Homefront: 'Should I complain about my Dubai neighbour's messy garden?'

The UAE resident is concerned about the level of discarded furniture and debris next door

Dubai, United Arab Emirates - April 10, 2019: Dark clouds over the Dubai skyline. Wednesday the 10th of April 2019. The Springs, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National
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My neighbour's garden is a total mess. It is full of discarded furniture, an old trampoline, decaying garden furniture and broken toys. They appear to use it as a dumping ground. We live in a villa complex and their garden is enclosed like mine, so you can only see the mess from the balcony or upstairs bedrooms. Should I report this or leave it as is? While it's not very nice to see, it does not directly affect me in any way. It's just not very aesthetically pleasing, plus I am concerned they will dump rubbish there too, which would attract rats. What are your thoughts? Should I complain? AO, Dubai 

For those people living in a single dwelling, which does not form part of a complex, the behaviour of your neighbours is very difficult to police so the only route to redress would be to inform Dubai Municipality of the situation. It should be able to resolve the matter relatively quickly.

The DM representative will be sent to inspect the garden. They will then contact the tenant/occupier to find out why the garden is as it is. Under normal circumstances the DM will allow a certain period of time to rectify the problem after which a fine is the most likely outcome if the matter is not dealt with. It is quite normal for master developers to also impose fines on owners or occupiers of properties within their community that have a messy external appearance.

Given you live in a villa complex, your neighbours are potentially tenants so they are bound by the rules and regulation of your compound. Villa complexes are often owned by either one individual or a company and they tend to have written guidelines as to how tenants ought to behave, giving clear indications as to what is and is not allowed.

With your description of the situation, I’m surprised that this has been allowed to go on for as long as it has and you have every right to be concerned from a health and safety point of view. The current level of debris/old furniture can easily become a health hazard, as you say attracting vermin such as rats.

You should either report it to the compound management or if you get on with your neighbours you could always try to have a quiet word with the head of the household. If the latter doesn’t work, I’m sure the compound management will take it seriously and do something about it. Remember that there is always the DM to fall back on, who can intervene should all else fail.

Mario Volpi is the sales and leasing manager at Engel & Volkers. He has worked in the property sector for 35 years in London and Dubai

The opinions expressed do not constitute legal advice and are provided for information only. Please send any questions to mario.volpi@engelvoelkers.com