A Royal Mail HGV driver has been forced to tear down his summer house following an 18-month dispute with a neighbour who reported him to the local council. Andrew Causley, 59, built the wooden structure in his garden in Exeter to replace an ageing children's playhouse, but was served an enforcement notice after former city councillor Stephen Warwick objected.
Mr Causley said he was 'baffled' by the council's decision, as the new summer house was the same size as the previous one, which had stood for 25 years. He and his wife Julie, 60, had hoped to enjoy the hideaway, which cost thousands of pounds, but were told it was 'out of character' with the house and 'inconsistent with the street scene'.
'We haven't had a cross word with him in 30 years,' Mr Causley said of his neighbour. 'He just decided he didn't like it. It's absolutely over the top, heavy-handed bureaucracy.' The couple have spent around £3,000 on the saga and are now appealing against the enforcement notice.
Exeter City Council declined to comment, describing the case as 'active'. The couple say the summer house is barely visible from the road and that they have offered to compromise, but the council has refused to negotiate.
