German court: 88-year-old woman may still bring firewood across neighbour's land
The Saarbrücken Regional Court in Germany ruled that neighbours must remove a planter blocking a path covered by a right of way registered in 1953. The right survives only for transporting fuel, not for farm purposes.
The Regional Court of Saarbrücken (Landgericht Saarbrücken) in Germany has ruled on a neighbour dispute over an easement entered in the land register in 1953. The court decided that the neighbours of an 88-year-old woman must remove a heavy planter they placed to block a path across their property. The decision is dated 27 November 2025. It shows how courts assess old land-use rights when circumstances have changed greatly over the decades.
The old entry
In 1953 the plot was divided, and the owner of one house was granted a registered right to use a 2.5-metre-wide strip of the neighbouring land to reach the street. The deed justified this by the small farm operated at the time: the path could be used to transport hay, straw and similar agricultural products, and to bring fuel to the house or take it away.
The woman's house has no garage of its own, and only a steep staircase leads to the street. She depends on a walker, so the level route across the neighbours' land is much easier for her. The neighbours argued that farming had long ceased and the old stables and passages no longer exist, and they placed an obstacle on the boundary.
The ruling
The court found that the right to carry hay and straw had expired, since there had been no farming for decades and the buildings had been converted so that livestock could no longer be kept. However, the old deed also mentioned fuel. The woman has a wood-burning stove in her flat, heating at least one room, so delivering firewood still gives an objective benefit. That part of the right has not lapsed.
The neighbours must remove the planter and may not set up new obstacles hindering fuel transport. The court clarified that the woman may not use the path for walks or for moving rubbish bins. The right is limited strictly to transporting fuel. Years of tolerance by the neighbours do not create a permanent right, and such tolerance can be withdrawn at any time.
