Many people enjoy friendly relationships with their neighbours and rely them on to take parcels in when they're not at home which is what one woman was expecting when she moved into her new house. But her dreams were soon dashed when her neighbour handed her a bill for a 17-year-old fence.
Shannon Spencer was given a $506 (£277) receipt when she recently moved in Yanchep, Perth, Australia, found a boundary that was built in 2005. Speaking to ABC Radio Perth she said that although it wasn't a "huge amount", she was shocked the man had held onto the invoice for so long.
She told ABC Radio Perth: "it's just the fact that the fence has been there for 17 years and he's held this receipt in his hand, this invoice in his hand, waiting for the perfect time to come and hand it over".
While she initially thought the invoice was a joke, she soon realised her neighbour was being serious when he informed her she was the last one as "all the other neighbours had paid him for the fence".
The Mirror reports the man has a legal right to ask neighbours to contribute to the cost due to Australia's Divided Fences Act. The land was vacant previously so the past owner of the house didn't have to pay.
Shannon says the condition of the fence has deteriorated over the years and is now "rusted" and "not even the same height" as the surrounding fences. She is disputing payment.
She said: "While I know I need to, I'm required to pay, I'm just disputing the amount I should pay, given depreciation over the 17 years and the fact that the fence is rusted and yeah, not in good condition."
Local lawyer Johnson Kitto also spoke on the radio show, confirming that "the law is on his side as much as it pains me to say".
He questioned whether it was worth a legal dispute and said it was possible a court could support Shannon in paying a smaller amount due to the age of the fence.
He added: "The best advice I can give her is to simply pay it. I wouldn't try to negotiate with him. It's a relatively small amount. Life is worth more than $500 and haggling over neighbourhood fences over that."
Mr Kitto also said: "Imagine what the cost would be of constructing it today."
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