Serving a notice is not difficult, but it is exact, and the three ways it goes wrong are always the same: it is served late, it is served on the building rather than on every owner, or it leaves out something the Act requires it to state. None of those is a matter of judgement, which means all three are avoidable in an afternoon. What follows is the order to do it in, and the worksheet under it counts the dates from the day your builder wants to start.
How to serve a party wall notice: on owners, not on addresses
The Act serves owners. A freehold house next door with one owner is one adjoining owner; a converted house with a leaseholder upstairs, a leaseholder downstairs and a freeholder is three, and each of them gets their own notice of each kind. Where the neighbouring property is let, both the landlord and a tenant with a long enough interest can be owners. Getting the list of owners right before you write anything is the single most useful hour on the whole job, because a notice that missed an owner has to be started again.
Count the party wall notice period back from the start date
A party structure notice is served at least two months before the work begins. A line of junction notice and an adjacent excavation notice are served at least one month before. Those periods run from service rather than from posting, so allow for the post as well, and remember that a party structure notice lapses if the work has not begun within twelve months of service. Counting back from the builder's start date, rather than forward from today, is what shows you whether the job is already too late.
What party wall notices must say, and keeping the proof
A party structure notice states the building owner's name and address, the nature and particulars of the proposed work, including plans and sections where special foundations are proposed, and the date the work will begin. Serve it in a way you can evidence: by hand with a witness, or by post to the property with a record. Keep a copy of exactly what went out, with the date, because a fortnight later the only question that matters is what was served and when.
What section 15 counts as service
The Act says how a notice reaches an owner, and following it is what makes the notice provable. It may be delivered to the person in hand. It may be sent by post to their usual or last known residence or place of business. Where the owner is a company, it goes to the secretary or clerk at the registered or principal office. Where you genuinely cannot find out the owner's name, a notice addressed to the owner of the premises, by description, and delivered to a person on the premises or fixed to a conspicuous part of them is good service. Since 2016 a notice may also go electronically, but only where the recipient has said in writing that they will accept notices that way and has given the address. Whichever route you take, keep the copy, the date and the evidence of delivery together, because a challenge to service is a challenge to the whole timetable.
Questions people ask about serving party wall notice
Can I serve a notice by email?
Only where the adjoining owner has agreed to accept service that way. Post or personal delivery is the safe route, and a copy kept with its date is the proof you will want later.
What if I do not know the neighbour's name?
Notices can be addressed to the owner or occupier of the property where a name is genuinely unknown, but make reasonable efforts first. Where the property is registered, the register names the owner.
Does a notice expire?
A party structure notice ceases to have effect if the work has not begun within twelve months of service and is not prosecuted with due diligence. A job that slips a year needs serving again.