If the adjoining owner consents/agrees the “notifiable” works may go ahead without the necessity of an award but both the building owner and the adjoining owner are protected by The Act if something goes wrong during the works or damage is caused to the adjoining owner’s property.
Party wall surveyors can then be appointed to resolve any disputes, rather than resort to legal proceedings in the court, i.e. the adjoining owner can activate the dispute resolution procedure as contained in Section 10 of The Act – this means that the building owner and the adjoining owner may appoint an agreed surveyor or each appoint their own surveyor to resolve any problems.