I think you have to be 500 ft from house etc which means if the aircraft was 400 ft outside the village he would be legal at 300 ft above ground, however- the locals will swear he was no more than roof hieght and right over their garden ! being legal is not usually ehough, my experience is that people will say you were overhead if they raise an eyebrow to see you , rather than lay on the floor looking straight up. complainers have a very loose grip on the truth. i have been very precise about where i was and how high agl and have had angry nutters swear i was some lower ! the fact that i was 18 inches from the altimeter and they several kilometers from it does not seem to matter, fly low at your peril