Residents have claimed the vibrations caused by heavy vehicles driving over speed bumps in their street are causing misery and damage to properties.

The humps in Tufnell Park Road were installed 11 years ago to prevent speeding, but those living there say the lack of foundations in the terraced houses – which date back to 1840 – has caused them to shake each time a bus or a heavy goods vehicle (HGV) passes by.

Joelle Huttner, 41, only moved there with her young family two years ago and explained how the vibrations caused by the HGVs had caused significant damage to the roof of their grade II-listed house, costing £30,000 to repair.

She said: “The vibrations from the speed humps are really affecting us. We renovated the house after we moved in, and we had to change our roof because it was almost on the point of collapsing. One of the main reasons it was collapsing was the vibrating.

“You do notice the shaking, especially at night. When everything is quieter, you can tell exactly when a truck, bus or another big vehicle is coming.”

Byran Healing, 82, who has lived there for 42 years, described how the vibrations shake her bedroom and said she refused to let guests sleep in her road-facing room on the first floor due to her fear of them being woken up by HGVs.

She said: “The humps were put in place to slow down traffic, and the fact they destroy the surrounding houses at the same time seems to be quite ironic to me.”

Kathleen Greaves, chairman of Tufnell Park Residents’ Association, expressed sympathy for those affected but stressed the need for them to prevent accidents.

Mrs Greaves, 80, said: “The majority of people on Tufnell Park Road have accepted that the trade-off has been a good one. I know it’s a busy road, but it’s not an A-road.”

Before the speed bumps were installed in 2003, an average of 6.3 accidents took place each year on Tufnell Park Road. Six years later, that figure had almost halved.

Mrs Greaves said: “The speed bumps were put there on Tufnell Park Road to save lives, and that’s exactly what they are doing.”

Medya Dogan, lettings negotiator at Tufnell Park Properties, said that the properties’ lack of foundations could result in HGVs causing damage. She said: “Those houses were built in the mid-1800s, when horse and carriage would have still been the main mode of transport.

“In the future, potential buyers of the road’s properties should be made fully aware of the issue before making any sort of long-term contractual commitment.”

Islington Council is aware of the issue, but declined to comment.