Lower Compton Landfill Site Odour Nuisance Claim

Making an initial enquiry and providing information to us as part of our investigation does not involve a charge.

If, following our investigation, we consider that there is a proper basis for a claim, we will discuss the available funding options with you before you decide whether you wish to proceed. These may include legal expenses insurance or, where appropriate following our assessment of the merits and risks, a Conditional Fee Agreement (often referred to as a “no win, no fee” agreement).

Under a Conditional Fee Agreement, you would not ordinarily pay our legal fees if your claim is unsuccessful, subject to the terms of the agreement. Litigation can nevertheless involve other financial risks, including the possibility of liability for an opponent’s costs in certain circumstances. We will explain those risks and whether appropriate insurance is available before you make any decision to proceed.

If a claim succeeds, deductions may be made from the compensation recovered towards legal costs, any success fee and any applicable insurance premium. The precise position will depend upon the funding arrangements offered to you.

We recognise that prospective clients want to understand the likely financial position before deciding whether pursuing a claim is worthwhile. Under the funding arrangements we commonly use for environmental nuisance claims, we would ordinarily expect a successful client to retain at least 60% of the compensation recovered after applicable deductions. This is an indication only: the actual arrangements would be explained to you in writing before you entered into any agreement.

Providing information to us at this investigation stage does not commit you to entering into a funding agreement or bringing a claim.

Legal costs operate on a ‘loser pays’ principle meaning if legal proceedings are commenced and the case is unsuccessful the defendant is typically entitled to payment of its reasonable costs.

Insurance can be obtained to insure against such risks. This may be under your existing policies, or under a bespoke ‘After the Event’ policy. Further details on the mechanics of such policies will be provide if we are prepared to act, following risk assessment of your no obligation enquiry.

We would not advise you to commence proceedings without insurance.

Legal costs operate on a ‘loser pays’ principle meaning if legal proceedings are commenced and the case is unsuccessful the defendant is typically entitled to payment of its reasonable costs.

Insurance can be obtained to insure against such risks. This may be under your existing policies, or under a bespoke ‘After the Event’ policy. Further details on the mechanics of such policies will be provide if we are prepared to act, following risk assessment of your no obligation enquiry.

We would not advise you to commence proceedings without insurance.

If a legal nuisance is established, compensation may be awarded for material interference with the use and enjoyment of a person’s home.

We are often asked at an early stage what level of compensation might be available. Awards in environmental nuisance cases vary considerably and depend on the particular facts and evidence, including the nature, severity, frequency and duration of the interference and the extent to which it affected the use and enjoyment of the property.

By way of general indication only, awards in previous environmental nuisance cases have sometimes been assessed in the region of £1,000 to £3,000 per year per household. This is not a valuation of any potential Lower Compton claim and should not be taken as an indication that you would recover compensation, or any particular amount. Other cases have resulted in lower awards and unsuccessful claims result in no compensation.

We would only be able to advise on the potential value of an individual’s claim after investigating the evidence and determining whether there is a proper basis for legal action.

Timelines vary. If following our investigation we agree to act for you in pursuing an environmental nuisance claim, we estimate an initial period of 12 months for correspondence with the site before proceedings are issued. Once court proceedings are issued a timetable is directed for conclusion of the claim. This can typically take 24 months in group nuisance actions like as this.

Please contact us as soon as possible to register your interest if you have been unreasonably affected. Our team will advise if any limitation deadlines apply.

Yes, if you lived in the affected property and experienced the nuisance within the last 6 years, you may still be eligible. Each case will be assessed on its individual merits.

Contemporaneous records can be useful when investigating environmental nuisance. If you experience an odour or other issue at your property, you may wish to make a brief record at the time of what you personally experienced, including the date, approximate time and duration, a description of the odour, and how, if at all, it affected your use of your home or garden.

If you decide to report an incident to the Environment Agency, Wiltshire Council or the site operator, any report should reflect what you genuinely experience and should be made accurately and in your own words.

If you have previously made complaints or kept diaries, correspondence or other contemporaneous records, please preserve them. We may ask to see them as part of our investigation.

Whether or not you have previously complained, we would like you to tell us about your own recollection of what you experienced, including when it began. You should also tell us if you are uncertain whether an odour came from Lower Compton or if you are aware of another possible source.