MORE than 1,300 nuisance complaints were made to Blackburn with Darwen Council over 2016/17 – the highest in East Lancashire.

New analysis revealed an estimated 53,791 complaints were made to councils in the North West, equating to 147 complaints a day, or six every hour, between August 2016 and July 2017.

Blackburn with Darwen received 1,304 complaints, up from 1,235 in 2015/16, with the highest proportion of complaints being rubbish-related.

Hyndburn Council figures fell from 1,122 in 2015/16 to 921 in 2016/17, with rubbish again being the most common gripe.

A rise was seen in Rossendale’s figures to 376 in 2016/17 compared to 289 in 2015/16. Noise was the most frequent complaint.

But in Ribble Valley, no statutory nuisance complaints were received in either year.

The figures were obtained through Freedom of Information requests submitted by Churchill insurance.

Statutory nuisances, which include noise and tipping complaints, impacting a person’s health or causing disturbance to them in their property, must be investigated by a council if a complaint is made.

Despite the number of nuisance notices across the UK decreasing (2.4 per cent) from 2015/16 to 2016/17, statutory nuisance complaints in the North West increased by three per cent.

When looking at the reasons for complaints being made, the most common complaints received by North West councils were for noise (38 per cent) and light (26 per cent) followed by plants (10 per cent), air pollution (eight per cent) and vehicles (eight per cent).

Martin Scott, head of Churchill, said: “It is a worrying indictment of modern society that so many people are failing to take responsibility for their communities, keeping noise and other disturbances to a minimum.

“Living next to a poorly maintained property, or loud and disruptive neighbours, can not only be a harrowing ordeal but could also affect the long-term value of your home if you were to look to sell.

“Council enforcement of environmental regulations is crucial to ensure the actions of inconsiderate individuals don’t blight the lives of others.

“Living next to a noisy neighbour can be extremely debilitating and have a serious impact on the mental wellbeing of the victim.”

When compared with other regions in the UK, the North West was ranked third for the number of statutory nuisance complaints in 2016/2017.

In first position was London (160,087), closely followed by the South East, which received 79,307 statutory nuisance complaints last year.

Artificial light from premises, insect infestations from industrial, trade or business premises and piles of rotting rubbish can also be subject to statutory nuisance notices.

A total of 52,232 statutory nuisance complaints were made between 2015/2016, 1,558 fewer than in 2016/2017.