A retired teacher has become embroiled in a dispute with her neighbour who allegedly stole a part of her garden and took decking from around her hot tub.
Rose Smith spent £12,500 giving her garden a makeover, which took more than five months to complete.
The outdoor transformation included laying wooden decking and adding a hot tub, just before celebrating her 60th birthday.
But the grandmother alleges that neighbour Sandeep Singh tore down her boundary fence and ripped up wooden planking before erecting his own fencing on land she owns.
Mrs Smith said the situation had turned her “dream garden” into a “living nightmare”.
The conflict traces back to April 2024, when she received correspondence from the Land Registry.
It explained Mr Singh was attempting to claim ownership of land behind her property through adverse possession, commonly known as squatter’s rights, the Daily Mail reports.
Despite having resided at her home for a decade, Mrs Smith claimed she been unaware the plot belonged to her.
Mrs Smith alleged her neighbour tore down her boundary fence (file photo)
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The Land Registry eventually rejected Mr Singh’s claim and Mrs Smith embarked on transforming the space.
But in September last year, Mrs Smith allegedly arrived home to discover a portion of her garden had been taken.
“‘I genuinely didn’t believe what was happening – who does that?,” she said, according to the Daily Mail.
“The neighbour had ripped out my fence. He sawed about a metre off my garden at a slope and taken five wooden planks from the hot tub surround.”
Mrs Smith claimed her neighbour took wooden planks from around her hot tub (file photo)
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To prevent Mrs Smith from reclaiming her property, Mr Singh allegedly positioned two vehicles and a JCB digger directly against his newly erected fence, she claims.
The Mail reports Mrs Smith contacted police to report the damage, but officers said it was classified as a civil matter.
Mr Singh allegedly built another fence in December which Mrs Smith claimed encroached further on her land.
The grandmother is now liaising with the Land Registry to explore her next options.
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