What would you do?

MatthewShreddery

Hi all - looking for some advice please.

Where I live, I have a side garden. This side garden is my only garden.
Behind the house is an industrial estate.
About 3 or 4 meters from my garden is an office, and the entrance to which is right by my garden.
All day long, from about 0830-1830 monday to saturday I have to put up with gaggles of office workers hanging around by the entrance to the office, smoking and chatting.

The business is one of those dodgy mobile phone contract marketing companies, and the staff are all pretty young, between 18 and 40 approximately.

I've asked their boss to ask his staff to go round the side of the building to smoke (there is a little courtyard area which is perfect for hanging out, why they choose to hang around at the door is beyond me). 

They complied for about a week. Now a few weeks have passed and they're constantly hanging out there.

I have a row of hedges in my garden between us and the industrial estate but they're quite see through at the moment with it being winter and the hedges being quite young and not yet fully grown/matured.

I feel uncomfortable going out into the garden whilst they're there because there's no privacy at all. Plus it bloody stinks of cigarette smoke!

It's actually getting me quite depressed.

Any advice?

I suppose I might just have to keep asking them to go round the side of the building, but I hate confrontation of any sort. (grow a pair?)

Cheers guys

boogieman

I'd ask them to move again. Could you put up a fence? Tbh you'll never do anything about the smell though. 

Maynehead

Sprinklers. On a 5 min timer.

It's a very dry time of year.

MatthewShreddery

Cheers!
Funny you should mention sprinklers because I was thinking of that but it seems a bit OTT at this stage

Sporky

Try environmental health?

MatthewShreddery

@Sporky - thanks. I did contact the council and spoke with that department. The guy said there's not much they can do, but he'd be happy to come round to see the extent of the problem himself, then visit the office to ask them to smoke elsewhere.

MatthewShreddery

I wonder if I can get them on a technicality - smoking too close to the entrance to a building (their office door)?

Fretwired

Horse manure on your hedge roots - many stables give it away at this time of year. The stench will get them to move.

fretmeister

You might be able to argue that the smoke is a nuisance that is causing a reduction in your enjoyment of your property.

Certainly worth a try.

jonnyburgo

Strip naked, cover yourself in peanut butter and sweet corn and run into the crowd offering free poo hugs.

Clarky

explosives
blow a few of them completely up and they'll begin to get the message

Ravenous

There's something in here (Environmental Protection act 1990) which might cover this?:

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1990/43/part/III/crossheading/statutory-nuisances-england-and-wales

"smoke emitted from premises so as to be prejudicial to health or a nuisance"

"any dust, steam, smell or other effluvia arising on industrial, trade or business premises and being prejudicial to health or a nuisance"

I ain't a lawyer but I suppose in theory at least if you continue to hassle them you might get somewhere... you could check the Citizen's Advice Bureau to see if laws like this handle smokers on industrial property I suppose. (With neighbours in their private houses it's probably different.)

EricTheWeary

MatthewShreddery said:

@Sporky - thanks. I did contact the council and spoke with that department. The guy said there's not much they can do, but he'd be happy to come round to see the extent of the problem himself, then visit the office to ask them to smoke elsewhere.

Has to be worth doing that, although maybe have another word with the company boss first.

I hate neighbour problems, driven me round the bend at times. Good luck. They'll probably go out of business soon anyway.

Paul_C

now there's gaps in the hedge - how about setting up a small paintball target by the hedge?

you could hardly be blamed if you missed once in a while.

dindude

Formally write to the boss and request that the smoking area is moved to said patio, this way you will build a profile of polite requests to refer back to. If they don't comply, ask that they front the cost to provide more privacy (fence, better hedge etc?). Unfortunately I think in this case you being a consistent pain in the arse is the only way things will change.

MatthewShreddery

Thanks a lot everyone - some good and funny suggestions!

Evilmags

Go into their office. Say your bog is broken. Take a shit. Put it in the cistern or thier toilet so every time they flush it still smells awful. 

Sporky

If they're mostly young, and you're mostly not, how about one of those utlrasonic doohickies for getting rid of teenagers from shops?

Or a dog.

CabbageCat

Put some stinky mulch or manure down under the hedge. Though that might not work since smokers can't smell. Maybe petrol.

Clarky

Ravenous said:

There's something in here (Environmental Protection act 1990) which might cover this?:

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1990/43/part/III/crossheading/statutory-nuisances-england-and-wales

"smoke emitted from premises so as to be prejudicial to health or a nuisance"

"any dust, steam, smell or other effluvia arising on industrial, trade or business premises and being prejudicial to health or a nuisance"

I ain't a lawyer but I suppose in theory at least if you continue to hassle them you might get somewhere... you could check the Citizen's Advice Bureau to see if laws like this handle smokers on industrial property I suppose. (With neighbours in their private houses it's probably different.)

does it allow retaliation with effluvia?
cos that sounds fun

Hertz32

Setting up a sprinkler, in tandem with spreaking muck on the hedge and writing letters. 



For double points, connect the sprinkler to a petrol can. They would think twice before lighting up...