To think our neighbour is taking the piss....

[bottleofbeer]

Small-ish road of terraced houses, one family has THREE transit vans, a flatbed (approx 8 foot long, maybe more) a 4x4 and a car. They save each other spaces so by the time they're all home from work their vehicles take up at least three quarters of one side of the road. You're lucky if you can get to park in your own road. These same people have been known to 'have words' with other neighbours for parking outside their house. My friend recently left a couple of chairs outside her home because of a delivery that was en route and she needed the space. They moved said chairs and parked there - this is the very same method they employ to ensure they all get to park down this road, every night and there would be murder if any of us did the same thing. Their 'rules' don't apply to themselves you see.

One elderly neighbour likes to sit and watch the world go by from her living room window and often can't because of huge vans parked outside and she's finding it really distressing. She can no longer park near her home and often has to lug about bags of shopping from literally streets away as it's the closest she can get. Same applies to others with small children carting buggies and shopping because there is next to no chance of getting closer to their homes. Apparently nothing can be done because they pay their road tax...yeah, but so do we. What really grates on my nerves about it all is that they would never in a million years stand for the same behaviour from any of us. We had them knocking on our door to complain about a small trailer we had temporarily attached to our car. The lack of consideration is breathtaking. I'm at the point of writing anonymously to them to let them know that pretty much every other neighbour is at their wit's end with it. Oh, they also have CCTV and the cameras must point directly into the opposite neighbours bedrooms, I'm pretty sure you're not alloed to have CCTV pointing anywhere but at your own property?

[worraliberty]

It's a bummer but what can you do? You can't expect them to check with the neighbours every time they buy a vehicle.

No-one should be saving parking spaces with chairs though. You can report them and your other neighbour for causing an obstruction.

Not sure about the CCTV laws but you could always ask your local police

[worraliberty]

Oh meant to say, writing to them anonymously and bringing other neighbours into it is cowardly and quite likely to cause trouble in the street.

If you think they're not parking within the law/bylaws then go down the apporpriate route.

[bottleofbeer]

I don't think it's about checking with the neighbours every time they buy one, just basic consideration because they know damn well they're taking the piss. They are the very ones out of all of us who'd have a major issue with someone else doing the same. Maybe anonymous is cowardly but it's no different to what they did, not only did they come a-knocking to cmplain about tiny trailer they also brought it up with the council at a meeting we didn't attend and had the council write to us citing an anonymous complaint had been made. A neighbour who had been at the meeting told us it was them with said complaint. At the time we were a residents only parking area hence the complaint was upheld and now it appears there is nothing we can do.

[worraliberty]

They brought it up at a public meeting. Just because you didn't attend that meeting, doesn't make them anonymous?

If they're not breaking any laws, sending anonymous letters and dragging your other neighbours into it is cowardly I'm afraid.

I doubt very much they'd read it and do anything at all differently.

[icooksocks]

Just move the sodding chairs and park there.

[thestringcheeseincident]

But what would/could they do if you did park in one of their many spaces. Ask you to move? Then you could say, umm no. Then politely shut door. The end?
Some people are arseholes unfortunately.

[pippilongsmurfing]

By your second post about them complaining to the council about your "tiny" trailer it sounds like both of you AabitU.

You expect to be able to park your "trailer" but don't want them parking their van? Hello Pot, meet mr Kettle.

Can you not try to talk to them, you know, the kind of thing normal people do to resolve issues?

[Gastonladybird]

What icooksocks said- they clearly aren't reasonable so move it (I have a neighbour who does same with space outside her house (won't use her garage but won't let anyone park on drive).

[pippilongsmurfing]

Exactly what I was thinking, thestring.

[SquongebobSparepants]

sendin notes won't change, the only thing you can do, if they are being twats as you suggest, is speak to your MP and see if you can get residential parking. No way would they get 6 permits for one house. It may take awhile but would work!

I live on a street where every house has 2 cars and you can only park on one side, so we have major parking issues. I live on the corner so always end up parkign round the side but I normally have a great feck off van outside my kitchen window.

[worraliberty]

And you're really clouding the issue with the lady who likes to watch the world go by out of her window but no longer can....well unless you buy a detached house with your own land in front of it, what can you do?

Equally, anyone needing a space that badly because of shopping/children/insert any other reason should probably pay the council for a dropped kerb in front of their driveway....though even that guarantees nothing.

[Panda1234]

No-one has a right to park outside their house, for the most part. In most cases it's a free for all, although sometimes there are rules, like if its a residents' parking zone.

Why don't you and all your neighbours get together and write to the council asking them to introduce a parking scheme, with so many spaces allocated per household? You'll have to pay an admin fee if they agree, though.

When they complained about the trailer, why didn't you also complain to the council about the the problems you had parking? Obviously it depends on the terms of your scheme, but it seems unlikely that any household would be able to park as many cars as they are on the street - particularly if trailers aren't allowed.

Either get the council involved or park where you want and, if they complain, say that you've got every right to park there?

Don't write to them anonymously, that's silly. And don't get involved with the CCTV thing either - let the other neighbours sort it out.

