Hygiene is a relative concept, and what one person considers tidy, another will consider a mess. Even so, there are certain limits to the mess people are allowed to make. Bad smells, rats having the time of their lives and a beautiful view being spoilt are just a few of the complaints heard in court. In practice, judges often have to search for the line between the freedom to make a mess and the interests of the people living nearby. Various cases show how difficult it can be to draw this line. This page describes the situation in the Netherlands.
Nuisance from mess and clutter next door
There are countless examples of how neighbours can be bothered by someone else's mess. Their mess can attract vermin, for example, but it can also spoil the view or cause a bad smell. When the nuisance is unlawful, the court almost always rules that the mess must be cleared up and attaches a penalty payment (dwangsom) to it, so that this obligation can actually be enforced. Sometimes the person responsible also has to pay compensation for loss of enjoyment of the home.
Odour nuisance from mess next door
As always, neighbours have to put up with a certain amount from each other. A rubbish bag that occasionally smells stronger because there happened to be fish on the menu that week does not immediately mean there is unlawful odour nuisance. An all-pervading stench caused by a complete lack of hygiene is another story.
Odour nuisance in a flat
In a block of flats, odour nuisance from the neighbours comes extra close. Here too, an owner may not cause nuisance to others, for example by spreading smells or smoke, to an extent or in a way that is unlawful (Article 5:37 of the Dutch Civil Code (BW) in conjunction with Article 6:162 BW). With an apartment right, the owners' association (VvE) also plays a role: the house rules often contain rules on the use of the building, and the VvE can hold an owner to them. Keep a log of when the smell occurs and what can be smelt. If a conversation does not help, a report can be made to the municipality or the Municipal Public Health Service (GGD).
Visual nuisance from mess next door
Even without nasty smells, neighbours can suffer nuisance from the mess and clutter next door. Visual nuisance can also be unlawful. Of course, people differ in what they consider tidy. In many cases, neighbours can simply put up a dividing wall to limit the visual nuisance, but this is not possible in every case. Think, for example, of a situation where someone has a right to a view.
In 2008, the District Court of Almelo (ECLI:NL:RBALM:2008:BG1111) ruled on a garden that did not look well kept. The case concerned a tenant who, when renting the home, had signed a statement saying he would maintain the garden. However, the landlord received complaints. The tenant was said to be storing rubbish and all kinds of materials in the garden. The question was how far the tenant's obligation went. The court ultimately ruled that all the stored waste, furniture and materials had to be removed from the garden. The court also ruled that the tenant could be expected to carry out garden maintenance every three weeks.
Nuisance from mess in places with shared interests
Sometimes mess can also be directly annoying or even dangerous. One example is mess found in the common areas of a block of flats. This can cause nuisance to the other owners or be unsafe because people can trip over it. That is why the owners will usually decide what is and is not allowed, and the VvE will step in if necessary. This often leads to awkward questions. For example, there are blocks of flats that do have a storage room, but where bicycles cannot be put in it. The bicycles then end up on the street, and that is not always a pretty sight either. In any case, these are trade-offs the owners have to make together.
Another example is mess on a right of way. With such a right of way, the owner of the property must allow a neighbour to walk across their property to reach the public road. This also means the path must be kept clear. Mess has no place there, and the neighbours can ask for it to be cleared away.
Vermin caused by mess next door
Mess at the neighbours', even if it is inside their home, can attract vermin that then become a nuisance in the neighbourhood. In such a case, this may well be an unlawful form of nuisance, and the person responsible can be forced to clean the property and contribute to getting rid of the vermin.
In 2015, the District Court of Amsterdam (ECLI:NL:RBAMS:2015:4918) ruled on such a case. In this case, neighbours were troubled by bedbugs, an insect that hides away, bites people at night and lives on their blood. One of the neighbours tried in vain to get rid of the bedbugs, but they kept coming back. Certified sniffer dogs were then brought in and the home was heated to more than 57 degrees, a temperature at which bedbugs die. A few months later, the problem returned. The same company was brought in again and the problem was solved. All of this happened twice more, and by then the bill had already risen to €15,000.
