Can a landlord or a neighbour refuse an Openreach fibre installation?

In England, a fibre dispute is usually about consent to use land, not a general right to broadband at any chosen route. The Electronic Communications Code applies UK-wide, but the forum differs: Upper Tribunal in England and Wales, Lands Tribunal for Scotland, and county court in Northern Ireland.

Can a landlord refuse to let Openreach dig up the driveway?

A landlord can refuse Openreach permission to dig up a private driveway at first, but Openreach can seek imposed Code rights after notice if the statutory test is met; in England and Wales the current forum is the Upper Tribunal, although the Code text still names the county court and that route is superseded by SI 2017/1284. The Code says a right over land needs an occupier agreement: “A code right in respect of land may only be conferred on an operator by an agreement between the occupier of the land and the operator.” It also includes installing apparatus “on, under or over the land,” and allows an application if the occupier has not agreed within 28 days. The deciding test is not whether tenants have poor internet; it is whether “the public benefit likely to result from the making of the order outweighs the prejudice to the relevant person.” In Scotland the application is to the Lands Tribunal for Scotland; in Northern Ireland, SI 2017/1284 does not extend there, so Code court functions remain with a county court.

What can you do if a neighbour refuses access for a fibre installation?

If a neighbour refuses access for a fibre installation, you normally cannot force entry yourself; the practical route is to ask the communications operator to redesign the route, negotiate a wayleave, or use Code powers in the right forum. The Code application power belongs to the operator, not to the tenant or landlord personally: “The operator may apply to the court for an order under this paragraph if—”. Openreach says it has legal powers but treats court as a last resort: “We do have some legal powers under the Electronics Communication Code that mean we can gain consent via the court to install apparatus on your land.” Part 4A is narrower than many people assume: it is for connecting leased premises where a tenant has requested service and a landlord or connected-land grantor is unresponsive, not a general neighbour-access shortcut. Part 4A is in force in England and Wales, where proceedings use the Upper Tribunal, and in Scotland, where proceedings use the Lands Tribunal for Scotland; it is not in force in Northern Ireland.

Why does a neighbour have fibre when you cannot get it?

A neighbour can have Openreach fibre while you cannot because rollout, routing, permissions, ducts, poles, flats, landlord consent and ordering status are assessed property by property, and no UK rule requires fibre at your premises just because the next home has it. Openreach’s own explanation is blunt: “We build the network in stages, so one property might be connected before another, even if they’re close together.” It also says “There’s no fixed timescale,” so a checker result showing a neighbour can order does not create a deadline for your address. In a flat or rented property, owner consent can be the blocker: “If you live in a flat or rented property, Openreach needs permission from the landlord or building owner before installation.” The broadband universal service obligation is not a full-fibre entitlement either; the statutory benchmark includes “a download sync speed of at least 10 megabits per second,” and the £3,400 cap belongs to that USO scheme, not to a duty to deliver FTTP.

Do Openreach have to dig to install fibre?

Openreach do not have to dig for every fibre installation; they may use existing ducts or poles, but they can dig, clear ducts or carry out street works where the route requires it. The Code gives rights rather than imposing a duty: “An operator may exercise a street work right for the statutory purposes.” Those street-work rights include “breaking up or opening a street or a road,” and Code rights also include works connected with installing apparatus. Openreach’s own wayleave page says the survey decides the method: “The survey will determine the work needed and where we need to dig, however we'll try to use existing infrastructure to avoid excavating.” If apparatus is installed underground in a maintainable highway, street or, in Scotland, public road, the Electronic Communications Code conditions require the verge or footway rather than the carriageway unless that is not reasonably practicable. In England and Wales, government guidance says a public-highway installation needs a street works permit signed off by the highway authority.

How long does an Openreach full fibre installation take?

An Openreach full fibre installation visit usually takes 1–4 hours, but the order-to-install schedule can be much longer where surveys, wayleaves, civils or multi-dwelling-unit work are needed. Openreach gives the visit estimate as: “Most installations take between one and four hours, but this depends on the property type and how the fibre is routed.” Another Openreach checklist says: “Your Full Fibre installation usually takes around four hours.” Those are operational estimates, not legal deadlines. Ofcom’s 2026 telecoms access review sets an 18-working-day first-available-date standard for FTTP engineer appointments in WLA Area 3: “We have also decided that the required FAD for installations requiring an engineer visit should be 18 working days.” Ofcom separately says it has not imposed FTTP quality-of-service standards in WLA Area 2. For blocks of flats and apartments, Openreach warns that after a wayleave is signed, “the process - from survey to completion - can take several months due to the complexity of MDU installations.”

What goes wrong with a full fibre installation?

Full fibre installations most often go wrong because permission, wayleaves, blocked ducts, civils work, public-space approvals, private-land access or asbestos paperwork stop the job before the engineer can complete it. On private land, the Code starts with consent: “A code right in respect of land may only be conferred on an operator by an agreement between the occupier of the land and the operator.” If consent is not given within 28 days after notice, the operator may apply to court; in England and Wales that is the Upper Tribunal, in Scotland the Lands Tribunal for Scotland, and in Northern Ireland the county court. Openreach says for wayleaves: “We can’t do any work until we’ve got your signed document.” It also says delays arise because “We often need permission to work on private land or public spaces.” On asbestos, Openreach’s wording that a register shows a building is safe overstates the legal duty: in Great Britain the duty is to assess “whether asbestos is or is liable to be present in the premises,” not to prove the building is safe in all respects.

How much does an Openreach full fibre installation cost?

