Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Fencing Act 1978

Liability for work on a fence

11: Objections to proposed fence

You could also call this:

“How to disagree with someone's fence plan and suggest your own ideas”

If you receive a notice about building a fence and you don’t agree with what it says, you can object. You have 21 days from when you get the notice to send a cross-notice back to the person who sent you the original notice. In your cross-notice, you can say what you don’t like about their plan and suggest your own ideas.

The cross-notice needs to be written in a specific way. You can find the form for it in Schedule 1 of this law. When you write about the work you want done, you need to be as detailed as the original notice was, following the rules in section 10.

If you don’t send a cross-notice within 21 days, the law will assume you agree with everything in the original notice.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM21860.

Topics:
Housing and property > Home safety and repairs
Housing and property > Land use
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10: Notice to do work to be given, or

“You must tell your neighbour before starting fence work they might have to help pay for”

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12: Service of notices, or

“How to properly send notices about fences”

Part 3 Liability for work on a fence

11Objections to proposed fence

  1. If the occupier receiving a notice objects to any of the proposals set out therein, he may, within 21 days after the date of the service of the notice, serve on the occupier who gave the notice a cross-notice signifying his objection, and he may make counter-proposals in that cross-notice.

  2. A cross-notice shall be in form 2 of Schedule 1 or to the like effect, and any work proposed in a cross-notice to be carried out shall be specified with the same particularity as is required in the case of a notice by subsection (2) of section 10.

  3. If the occupier receiving a notice fails to serve a cross-notice within the said period of 21 days, he shall be deemed to have agreed to the proposals set out in the notice served on him.

Compare
  • 1908 No 61 s 13