Around 3.7 million people have suffered property damage as a result of neighbours making renovations to their homes in the last five years, according to new research from Direct Line’s SELECT Premier Insurance.

In the same period, the repair bill for damages across the country totalled more than £1.5 billion.

33% of neighbours accepted responsibility for damage and 30% blamed someone else.

17% did not directly confront neighbours about damage to their property, despite the fact that the average cost to repair damages was £533. For 8% of respondents more than £1,000 was required to repair the damage.

According to those whose damaged property incurred a cost to repair, the 53% of their neighbours shared at least half of the cost of repairs and 14% paid over 80% of the costs. However, 19% of neighbours paid nothing towards damages caused by their home makeovers.

Nick Brabham, head of SELECT Premier Insurance, said: “In the UK we take pride in our homes with many seeing extending and renovating their homes as a way to improve their living standards. As such it is not surprising that in the 12 months to September last year we saw more than 55,000 residential planning applications made in England with more than three quarters of them accepted3.

“If you or your neighbours are thinking about starting a home makeover project it is worth assessing and discussing the risk of damage to adjacent properties with neighbours. It is also crucial to check whether your home insurance policy covers damage caused by neighbour renovations, otherwise you could be left with a hefty repair bill.”

Damage to fencing was the most common ailment for victims of over exuberant home transformation projects, with 43% suffering damage. 25% highlighted damage to windows and damage to garden features (e.g. fountains and sheds) making these the next most common casualties of neighbour renovations.

Home renovations have also caused other annoyances to neighbours with 26% of UK adults enduring noise disturbances and 14% experiencing reduced parking. This was a major issue in already congested London where 26% went through reduced parking whilst their neighbours renovated their properties.