How much are overlap fence panels fitted?

From around £145 per metre supplied and fitted in London. Concrete posts and gravel boards add roughly £25–£35 per metre.

How long do overlap panels last?

10–15 years for the panels. On concrete posts the structure lasts far longer, so replacing a panel later is a swap rather than a rebuild.

Are overlap panels any good in wind?

They are the weakest timber option in wind because a solid panel in a frame acts as a sail. On exposed runs we recommend hit-and-miss instead.

Overlap fence panels, fitted in London.

The sensible workhorse. Cheapest per metre, and genuinely fine when it's built on the right posts.Also sold as Lap panel, Waney edge, Standard fence panels.

Estimate this fence

Overlap lap fence panels between concrete posts along a suburban garden boundary

Overlap panels — also called lap or waney edge — are pre-made framed panels of thin overlapping horizontal boards. Supplied and fitted in London they start at around £145 per metre, making them the most affordable full replacement. On concrete posts with slotted gravel boards they are also the easiest fence to live with, because any panel lifts straight out.

Want to run the numbers first? Open the cost calculator with overlap selected.

Every run is fitted by our own team — see how a fence installation in London works end to end, or what's involved in a full fence replacement.

From, fitted: £145/m
Typical lifespan: 10–15 yrs
Swap a panel: Minutes

Where the low price comes from

Overlap panels arrive built. The boards are thinner than closeboard, the frame is machine-made, and fitting is a case of setting posts accurately and dropping panels in. Less material, less on-site labour, lower price.

That is a real saving, not a corner cut — provided the posts and gravel boards underneath are right. A good panel on bad posts is a fence that leans within three winters.

Concrete posts change everything here

Fit overlap panels into slotted concrete posts and you have a fence with a genuinely long service life, because the structure outlives the panels by decades. When a panel eventually gives up you lift it out of the groove and drop a new one in. No demolition, no skip, no neighbour negotiation.

Nail those same panels to timber posts and the fence is only as good as the timber in the soil. Read our comparison of concrete and timber posts before you decide — it is the cheapest decision on the job with the largest long-term consequence.

What overlap is honestly not

It is not a premium look. The waney edge and visible frame read as standard, because they are standard. If the fence is a design feature of the garden, spend the extra on slatted or hit-and-miss.

It is also the least wind-tolerant of the timber options: a solid panel in a frame is a sail. On an exposed run we will normally steer you to hit-and-miss instead, even though it costs us the easier sale.