At this point, the pest control company could only conclude that there must be a severe infestation in (one of) the neighbouring homes. When it turned out that one of the neighbours had recurring cockroaches, it became clear which neighbour was possibly the source of all the vermin. An investigation was able to confirm this with 97% certainty.
However, the neighbour concerned refused all cooperation. In any case, it was established that this neighbour's property was in a seriously neglected state and that the occupants were confirmed hoarders who collected junk and furniture picked up from the street. The court ultimately ordered the neighbour to have a plan of action carried out at his own expense. The costs of this were estimated at more than €15,000.
| Ruling | Situation | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| ECLI:NL:RBALM:2008:BG1111 | Tenant did not keep the garden tidy and stored waste and materials in it | Everything had to be removed from the garden, on pain of a penalty payment |
| ECLI:NL:RBAMS:2014:4188 | Dirty home with accumulated belongings | No danger or nuisance to others; the tenant had done nothing wrong |
| ECLI:NL:RBAMS:2015:4918 | Recurring bedbugs from a neglected neighbouring home | The owner of the neighbouring property had to cooperate with investigation and pest control at his own expense |
| ECLI:NL:RBOVE:2019:3345 | Mess and mice in the garden, shouting, loud music | The tenancy agreement was dissolved |
Other forms of nuisance from mess
There are, of course, countless other forms of nuisance from mess in the garden. For a remarkable example, let us go back to an episode of De Rijdende Rechter (a Dutch television programme in which a judge settles disputes on location) broadcast at the end of 2019. A man was furious about his neighbour's two pear trees. Because those trees, in the end, also drop pears. Those pears then fall onto his land. That makes a mess there, and all kinds of stinging insects come to it. The neighbour did not like that.
So he decided to throw the pears that fell onto his land back over to the neighbours. Not just tossing them back, but hurling them hard against their house. And those neighbours wanted him to stop throwing pears at their house. By then, the neighbours had become afraid that he would do something to the pear trees and had installed cameras pointed at the pear trees. So that those cameras could also film at night, lights shining on the pear trees followed. The pear thrower, in turn, saw this as an incredible provocation that he simply had to answer, with loud music and a gigantic Greek flag, although nobody really seems to know what statement he wanted to make with that flag.
In any event, De Rijdende Rechter came up with a simple solution: according to the law, pears that fall from a tree onto the ground belong to the person who owns the ground: fruit that falls onto a neighbouring property belongs to whoever is entitled to the fruit of that property (Article 5:45 BW). And that owner has the right to clear up his pears. De Rijdende Rechter decided that the pear thrower had to clear up his own fallen pears so that no bees or wasps would come to them. He also had to stop throwing his mess at the neighbours' house. A tidy end to the matter.
Role of the landlord in nuisance from mess and filth
A tenant may not cause damage to the rented property and must behave as a good tenant. Among other things, this means that he may not cause unlawful nuisance to other residents in the neighbourhood. There have been many cases in which the landlord sought dissolution of the tenancy agreement because the tenant was making a mess. It shows that neighbours can certainly also turn to the landlord to bring the situation to an end. On the other hand, this is no guarantee of success.
More information about tenancy law in the NetherlandsThe courts have also often pointed out that everyone has a different standard of hygiene. In a case that came before the District Court of Amsterdam in 2014 (ECLI:NL:RBAMS:2014:4188), there was a fairly dirty home, storage of all kinds of materials and mouse droppings in the home. The tenant was also said to have brought all kinds of things into the house from the street. The court ruled that a tenant may live in and maintain the home as he sees fit, provided he complies with the obligations of the tenancy agreement, does not damage the home and does not cause unlawful nuisance. The subdistrict court judge (kantonrechter) went through the photos and did establish accumulated belongings, but not to such an extent that there was any danger or that others would suffer nuisance from it. The court ruled that the tenant had done nothing wrong.
