Man in row with Virgin Media after they 'put broadband cabinet on his property'

Paul Skinner and his pregnant fiancee Gemma Parker say they were not asked for permission by Virgin Media or its partner Nexfibre - and have vowed to continue challenging the companies until the cabinet is removed

A man is embroiled in a row with Virgin Media after finding workers installing a large broadband cabinet "on his property." Paul Skinner and his partner Gemma Parker are adamant that the installation on their land was unauthorised.

The couple say they received no request for permission from Virgin Media or its associate Nexfibre and are determined to keep up the fight until the cabinet is gone.

Mr Skinner, 42, has also criticised the workers for causing a potential danger during the installation process. He recounted how they dug a large hole and carelessly advised his pregnant fiancée Ms Parker to "climb over it" branding the situation as "terrible" and one that could have led to serious consequences.

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Kent County Council (KCC), the highways authority, is looking into the matter but noted that "a permit was submitted and granted for the works on publicly maintained land." Virgin Media representatives are reviewing Mr Skinner's grievances, although they maintain that all necessary permissions were in place.

However, Mr Skinner contests this, asserting that the cabinet sits within the bounds of his property and is demanding its removal. He expressed his frustration: "It's an absolute chaos storm. I'm going to keep fighting and fighting this.

"I just don't want other people to deal with this. I don't want these companies to get away with it."

According to Mr Skinner, the work commenced without any notice given to him or Ms Parker. In an escalating row over works blocking his property, the frustrated father-to-be declared: "We came in to find our access to our house was basically blocked off and they were digging a hole."

He furiously recounted how workers suggested his pregnant fiancée "Workers then told my fiancée, who's pregnant, to climb over the hole, which is a safety issue."

Highlighting the risk to her safety by adding: "If she fell and we lost the baby, it would have been terrible. It’s a joke."

A Virgin Media spokesperson said: "We recently installed a cabinet on Church Lane as part of our investment in the region to bring our ultrafast broadband to Deal, and we had the necessary permits in place to carry out this work."

"We are investigating a resident’s claim that the cabinet was installed on his private property. While this has not yet been confirmed, we will take appropriate action if this is found to be the case."

Meanwhile, KCC said that after inspecting the site, it determined that no damage had been caused to Mr Skinner's land. A council spokesperson said: "Following a complaint received from the resident that the utility company damaged the carriageway, KCC inspectors visited the site and found no damage had been caused by Nexfibre's works."

"KCC has no responsibility for works carried out by utility companies, and inquiries or complaints about them must be taken up with the utility company directly."

"While we didn’t – and couldn’t – give permission for any work on private land, a permit was submitted and granted for the works on publicly maintained land."

"This included out-of-hours work with three-way lights set up as a road crossing on Church Meadows."

"A condition of the permit was that Dover District Council’s environmental health team were to be notified, which they were."

Nexfibre has also been invited to comment on the situation.