Rival pages quote £3,400 as the Openreach Full Fibre install cost, but that figure is the broadband USO’s “decent connection” cap for a different product, not an Openreach Full Fibre price. The statutory £3,400 line belongs to the universal service obligation, where a qualifying decent broadband connection is one that “will cost no more than £3,400,” and the same schedule defines that service by minimums such as “a download sync speed of at least 10 megabits per second.” For Openreach full fibre in a landlord or MDU context, Openreach says: “The installation is free of cost,” but also warns that “there may be a connection charge between you and the internet service provider.” At wholesale level, prices depend on product, area and commercial offer: Ofcom says Equinox 2 prices are so widely taken up that they represent prevailing prices where applicable, while ISPreview reported a standard FTTP install list connection charge of £127.26 ex VAT to the ISP. For FTTP on Demand or unusual civils, Openreach says prices are survey-based.

Last reviewed August 2026.

Sources

• Electronic Communications Code, Schedule 3A paragraph 9: “A code right in respect of land may only be conferred on an operator by an agreement between the occupier of the land and the operator. Source
• Electronic Communications Code, Schedule 3A paragraph 3: “(a)to install electronic communications apparatus on, under or over the land Source
• Electronic Communications Code, Schedule 3A paragraph 20: “(a)the relevant person does not, before the end of 28 days beginning with the day on which the notice is given, agree to confer or be otherwise bound by the code right, or Source
• Electronic Communications Code, Schedule 3A paragraph 21: “The second condition is that the public benefit likely to result from the making of the order outweighs the prejudice to the relevant person. Source
• Electronic Communications Code, Schedule 3A paragraph 94: “(a)in relation to England and Wales, the county court Source
• SI 2017/1284 regulation 4: “(a)in relation to England and Wales, in the Upper Tribunal, or Source
• SI 2017/1284 regulation 4: “(b)in relation to Scotland, the Lands Tribunal for Scotland. Source
• SI 2017/1284 explanatory note: “These regulations do not extend to Northern Ireland. Source
• Openreach, obtaining wayleaves: “We do have some legal powers under the Electronics Communication Code that mean we can gain consent via the court to install apparatus on your land. Source
• Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure / Part 4A commencement research: “These Regulations extend to England and Wales and Scotland. Source
• Telecommunications Infrastructure (Leasehold Property) Act 2021 section 1: “27AThis Part of this code makes provision for the court to make an order imposing an agreement which provides that code rights are exercisable by an operator for the purpose of providing an electronic communications service to leased premises where Source
• Openreach, fibre checker result: “We build the network in stages, so one property might be connected before another, even if they’re close together. Source
• Openreach, why neighbours can order: “There’s no fixed timescale. Source
• Openreach, why neighbours can order: “If you live in a flat or rented property, Openreach needs permission from the landlord or building owner before installation. Source
• SI 2018/445 Schedule 1: “(a)a download sync speed of at least 10 megabits per second; Source
• SI 2018/445 Schedule 1: “(i)will cost no more than £3,400; or Source
• Electronic Communications Code, Schedule 3A paragraph 58: “An operator may exercise a street work right for the statutory purposes. Source
• Electronic Communications Code, Schedule 3A Part 8: “(a)breaking up or opening a street or a road; Source
• Electronic Communications Code, Schedule 3A paragraph 3: “(d)to carry out any works on the land for or in connection with the installation of electronic communications apparatus on, under or over the land or elsewhere Source
• Openreach, obtaining wayleaves: “The survey will determine the work needed and where we need to dig, however we'll try to use existing infrastructure to avoid excavating. Source
• Electronic Communications Code (Conditions and Restrictions) Regulations 2003 regulation 5: “Where a code operator installs electronic communications apparatus underground in a maintainable highway or a street or, in Scotland, a public road or a road he shall place that apparatus in the verge or footway rather than the carriageway unless it is not reasonably practicable to do so. Source
• DSIT Barrier Busting Handbook: “When a supplier needs to install their infrastructure in or on the public highway, in all cases a street works permit will be required which is signed off by the highways authority (HA). Source
• Openreach, how full fibre is installed: “Most installations take between one and four hours, but this depends on the property type and how the fibre is routed. Source
• Openreach, full fibre installation checklist: “Your Full Fibre installation usually takes around four hours. Source
• Ofcom Telecoms Access Review 2026–31, Volume 5: “We have also decided that the required FAD for installations requiring an engineer visit should be 18 working days. Source
• Ofcom Telecoms Access Review 2026–31, Volume 5: “We have decided not to impose any QoS standards on FTTP in WLA Area 2, where we want to promote network competition. Source
• Openreach, landlords multi-dwelling unit: “After the wayleave is signed, the process - from survey to completion - can take several months due to the complexity of MDU installations. Source
• Openreach, obtaining wayleaves: “We can’t do any work until we’ve got your signed document. Source
• Openreach, full fibre installation delays: “We often need permission to work on private land or public spaces. Source
• Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 regulation 4: “In order to manage the risk from asbestos in non-domestic premises, the dutyholder must ensure that a suitable and sufficient assessment is carried out as to whether asbestos is or is liable to be present in the premises. Source
• Openreach, broadband for landlords: “The installation is free of cost. Source
• Openreach, broadband for landlords: “Depending on the agreement you reach, there may be a connection charge between you and the internet service provider. Source
• Ofcom Telecoms Access Review 2026–31, Volume 4: “Our view is that the Equinox 2 Offer prices are so widely taken up by ISPs that, where applicable, they represent the prevailing prices and therefore should be referenced in our charge controls. Source
• ISPreview, Openreach FTTP standard install process: “The Standard install process attracts a connection charge of £127.26 ex. VAT at wholesale, although after special offers many retail ISPs will often cover this for “free“. Source
• Openreach price list, FTTP on Demand: “Prices are subject to survey and relevant FTTP on Demand Build charges. Source
• Openreach price list, Excess Construction: “When Excess Construction is required, a survey will be carried out and charges will be individually assessed based upon the following rates. Source