[bottleofbeer]

The trailer was only a temporary thing yet they complained twice about it, then have zero compunction about their vehicles using up the vast majority of spaces on one side of the road. That's just simply displaying their hypocrisy. They clearly did not want us to know it was them who complained, the day I got the letter he come over obviously a bit panicky, saying he'd received a letter saying complaint had been dealt with and I think he assumed the letter I got named him (it hadn't, the letter said it was just a neighbour's complaint) because he totally gave himself away - "it wasn't us, honest to God!" not that I cared much at the time, I felt it was some petty complaint and dismissed it as such. Obviously it stuck in my mind though and when the compulsive transit van buying began I couldn't believe the hypocrisy. Of course it might come acorss as me being a bit pot meet kettle but it genuinely wasn't complaint worthy and just shows the level of hypocrisy of them.

[worraliberty]

If he made a complaint about you at a public meeting in front of your other neighbour, why did he think you wouldn't know it was him?

To be honest, some of what you've said in your OP isn't complaint worthy either imo...so it just goes to show it can boil down to personal opinion.

However, in this case it seems the law is on your neighbour's side so unless you do what some other posters have suggested...and ask the council for restricted parking permits, there's nothing you can really do.

[bottleofbeer]

re: the resident only parking. This is something that is being considered as we used to have it but we were given the chance to vote on whether we still wanted it (most didn't at the time it was free) when charges per year were introduced. Most voted against and the restrictions were removed. I remember having to scrabble about looking for our visitors permit when the midwife called in one day so it was a PITA! but as the poster said it would only work if X amount were given per household, previously we could have as many as we needed (IE if you had three cars you were eligible for three permits). So, no matter how much of a pain it was before, people are that fed up with their arrogance in taking half the street they're - in the main - prepared to put up with it again, and this time, pay for it.

I don't think mentioning the eldrly neighbour was clouding the issues, just giving a bit of background and just another reason why I feel it's bang out of order. Do they give a shit she's not as mobile and healthy as she was and she's having to lug about bags of shopping so their 19 year old, fit, healthy son doesn't have the inconvenience of parking a bit further away?

[worraliberty]

A bit further away or 'literally streets away' like your other neighbours?

I do understand what you're saying but at the end of the day people pay their road tax (and lots of it) to be able to use the road...and that includes parking in it. I can't see anyone paying all that money and then choosing to park literally streets away so someone can stare out their window for example.

Really, I think the parking scheme will solve a lot of issues for you and your neighbours so good luck with it.

[bottleofbeer]

Worraliberty - probably because he's an arrogant sod.

The reason I say it wasn't complaint worthy is because we used to have a lock up for it, my husband had come home from work two nights in a row absolutely knackered so just left it attached to the car as a one off. It's called consideration for the neighbours; the reason we didn't just keep it attached to the car permanently. These same people once called the police over an out of date tax disk - OOD by about three days which some might say is fair enough, and maybe it is but it cost the family in question hundreds of pounds in fees to get the car back after it was towed. Again, just pointing out how quick they are to complain about others. What a bloody liberty :)

[worraliberty]

You're confusing me now

Two nights in a row your DH was too tired to put the trailer away

One of your neighbours had an untaxed are on the road

Your friend obstructed the road to save a parking space for a delivery

All of that is ok.....but these particular neighbours annoy you?

[bottleofbeer]

A bit further away or 'literally streets away' like your other neighbours?

If it is streets away, so what? it's nothing they don't expect everybody else to do. Of course parking is first come, first served but it's taking it to extremes when they've got almost half the road and people like said neighbour with much greater need of the spaces are losing out all the time.

She's lovely this lady, it just pisses me off that she's suffering because they won't do what they expect of everyone else. Thanks for the good luck wish!

[worraliberty]

I was just pointing out that it's 'literally streets away' when you're talking about the neighbours you do like....and 'A bit further away' when you're talking about the ones you don't

[LineRunner]

OP, Each Council tends to have diferent ways of running residents' parking schemes.

The one you need is where each vehicle has to be registered to an address in the scheme, with the first permit charged at a nominal rate and future permits being restricted to a maximum of two or three per household in exceptional circumstances and increasingly expensive.

[bottleofbeer]

There isn't anything confusing about it.

I'm not saying these things were right or ok, but they are SO quick to complain. Trailer took up perhaps the same amount of space as one of their vans - not ok in their opinion, put in a complaint. Friend puts out a couple of chairs to save a space outside her home for imminent delivery, not ok in their opinion so they move chairs and take the space yet do the very same thing to ensure parking outside their own home. Tax disk OOD, not ok, but maybe this family were just on the bones of their arse and waiting for payday to purchase the tax (I'm pretty sure we've all been there where something really needs to be paid but you just haven't got the cash right there and then so had to cross your fingers and hope for the best) I hope not because it ended up costing hundreds to retrieve their car. I'm just illustrating how quick they are to complain whilst happily taking the absolute piss themselves.

[worraliberty]

I do see what you're saying (honestly, I do!)

But it does seem as though you're willing to forgive other neighbour's misdemeanors because you like them.

Really, some neighbours are grateful when untaxed cars are removed from the road because it frees up parking spaces that you all so deperately need.

Would you have as much sympathy if the neighbours you don't like were reported for having no tax?

[unavailable]

OP, I know someone asked this earlier on the thread, but you may have missed it.... Why dont you all just move the chairs they put out to "reserve" the spaces?