There may not always be an obvious resolution to neighbor disputes, which can be complicated.

A Tampines resident first noticed her neighbor making noises like hammering in the early morning and middle of the night during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
The woman identified only as Amy said she was also bothered by sounds like running water and what appeared to be a creaking fan. At first she tried to ignore the noises, but as time went on they became more and more intolerable, interfering with her sleep and consequently her work.

Amy said she also complained to the Housing Board and town council about her neighbour, to no avail. According to her, her neighbour even ignored an order from the Community Disputes Resolution Tribunals (CDRT) to stop making noise.

In her latest bid to end the disturbance, Amy, who quit her job in the video production sector in 2022, said she is applying for a special direction for her neighbour to comply with the CDRT order.

Her case, which will be heard in May, illustrates how intractable neighbour disputes over noise can be, and the need for more effective ways to resolve them.

The authorities have taken steps to address noise spats over the years. In 2015, the Police Force Act was amended to allow for the appointment of community wardens with the power to take down particulars, advise people to keep their noise level down and deliver composition notices on behalf of the police.

But the number of complaints involving noise issues continued to climb, and soared during the Covid-19 pandemic when many people worked and studied from home.

In 2017, HDB received 3,493 complaints of disputes between neighbours. The number of complaints jumped by almost eight times to 27,600 in 2022, or 2,300 on average per month.

In March, Senior Minister of State for National Development Sim Ann announced that the Municipal Services Office (MSO) will form a unit to help resolve protracted and egregious disputes between neighbours. This group will be given the power to investigate disputes and stop certain nuisance behaviour, she said.

Second Minister for Law Edwin Tong had also said that cases where noise is used as a weapon to disrupt the peace among neighbours will come under the new legal framework on mandatory mediation for community disputes.

When noise disputes occur, first responders such as HDB and grassroots leaders will encourage neighbours to talk and try to resolve the issue amicably.

Some residents turn to the Community Mediation Centre (CMC), where trained volunteers help to mediate sessions between the parties involved. Some may opt to lodge a magistrate’s complaint to start a private prosecution, if they believe their neighbour has committed a criminal offence against them.

The magistrate will then decide if the case is worth pursuing and direct the police to investigate. In the process, the magistrate may issue a warrant for the alleged offender’s arrest.

Apart from a magistrate’s complaint, people can turn to the CDRT, which was set up to handle such disputes.

In 2022, there were 126 claims filed with the CDRT involving excessive noise, down from 150 cases in 2021. However, the figure was still more than double the 61 claims filed in 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic struck.

One of the top noise concerns is inter-floor noise, which includes sounds of furniture being dragged, rolling marbles and doors being slammed.

Other avenues for recourse include applying for voluntary mediation or for a protection order under the Protection from Harassment Act.

In a high-profile case reported by The Straits Times in 2020, a couple was barred from their Bukit Panjang flat for a month after they were found to have breached an earlier court order to stop disturbing their neighbours in the unit above. It was the first time that the CDRT under the State Courts had issued an exclusion order.

The couple eventually sold their flat, ending a protracted dispute that began in 2017.

In another severe dispute, the residents of a Punggol HDB block had to endure disturbances from a neighbour who, among other things, allegedly splashed oil at their doorsteps and left a bloody pig’s ear on a shoe rack.

Her behaviour caused many residents to fear for their safety. Some even installed closed-circuit television cameras in their homes to protect themselves.

This case was troubling because even though reports of her behaviour had been made since 2014, the matter was resolved only in 2021, when she moved out of her flat in Punggol.

While there are various agencies and avenues for recourse available, it seems that none of them is able to truly address the serious disputes. The outcome of the two cases showed that the issues were resolved only when either party moved out.

Clearly, there needs to be a more effective way of resolving neighbourly disputes, especially those involving noise.

Statistics have shown that mediation is highly effective in helping neighbours work things out, with 80 per cent of disputes that end up at the CMC resolved.

However, residents have reported difficulties with this option as their neighbours do not always turn up for mediation, and going to court or tribunals can be a tedious and expensive process.

Community mediation is generally voluntary, and currently, there are no consequences for disputing parties who fail to attend mediation, said a Ministry of Law spokesman.

In cases where a CDRT claim has been filed and the respondent fails to turn up for the hearing, the CDRT may grant a CDRT order in the absence of the respondent. But a breach of the initial CDRT order is not a criminal offence, added the spokesman.

As a result, residents whom ST spoke to feel that their only option is to sell their flats and move away.

It is important to recognise that neighbour disputes can be complex and multifaceted, and there may not always be a clear solution.

While the Government continues to encourage good neighbourly communication and tolerance, the new MSO unit will now intervene at appropriate junctures for egregious disputes.

However, the unit must be given sufficient powers and teeth in order to stop the wilful weaponisation of noise by neighbours.