Neighbors waste water drains to my yard (attorney, house)

[alaskaman11]

Hi All,
There is a fence between my neighbors house and mine about 3 ft away from the back of my house and 6 feet away from his. He has what looks to be a sump pump drain the empties itself 12 inches from the fence between us directly into my back yard, the water then causes some flooding in my cellar making me use MY sump pump to empty their water from my basement...

It looks to me that he could drain down his driveway instead of torwards my house as he is using some drainage extension one would normally use with their house gutters.

Is it illegal for him to avert his rainwater to my property? What if any recourse do I have to get him to drain his waste water properly?

Thanks for any help...

[Nephler]

Have you tried talking with your neighbor about this?

[alaskaman11]

It's a triplex and the tenants gave me a number which I have left 2 messages on. I just wanted to have my ducks in a row for our eventual conversation.

[stiffnecked]

You can try talking to him but from what you described he knows exactly what he's doing. If he doesn't voluntarily move the discharge line your probably going to have to contact an attorney. His actions are affecting your right to the enjoyment of your property.

[RussoNYC]

I might recommend that before an attorney you contact your local Dept of Buildings or Sanitation, if you have either. Such agencies are empowered to issue violations for things like this. I don't know how big your town is, but the one i grew up in was small enough where the selectman or sherrif talking to the guy was enough to stop the problem.

[Rance]

Shove a rag up the end of that pipe.

[TexanInGeorgia]

Clog the pipe GOOD.... Then find some nasty chemicals to put on his lawn to slowly kill it. But he sure they are "eco friendly killers" we dont want to harm animals or fish ya know.

[Moose Whisperer]

You might try talking to the neighbor first, but as others have surmised, he may already know perfecly well what is happening. In such case, I would not in any way disturb anything on his property. Simply shovel some dirt and build a burm ON YOUR SIDE just high enough to keep the water from crossing the fence line, thus backing up on his side. He will the quickly get the message and find some other solution real fast!