NUISANCE: FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS

Wandsworth London Borough Council v Railtrack plc [2001] 1 WLR 368

The decision of Mr Justice Gibbs in Wandsworth London Borough Council v Railtrack plc [2001] 1 WLR 368 is a further step in the onward march of the law of nuisance. It serves as a reminder to the owners of buildings and construction sites that they cannot simply disclaim responsibility for acts of nature. The law may require them to intervene and to take reasonable steps in an effort to abate the nuisance that is being caused by nature or by third parties. On the other hand, the case also demonstrates that the claimant must act reasonably as well. On the facts of the case it was held that the claimants had failed to mitigate their loss on the ground that they had not accepted the defendants’ offer of access to their premises in order to enable the claimants to abate the nuisance at their own expense but had instead chosen a more expensive way of attempting to deal with the problems caused by the nuisance.