Most neighbour rows due to noise

Noise is the most common reason for disputes between neighbours,according to a survey. Two-thirds of people who fell out with neighbours did so because of conflicts about loud music and other noise problems.

Second in the league table of reasons was disputes over street parking. And one in four has argued with neighbours about pets fouling their gardens or driveways.

Just over one in five people in a dispute said it related to boundaries and 14 per cent admitted they had come to blows over repairs to communal areas.

Men are often behind relationship problems with people living around them. More than seven out of 10 men - 72 per cent - have become upset about noisy neighbours, compared with just 61 per cent of women.

Men are also more likely to be angry about where their neighbour parks, with 37 per cent admitting arguing about cars on the street - an issue that only 30 per cent of women have become involved in.

NOP questioned almost 1,000 people about their relationships with their neighbours in the survey for Halifax Estate Agency.

Other research suggests neighbour disputes may also arise because people have no relationship with those living closest to them. Four per cent of people said they would not recognise their neighbours if they came to the front door.

Only 7 per cent trusted neighbours and younger households were less sociable than their older counterparts. Nearly half of men and women aged 45 to 54 socialised with neighbours, compared with less than a third of those aged 25 to 34.