In the cases where the court did dissolve the tenancy agreement, it often involved extreme forms of nuisance. An example can be found in a ruling by the District Court of Overijssel in 2019 (ECLI:NL:RBOVE:2019:3345). The landlord had received complaints of serious nuisance. This concerned not only a complete lack of garden maintenance, but also mess being put in the garden, which helped mice to spread. It went even further, though: the tenant slammed doors at irregular times, shouted and screamed, and played loud music. A smashed window was also not repaired, and he sometimes hit his walls with objects. The police had also made several attempts to get in touch with the tenant, but it never got further than a short conversation through the letterbox. Here the court did consider it appropriate to dissolve the tenancy agreement. The neighbours were immediately rid of the nuisance.
Read also: National survey of neighbour disputes, Neighbour disputes about property and land and Neighbours and problems with the garden.
Step-by-step plan for nuisance from the neighbours
If you suffer nuisance from mess at the neighbours', it is not advisable to go to court straight away. The best solution is still to sort it out together with the neighbours. If that does not work, other steps are certainly worth considering.
- Discuss the situation in person
Always discuss the situation with the neighbours first. Do this in person and do not write anonymous notes, as this backfires. Try to be clear without offending the neighbours too much. Above all, express your personal feelings and do not point the finger, especially when it comes to matters such as hygiene. Think together about possible solutions. For example, it may not matter so much that the garden maintenance is not always done on time if the neighbour is willing to contribute to putting up the dividing wall.
- Bring in mediation
The neighbour may not want to talk. In that case, you can always turn to mediation or community mediation (buurtbemiddeling). An independent party then tries to bring the neighbours together and guides them in finding a solution. However, nobody can be forced to take part.
- Approach others
Another option is to approach other people involved, such as the neighbours' landlord or a community police officer (wijkagent). The landlord often has more means of getting their tenant to keep things tidy and may even be able to seek dissolution of the tenancy agreement. The VvE has similar options, especially when it comes to mess in the common areas of the building. The community police officer will usually mainly try to start a conversation and urge the neighbour to change something about the situation. Sometimes this is enough to bring the neighbour to reason after all.
- Go to court
If the above does not work, the court is the best solution. The court can order the neighbour to clear up and maintain the garden and can impose penalty payments if necessary. In its assessment, the court will take all relevant factors into account. In any case, it is important that evidence can be presented, so be sure to take photos of the mess or have things such as sources of vermin established.
Frequently asked questions about nuisance from mess next door
What can I do about neighbours with dirty wood-burning stoves?
Always talk to the neighbours first and ask them to take measures to prevent nuisance. For example, ask them to burn only dry wood and no painted or impregnated wood. Also ask them to have the chimney properly swept at least once a year. If this does not work, it is advisable to keep a log of all complaints and any additional evidence. If necessary, you can also have a measurement carried out. With this evidence, you can then file a complaint with the municipality or the GGD.
The neighbours leave uncollected rubbish bags on the street. What can I do?
Here too, the first step is above all to start a conversation with the neighbours. If the neighbours do nothing, a report can be made to the municipality. They may then be able to step in.
My wheelie bin is sometimes full, and then I throw my rubbish in the neighbours' wheelie bin. Is that allowed?
No, you are not allowed to throw your own rubbish in someone else's wheelie bin. Everyone is responsible for their own bin and chooses what waste goes into it. Unless the neighbours exceptionally give their permission, it is therefore not allowed.
My neighbours make fires in their garden. Is that allowed?
In principle, there is nothing wrong with a cosy fire basket, but only bone-dry wood may be used. Treated wood or waste may not be burnt. Safety must also be guaranteed. That is why a fire may only be lit in a gel pot, a fire pot, a fire basket, a barbecue, a garden fireplace or an outdoor stove, and of course at a suitable distance from trees and the like. If you have complaints, talk to the neighbours or report the nuisance to the municipality.