Orange telephone pole in the middle of my garden. What to do?

Bear in mind a cable in the ground where you can’t see it can be cut through. Ours was - twice. Which is why we now have the cable lying along the ground where we can see it and move it out the way when we want to mow that bit of ground.

Running the cable through the middle of some old steel scaffolding tube prior to burying it usually solves the problem of it being inadvertently cut. There should also be the usual brightly coloured plastic warning strip placed in the ground above the cable so that anyone excavating in the future is forewarned of something to be cautious of at a deeper level.

I cant add anything on the solution here in France - but just a heads up on a similar situation we had in the UK - the post was unobtrusive and it didn’t bother us, especially as BT paid us an annual rent on it!

Middle of the lawn doesn’t sound unobtrusive! :roll_eyes:

It was a similar, not identical situation!

The pole would make an excellent birdhouse holder. In times of covid, at least you can enjoy the company of birds and they will keep the bad bugs away.

I don’t know much about the legalities (I am sure its less than ideal), but our line crossed a neighbors garden. It fell in a storm and we couldn’t get help to sort it because it was still working. I cut it and extended it with some Ethernet cable and buried it a few cm under the soil. Its been working fine for more than a year, and if anything goes wrong with it I’ve got no doubt that I can repair it. Internet speed is a little more reliable now when it’s windy than before.

Just a few centimeters below is dangerous, because an overeager gardener, that would like to aerate the lawn, will cause damage to your line!

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Not dangerous, just inconvenient. If I was an over eager gardener I’d have taken the time to bury it deeper. I’ve left enough cable exposed elsewhere to cut and splice in another section. I guess ultimately what I’d say is that a phone line is just two very simple wires which on a practical level can be placed anywhere and anyhow that you like. Unless you’ve got a fiber connection to the house, which I am not sure even exists.

Hi - please add your full real name as per our T&C before posting again - thanks.

Hi Catherine. Douglas Montoya is the only and complete real name I have. If you actually would read my profile before posting it might be helpful.

A small update and at the same time a big thank you to everyone who shared their experiences and advice, thanks to this forum I was able to gain more insight on the “servitude” part on my contract and it is actually how the problem can be solved. Nor my contract or my neighbours contract has a binding servitude specified in it, this actually means the telephone post will have to be removed and Orange is responsible for it. For my neighbour to continue having telephone service (which is what we want) he will have to find a lawyer to register the “servitude” legally and he will have to cover for the fees. He is still deciding what he will do. Hope I can help a bit in the future if anyone has a similar problem! Thanks again everyone who took time to help!

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As you are a new member it may be worth pointing out Cat owns the forum ,telling her to read your profile isn’t necessarily a good idea

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And maybe a quick re-look will tell you Douglas, that Cat’s request was not directed at you. :wink: :slightly_smiling_face:

In mitigation on your behalf though, I also don’t always remember to look at the little icon top right, which is why I personally prefer to quote and reply. :slightly_smiling_face:

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It is actually a brilliant idea to ask Catherine to read my profile, it is only in everyone’s best interest, that in case she thinks my info is not complete or real to ask her to double check my profile. As a new member I have no problem with it, nor should you as an old member. Security first. Again Edward, all good ;-). Please read my last message too, this Forum and the friendly members who actually gave a concrete advice, helped me to solve my problem and I am very thankful for it. If this forum is your idea Catherine I would like to particularly thank you for it, it is an inmense help.

Douglas, I think you jumped the gun. I strongly imagine Cat was referring / asking @Mr_biggs!

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Hi Warren you are right, my bad :wink: As it was mentioned on a prior post I should start checking the right icon. Thanks!

Hi David, you are right :wink: I never check the icon too ha! Thanks!

Especially when I get that notification on my phone when I am on my lunch break. And haven’t eaten yet…