If you’re gearing up for works near a shared wall or boundary, you’ll quickly bump into Section 9 of the Party Wall etc. Act 1996.
It’s a short Section with big consequences—especially if anyone mentions rights to light or other easements. Here’s a clear, practical guide.
The core rule in Section 9
Section 9 is titled “Easements”. In plain English, it says two things:
- Party Wall rights don’t override easements. Nothing in the Act authorises interference with an easement of light (or any other easement) connected to a party wall.
- Existing rights are preserved. The Act doesn’t prejudice anyone’s right to preserve or reinstate any right (or “thing”) connected with a party wall if the wall is pulled down or rebuilt.
Put simply: the Party Wall Act is a construction-process code. It lets owners do notifiable works subject to notice, consent/dissent and Award—but it doesn’t grant permission to infringe a neighbour’s separate legal rights like rights to light, or to wipe out pre-existing protections attached to a wall.
Why this matters on live projects
- Your Party Wall Award isn’t a “get out of jail free” card. An Award regulates how notifiable works proceed; it can’t authorise you to block a protected window, extinguish a right of way in a passage, or remove features that are protected by easement. If you need to change or affect an easement, you must address that under the relevant body of law (often via separate negotiation or settlement), not via the Party Wall Award.
- Design choices still need separate checks. You might be fully compliant under Sections 1, 2 or 6 (new wall on the line of junction, works to party structures, or adjacent excavation), with perfect notices and a sound Award—yet still face a rights of light complaint if your massing reduces light through windows that enjoy an easement. Section 9 ensures those claims remain intact despite the Party Wall process.
- Rebuilds must respect existing rights. If a party wall is demolished and rebuilt, Section 9 safeguards the neighbour’s ability to preserve or restore rights/attributes connected to that wall—think flues, flashings, or other lawfully enjoyed features—subject to the usual legal tests.
Practical implications for Building Owners
- Run two tracks:
- Party Wall compliance (notices, responses, Award).
- Easement due diligence (especially rights to light).
Don’t assume success on Track 1 cures risk on Track 2—because Section 9 keeps them separate.
- Coordinate your team early. Your party wall surveyor manages the Act; rights to light is typically a separate specialist discipline. On tighter urban sites, ask your designer to flag any potentially affected windows early and get the right specialist advice if needed.
- Phraseology in Awards. Most competent Awards include a catch-all reminding owners that all other statutory and common-law consents/rights still apply. That wording reflects Section 9’s effect: no Award can authorise an easement breach.
Practical implications for Adjoining Owners
- Don’t panic—Section 9 protects your easements. If you benefit from a right to light (or other easement), the Party Wall process cannot remove it. If you’re worried a proposal will interfere with such a right, raise it in parallel with the party wall dialogue and consider taking specialist advice.
- Use the Party Wall process well. A dissent routes the matter to surveyor(s) who can condition how works happen (timing, methods, protections), but they won’t determine a rights-to-light claim. Keep those issues distinct.
Typical scenarios
- Loft conversion cutting into a party wall: Notifiable under Section 2; an Award will regulate fixings, sequencing and methods. But if raising parapets or building up affects a window that enjoys a light easement, that’s still a separate legal risk—the Award can’t authorise the loss of that light.
- Rear extension near the boundary: Notices under Sections 1 and/or 6 may be needed; the Award controls construction impacts. If new massing threatens protected light to a neighbour’s window, Section 9 means the neighbour’s easement claim remains available regardless of the Award. Legislation.gov.uk
Keep Party Wall costs low—get it right first time
Simple Survey keeps the process lean, lawful and neighbourly:
- Party Wall Notice service: £25 per adjoining ownership (multi-notice bundles discounted)
- Act administration as Agreed Surveyor (single surveyor): typically £300 fixed-fee (depends on complexity and number of notices/owners)
- Two-surveyor route (we act for the Building Owner): fixed-fee proposals from £325 for our side (we work to keep your neighbour’s surveyor’s hourly fees reasonable and contained)
Talk to a human who’ll explain Section 9 in minutes
Email team@simplesurvey.co.uk with your drawings (even early-stage) and your site address. We’ll flag what’s notifiable, draft compliant notices, and map any rights-to-light/easement pinch points so you can adjust before cost and conflict snowball.
Stay compliant under the Party Wall Act—and stay safe under Section 9.