Row as man says neighbours have built a home office in his garden

Row as man says neighbours have built a home office in his garden Juston Leech says the 'pod' is on land which belongs to him A furious dad is locked in a battle with his neighbours who he claims built a garden office on his lawn. Justin Leech and his wife Julia moved into their £600,000 newbuild home but say their garden was 6ft (1.8m) shorter than expected. Justin says builders had erected the fence at the wrong angle - producing a dog-leg in their property boundary line. He says the mix-up meant around 17.7 sqm (190 sq ft) of their land was mistakenly added to the garden backing onto them. The neighbours then built a garden office pod on the 'extra land' shortly after Justin and Julia moved in in November 2023. The couple complained to Shropshire Homes - who built the estate in Orleton, Herefordshire - but the issue remains unresolved almost three years later. In a bid to end the deadlock the couple have vowed to rip down the fence to force the case to go to court. Justin, 51, said: “We thought we were moving into our dream home but it’s turned into our worst nightmare. There was clearly a mistake made when the fence was put up. “You can clearly see where our boundary line should be on the plans. We are so desperate we are seriously considering removing the fence so we get our day in court. We want a judge to decide.” The couple, who have two children aged eight and four, say they have tried to raise the issue with their neighbours, but to no avail. Civil servant Justin said: “We have tried to talk to them about it over the years but they don’t want to know. It is blindingly obvious that the fence was installed in the wrong place. “The boundary line was measured from the wrong building. It was a simple mistake but it needs correcting. The fence even takes a right angle so it's not straight. None of the other fences do this. All our other neighbours agree that it’s our land. It’s madness.” The couple also fear they are in a race against time to reclaim the land which could default to their neighbours after 10 years. Julia, who runs her own small business, said: “The neighbours are just happy to wait because they know the land will automatically be theirs after 10 years is up. From every window at the back of the house I can see the fence and it’s a constant reminder that we have been denied the land which is rightfully ours. “Seeing the office pod on land which is actually ours just adds insult to injury.” Shropshire Homes say they knocked £10,000 off the final asking price of the house. In an email to Justin and Julia, they said they would provide evidence to the Land Registry confirming the original boundary line. Managing director Richard Shackleton said: "We have satisfied our legal obligations which should really be an end of the issue. Mr Leech and his wife do not have any legal right over the land in dispute and whilst it remains in dispute we will not transfer the land to either party. "They also have a legal obligation to maintain the current fence and therefore we do not condone any attempt to remove it." Justin's neighbours have been approached for comment.