Estate agent left with £200,000 court bill after losing battle with millionaire former rally driver neighbour over hedge
An estate agent has been ordered to pay more than £200,000 towards her neighbour’s legal costs after losing a boundary dispute over a hedge between their homes in Torquay. A judge said the disagreement caused significant stress and expense and should not have reached court.
Sarah Douglas argued the boundary followed the hedge’s southernmost leaf, while her neighbour, former rally driver and insurance boss Ronald Channon, said it ran along the stems of the original hedge. A judge rejected Douglas’s position, saying a boundary that shifted with the hedge’s growth would make no sense. Channon bought his home for £1.4 million in 2021; Douglas had bought hers for £700,000 in 2017.
- Estate agent Sarah Douglas lost a boundary dispute over a hedge.
- She must pay more than £200,000 of her neighbour’s legal costs.
- The judge said the dispute harmed both neighbours’ enjoyment of their homes.
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A boundary dispute between two neighbours in Torquay has resulted in a large legal bill. Sarah Douglas, an estate agent, and Ronald Channon, a former rally driver and insurance executive, disagreed about the exact line of their property boundary, which is marked by a hedge.
The dispute centred on where precisely the boundary should run. Douglas argued it should follow the southernmost leaf of the hedge, whilst Channon contended it should run along the stems of the original hedge. The judge rejected Douglas's position, deciding that a boundary which shifted with the hedge's natural growth would be unworkable.
As a result, Douglas has been ordered to pay more than £200,000 towards Channon's legal costs. The judge expressed concern that the dispute had caused significant stress and expense and should have been resolved without taking the matter to court.