ᐅ Temporary construction power stolen – extent of liability?

So, once he has ordered the enclosure for his construction, it is important to take appropriate action in advance.

In our experience, every builder was responsible for their own temporary power supply box and construction water. If the neighbor didn’t arrange one, I wouldn’t just use someone else’s electricity without asking. It’s possible the neighbor isn’t even aware of it, but without construction power or water, there is no start to the project. As a builder, you should plan ahead and, if necessary, ask for permission if you forgot to organize something yourself.

Basti2709 schrieb:
without temporary construction power/water, there is simply no start of construction. And as the client, you should plan ahead and, if necessary, ask for permission if I myself forgot to organize something.

Objectively, you are of course right. Let’s be human here: your neighbor might not have known because it is their first time building, or they forgot due to the stress on site, or whatever the reason.
Because you insist on your rights, should the crew just leave and your neighbor have to pay for a day of inactivity?
Currently, contractors are scheduled back-to-back, often for weeks in advance. If no formwork is set today, they might not return for another week or even after their vacation, causing significant delays everywhere else.
Just consider how much you might be helping or harming them by simply accommodating the situation instead of strictly enforcing your rights...

Good thing we don’t live next door to each other.

The easiest approach is to kindly talk to the neighbor (since they are known and reachable) or the construction workers to resolve the situation amicably. This means being understanding if, for some reason, something was necessary, but you would have appreciated being asked beforehand. Then, you could possibly discuss compensation. Depending on how the “other side” responds, you should keep in mind that you will have a long-term relationship with the neighbor.

While the situation isn’t entirely fair or proper, it’s not something worth escalating into a dispute. Instead, it should be addressed and resolved in a relaxed and straightforward manner.

Alex124 schrieb:
Objectively, you are of course right. Let’s be human here: maybe your neighbor didn’t know because it’s his first time building, or he forgot due to the stress of construction, or whatever the reason.
Because you insist on your rights, should the crew just pack up and leave again, and should your neighbor potentially have to pay for an unproductive day?
Right now, contractors have tightly scheduled appointments, often weeks in advance. If the formwork isn’t done today, they might not come back for a week or even after their holiday, causing major delays in everything else, and so on.
Just consider how much you might be helping or hurting him by simply insisting on your rights...

Good thing we don’t live next to each other.

I was also building for the first time back then… I took care of things like temporary construction power and water supply well in advance. It shouldn’t be my fault if things can’t get started. When day X was approaching and the local water supplier kept failing to arrange the construction water for ages, I went over to my neighbor beforehand and asked if it would be a problem to temporarily lay a hose across. Everything was fine and agreed upon… but it didn’t end up being needed after all.

So if the neighbor missed something, he should make some effort to fix it.

If the general contractor is responsible, that’s pretty cheeky, since they know exactly when they need what...

I’m not saying he should lock the box and go over asking for $50. But I think it’s only fair to ask why power was taken without permission and for how long.

Whether you prefer having a neighbor who just taps your power without asking or a neighbor who asks first is up to you.

cschiko schrieb:
still nothing to start a dispute over.

Especially not over a fence that isn’t even there yet, let alone three times not.

First, carefully find out whether it was pragmatism or cheekiness, don’t make a mountain out of a molehill, and remember that one hand washes the other. If this works both ways, that’s good. At the current stage, not only the foundations for the houses are being laid, but also for the neighborly relationships.

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Somehow, everyone here is right; every opinion has its pros and cons (-:

I am also in favor of good neighborly relations, which is why it’s important to ask beforehand...

Unfortunately, we are always on the construction site when everyone else is away, and I don’t have the phone number of the neighbor (across the street) either...

We have now agreed with his construction company that they will simply pay for the construction power used or taken (-;

I understand the urge to get started and so on... but we have a building sign on site, so it would have been easy to contact us. That’s basically what I was concerned about…. using resources is fine, but please ask first...

Personally, I would never do something like that without asking….