness or naivety on the part of the applicants [in the wording of the letter] is far outweighed by the unfairness of the objectors’ behaviour.”