Homeowner demands £10,000 compensation after garage demolished following land dispute

Tina Foord has made the demand from Cross Keys Homes after it built the garage at the back of the house she owns, only to discover that the land is owned by somebody else.

Mrs Foord showed the Peterborough Telegraph proof that her home, which she owns in Fellowes Gardens, Fletton, has reduced in valuation by £10,000 since the garage was demolished on Monday.

Three other homes on the estate, which are owned by Cross Keys, have also had their garages knocked down due to the land dispute.

Mrs Foord said: “I think it’s disgusting. I have told them I’m going for compensation.”

When Mrs Foord bought her home she had a garage elsewhere on the estate, near the rail line, but she said she signed it over to Cross Keys because it promised to build her a new one at the back of her home. The housing association wanted to knock down the old garages and renovate the area. A Cross Keys spokeswoman said the company would be offering compensation to Mrs Foord.

She said: “We are working with the homeowner and are waiting for the valuation from them so that we can finalise this. We are sorting out an alternative garage for her to replace the one that had to be taken down.”

Clive Upson (58), who lives with partner Karen, has been in his home for nearly 25 years. He used his garage to store some of his late father’s possessions.

He said: “It’s heartbreaking. I’ve had to take my dad’s stuff to my daughter’s. I’ve always had a garage since I lived here.”

Jean Woodruff (58), whose mum Betty Redgrave (89) lives with her, said: “This is quite a big inconvenience and quite stressful. I can’t understand why they built the garages on this land.”

The residents said they received notes from the land owners three-and-a-half years ago telling them that the garages had been built on their land, but that the matter had gone away until recently.

Cllr Alan Clark, Labour member for Fletton and Stanground, said: “Since all of this has been going on I have no faith whatsoever in Cross Keys, more so since I’ve been a councillor. They’ve had the opportunity for over three-and-a-half years and it does not take that long to sort the situation out.”

Cross Keys said it had received planning permission for the garages. The spokeswoman added: “Unfortunately this small piece of landlocked land was put into the receiver’s hands when the previous owner went into receivership.

“We’ve been trying to work with them to resolve this issue and had offered more than the value of the land to try to secure our residents’ garages. The receiver refused this offer and it is never easy to resolve disputes like this.

“We are sincerely sorry for this mistake and the inconvenience this news brings to the four residents who have been affected. We will continue to work closely with the residents to do all we can to ease the situation and again offer our sincere apologies.”