Changing house name ( OT).

[bluebell]

Another question. I am sorry. Does anyone know how you go about changing your house name?

I live in a village and our house is named not numbered. However, I found out last night that there is now another house in the village ( a new build apparently) going by the same name. This has caused confusion as I nearly didn't get something I ordered.

Added to that I know there is yet another house ( again recently built - last ten years this time but recently changed its name) which has both a similar name and a similar post code ( one letter different like for example theirs is AB12 6RA and we are AB12 6PA). That has also caused confusion.

I can see the only solution to this is for me to change my name ( as the post office have allowed the other two to have our house name. They cannot be changed now , so I have to change, even though we had the name longest)

So what do I do to change the house name?

[rrh]

Are you absolutely sure your house does not have a number? I was brought up in a house which we thought only had a name only to find out many years later that the post office had a number listed for it as well. For over 20 years we never used the number or saw it on incoming mail.

[bluebell]

I am absolutely certain. There is no number. I actually live on a smallholding - an ex market garden. None of the houses in the village have numbers. The village isnt that big and the houses are spread out. None is numbered at all except for the small development of social housing at the bottom of the village. That has numbers but thats new build.

Its only recently some tw@t in the Post Office has seen fit to allow the new houses to have the names of existing ones though. I always thought a house had to have a name different to ones in the bvillage already. I I know when a new house was built in my mothers village a few years back the owners were told thatey couldnt have the firts two names they selected because there were other houses in neighbouring villages with the same names.

But now, anything goes it seems.

[PL]

Are you sure about that? I thought the Local Authority was responsible for street naming and numbering and that the PO was, perhaps, just a consultee in the process. Why don't you take the issue up with the LA?

[meow2222]

I presume you've taken it up with the new builds? A letter explaining that if they use those names, since there is already a hiouse by that name, they will fail to receive a goodly proportion of mail, which will result in unpaid bills, utilities being cut off as a result, credit ratings ruined, CC summons, financial records being sent to others in the village and so on.

Pointing this out in a calm way might make them think twice. Whereas jumping up & down saying I was here first will achieve nothing.

If you do change your house name, all you do is fit a new plaque and tell the PO. You can do it with no plaque, but thats asking for delivery problems.

NT

[bluebell]

I am not sure about what I said. I automatically thought that it must be the PO. After all why should anyone other than the PO who are responsible for mail and post codes etc. be involved. I didn't know the Local Authority were responsible.

I will go to the council and find out what idiot there is causing me grief. I have lost two parcels of things I sent for ( first time ever ) about six moths ago . I lost a CRB clearance which I know went to " the other" foxgloves ( the one with a similar post code) , because after six months they decided to forward it to me! Now I nearly lost a phone. The driver told me about the confusion. Even the Post Office themselves tried to send him to a different Foxgloves ( the new one in our village)

But of course they have given out the name now haven't they? So my question remains. How can I change my house name so as not to have confusion?

[The Natural Philosopher]

Having read the other replies, I think the answer is simple. You just put up a new name board outside the house

And tell everybody to send to the new name, and then tell the post office its got a new name, and then every time someone sends a letter to the old name, you send them a pre-printed card announcing you have moved house to 'new name'.

Even if some jobsworth eventually says 'ere! U karnt DU that' most of the official people will blithely accept that the new name is what you say it is, and the two words 'Fait Accompli' spring to mind..

[Tim Lamb]

In message , [e-mail] writes

On a related issue...

Addresses with a common first word and the same post code suffer from what I call *drop down list itis*.

Problems invariably stem from mailing organisations such as BG's billing operation. The cottage at the top of the lane shares the word Marford and because *C* comes before *F* alphabetically, they get my bills.

regards

[Mike Barnes]

It would make more sense for all concerned if the other house's name was changed. But to answer your question I changed the name of my house (which I thought didn't have a number, but it turns out it did) simply by having a nameplate made and drawing the postman's attention to it.

The hardest part was getting the utility companies to understand that my address had changed but I hadn't moved - they simply weren't equipped to deal with that possibility.

[Andy Hall]

Must be really difficult for people with house names like Dunroamin, Duncyclin, Dunwalkin etc. ......

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Especially not proofreading. ;-)

[John Anderton]

Best to also tell the local authority, Police and Fire Brigade. (You don't want your house burning down because the Brigade don't know where you are :-) )

I think that's all the people I told but it was 15 years ago so I may have forgotten somebody,

Cheers,

John

[Lobster]

When I once subdivided a house into two, that meant I was "creating" a new address. The procedure for that was to talk to the Highways Dept of the local council who approved it (this was completely separate from planning permission etc) and they passed it on to the Royal Mail who duly (eventually, after many months) modified their postcodes database. When I originally contacted the Royal Mail direct, they told me they'd only accept the change from my Council.

Don't know how closely that mirrors your scenario, but maybe it helps? IIWY I think I'd I'd just contact Royal Mail and see what they say. As regards telling anybody else (such as Fire, Police etc) - I wouldn't bother as they will take their info from the postcodes database. You'll have to wait until the postcodes database is updated before notifying many outfits (eg utility companies) as they won't physically be able to effect the change until then.

David

[Lobster]

So how is he going to persuade (eg) United Utilities to make the change when the new house name doesn't appear on the dropdown list in the postcodes database, but the old name *does*?

David

[Owain]

The Local Authority has responsibility under the Public Health Act 1925 sections 17 -19. for street naming and house numbering.

Owain

[Huge]

I live in a house with a name but no number, down a bridleway off a lane with no name.

Needless to say, we have trouble with people finding us ...

[robgraham]

The other area of difficulty is your bank and associated credit/debit cards as a number of internet sellers will bounce your details if the delivery address and card address do not coincide. Suffered that !

Rob

[pete]

[Frank Erskine]

How about house naming, though?

:-)

[Graeme]

In message , bluebell writes

Why do you imagine that 'some tw@t' in the PO has 'allowed' any such thing?

Two points you should understand. Mail is delivered by Royal Mail, not the Post Office. Neither Royal Mail nor the Post Office have any say in the description of your property, and/or address.

Your problem should be referred to the relevant local authority. Royal Mail merely create a database of addresses - they do not approve (or otherwise) the address, including house names.