A nuisance drone retains spying on me – am I allowed to shoot it?

Someone in my neighbourhood is harassing me in my garden using a drone, and I want to know what to do about it.

Since the weather started getting warmer, I have been spending more time in my garden, including sunbathing.

I have noticed a small drone often hovers directly over my garden.

I believe it must have a camera fitted and the owner of the drone is trying to get footage of me.

How do I fix this issue, please – surely it cannot be legal to spy on a woman sunbathing and harass them in this way. I am tempted to buy an airgun and take matters into my own hands.

Sam Barker of This is Money replies: There are now more than 500,000 registered drones in Britain. While flying a drone can be fun and a legitimate pasttime, sadly some operators use them in illegal and irresponsible ways.

In your case, if someone is using a drone to do something illegal – being a voyeur or invading your privacy – then there is something you can do.

But if the drone is just annoying, while this is an awful situation and I share your anger, I regret to say you may have very few effective ways of stopping the problem.

Firstly, let’s discuss what you absolutely cannot do.

Shooting the drone with an airgun may seem tempting, but this is not the best course of action and could get you into trouble.

It is illegal to damage someone else’s property. Also, a drone is an aircraft and are regulated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), which says it is also illegal to recklessly or negligently endanger an aircraft.

Additionally, if you try to shoot a drone there is a chance you will miss and accidentally harm people, animals or property with a stray pellet.

It is also illegal to shoot an airgun pellet outside the boundaries of your property unless you have permission. It is also illegal to fire an airgun within 50ft of the centre of a road if that means you endanger, harm or interrupt someone, which could easily happen.

Now we’ve covered what you can’t do, let’s consider what action you can legally take about drones over your property.

If you think the drone pilot is being a peeping Tom, inform the police by calling 101. Voyeurism is a sexual offence, and the drone owner could face prison if caught.

If the drone operator is not taking candid photos or videos, but is still filming you, they could still be breaking privacy laws.

The CAA Drone and Model Aircraft code says: ‘If your drone or model aircraft is fitted with a camera or listening device, you must respect other people’s privacy whenever you use them.

‘If you use these devices where people can expect privacy, such as inside their home or garden, you’re likely to be breaking data protection laws.’

Additionally, if the drone takes photos of you or your property then General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) kicks in, the CAA says.

GDPR rules mean anyone using a drone to film or take photos somewhere people might expect to be private need their consent first and to do it for a decent legal reason.

Clearly, snooping or being a voyeur do not count as good reasons, so the drone operator could be breaking the law here too.

If the drone operator is being a nuisance but not actually taking photos or videos, your rights are sadly fewer. This is an area where I think drones need tighter regulation.

There is nothing stopping someone flying a drone over your house or garden, but there are rules they have to stick to.

The laws around who owns the air above your home are complex but boil down to this: you don’t own this air, but you do have the right to have reasonable enjoyment of your property.

Drones weighing more than 250g must fly at least 50 metres away from people, but those weighing less can fly closer – although they cannot fly over crowds.

So a small, light drone has more rights to fly in an annoying way over your property, especially if it does not film.

The big question is – if the person flying this drone is committing some sort of offence, how on earth do you or the police find out who they are?

The police have their ways. I have no idea how, but they do successfully catch illegal drone operators. 

But you may able to find out the identity of the operator by simply having a look around.

CAA guidelines state that drone pilots are meant to keep their gadgets within sight at all times, or have someone standing close by to help them do that.

Additionally, many drones have a very short range, especially cheaper ones.

If you look out of a second floor window when you see this drone, you may be able to spot someone operating it.

You may also be able to see who owns the drone by tracking it when it does leave your garden, as it may be flown straight back to the operator.

If you think you may have spotted the culprit, be wary of confronting them yourself, or else call the police on 101 and report it.

Drones that are fitted with cameras, or any drone weighing more than 250g, are meant to be registered with the CAA and display an identification code – a bit like a car numberplate.

The obvious issue here is that it will be almost impossible to make that registration number out on any drone, especially a small one in flight.

If you have a good camera, it may be possible to get a photo of the drone’s registration number.

An additional obvious loophole is that the above registration rule does not apply if the drone is sold as a toy.

‘Toy’ drones with HD cameras are freely available on website such as Amazon and eBay – some for under £10. These have no requirement to be registered, so it may be the nuisance gadget above your garden has no identification number at all.

I hope you are able to get justice, and enjoy your garden without any further harassment.