Do you really know where your garden ends and your neighbour's starts? Victoria Jarrett of Clarkson Wright & Jakes explains more.

It is a common occurrence nowadays to have neighbours in dispute over their boundaries. It may look like you know where your boundaries are situated as you may have some form of a visual divide, for example a fence or a hedge. However, if a neighbour were to challenge where your boundary is, how can you prove it is correct?

I'm sure your immediate response would be to check your Title Deeds, but, it is not as simple as it seems.

If your land is registered at HM Land Registry there will be a Title Plan for your property. Land Registry Title Plans are based on Ordnance Survey Plans. However, HM Land Registry states that you cannot establish the precise position of the boundary of the property by scaling from the Title Plan as it only shows the general position of the boundaries and not the exact lines.

It is also extremely rare that measurements are provided on a Title Plan. Land Registry does offer a service (which you will have to pay for) where your boundaries can be fixed more precisely, but, it will not decide where a boundary is in the event of a dispute between you and your neighbour. This will be referred to the adjudicator to Land Registry or a Court judge.

Therefore there is no exact measurement as to how much land you own. For us as homeowners, therefore it is, to some extent, impossible to establish the exact position of the boundaries to our properties. We all just rely on where they are positioned when buying a house. That is why disputes commonly occur when a boundary divide is replaced – for example a hedge covers more land than a fence.

It becomes even more difficult to ascertain who is responsible for what boundaries.

There are instances where the Land Registry indicates on a Title Plan who is responsible for a boundary. The most common illustration is an inward "T" mark next to the boundary line. This indication is only given, if, when the property was first registered, the documents contained this information. On this basis, finding out who owns and is responsible for boundaries is problematic.

The ownership and responsibility of boundaries usually falls to the person who maintains the boundaries and takes the responsibility on. Therefore, it is always best to agree with your neighbours who will be responsible for what boundary.