Neighbour constantly blocking shared drive!

[SoggyChopSuey]

We live at the end of a "tight" shared drive way. To get to our part of the driveway we have to drive past the two other houses that share the "shared" bit.

The bloke with the next drive along has an array of vehicles despite the fact that he only actually has room for one car. Really, it's only enough room for a small car but he manages to get a landrover in there with its arse sticking out meaning we have to be extra savvy about getting past it to leave our house. That's the first irritance but I could live with that. The problem is that as well as the landrover he also has a works van and a big fuck off mini bus type thing that he parks on the small road at the end of the drive way. More and more often these days he's taken to moving one of these vehicles onto the share driveway outside his house meaning we can't get in or out. The other day I had popped home from work for 10 minutes and as I went to leave, I realised his fucking van was now on the shared drive completely blocking me in. I had to prat about knocking on his door to get him to move just to get back to work! It's happening all the time now. On a weekend if we don't leave the house before 10ish you can guarantee we'll be blocked in and have to pray around trying to find him.

TOday I was fuming because I was in a huge rush, had driven home from work, went to turn down the driveway and his van was blocking our house again, on the street, his landrover was taking up the only spot that wouldn't cause a problem to the other neighbours so I had to drive out of the drive and down the street to park before legging it to my house as I had little time to fuck about.

I'm fuming. Is it time to say something?

[Morphene]

it sounds terrible - but you must know you can't post a parking thread without a diagram!

[DancingLedge]

One tactic with neighbours who bock, is to ask them, ever so nicely, to move out of your way.
Every five minutes.

[Hissy]

we need a diagram, or this thread never happened..

Can you block HIM in?

[Hissy]

@MNHQ is a parking thread without a diagram in contravention of Talk Guidelines?

[mumthatruns]

I have to agree with the others. A diagram is compulsory on any parking thread.

It's practically the law

[SasBel]

Settles in and waits for a diagram.

Can you get a traffic warden to pop round? ,

[Justmadeperfectflapjacks]

Off to buy popcorn!!

[FuckingSausageFingers]

You KNOW we need a diagram.

[blueskyinmarch]

Spend all evening driving in and out your drive getting him to move every time? Repeat every day. He might get the message eventually.

[Kokusai]

If you are trying to get back to your house and he is blocking you out - can't you just block him in instead?

Have you asked him why he keeps blocking you in? It might be worth 'needing' to go out at really annoying times 5am Saturday morning. 1.00 Sunday night. Etc.

[SoggyChopSuey]

I don't know how to post a diagram! Seriously next time I'm thinking of just saying "can you not block the drive as we are often in and out of the house and it's happened a few times now where we can't get to our driveway". Does this sound ok? I have assertiveness issues so need clarification that this is reasonable!

[FizzyGreenWater]

Block him in if at all possible. Every. Fucking. Time.

[NightWanderer]

Have you told him you're pissed off? Or do you do that polite British thing where you pretend it doesn't bother you?

I think you need to be a bit blunt with him that it's really annoying and he needs to find somewhere else to park. Tell him it's illegal to block you out.

[araiwa]

"can you not block the drive as we are often in and out of the house and it's happened a few times now where we can't get to our driveway"

problem solved

[WhatchaMaCalllit]

It was time to say something when he rocked up with a work van (I'm guessing it's something similar to a Ford Transit) and a mini bus. At the start.

Start as you mean to go on. If he wasn't made aware of there being an issue when he started parking his vehicles there, he will come back and say "Well, we've been parking there for X months and you haven't had an issue with it" so make sure that you have a suitable response ready for that.

[NightWanderer]

Crossed posts with you! Of course it's fine to say that. Just tell him it's really annoying you and causing problems. It's better to speak to him first than be all passive aggressive with blocking him in etc.

[Spadequeen]

As much as I'd love to say block the bastard in, have you spoken to him yet? How is he when you ask him to move his various vehicles? I would suggest speaking to him politely at first and explain that it's not on what he's doing. If he's an arse then either start getting up at 3am and wake home up to move his van or block him in!

[Morphene]

op every time you post there is the option (directly under the text box) to upload an image. So draw a diagram and then take a picture and upload it. Or draw it in powerpoint and save as a .png and upload it.

[TheWitTank]

I would:
In the first instance, ask him in person to stop blocking the drive as it is extremely inconvenient and it has made you late several times already and you need access at all times.
Put a sign at the bottom of the drive saying DO NOT BLOCK THIS DRIVEWAY. ACCESS REQUIRED AT ALL TIMES.
Lean on the horn everytime I was stuck. Constantly until he comes out.
Block him in all the time if you can't gain access to your house. Park behind him and leave it there while you do whatever you need to do (for as long as poss).

[MsMims]

You don't need to add a diagram unless you want to OP. It's pretty easy to visualise and understand how you're getting blocked in. Your suggestion of what to say sounds fine and reasonable to me.

[TaliZorahVasNormandy]

Just make up some huge signs that say, "DONT FUCKING BLOCK THE DRIVE, YOU CUNT!!!"

Stick it on the car every time.

Or just order some stickers from youparklikeacunt and use those.

[HotelEuphoria]

A simple knock on the door (especially when the twat parking is particularly bad) and say "hey, look don't want to be difficult but can you not block us in, it makes life really difficult and we know you are reasonable people and perhaps don't realise what a nuisance it is"

Then take it from there. If they carry on - park on the shared drive and block them in and go out. For every block they do, do one back.

I live on a shared drive, had similar for a while when grown up children moved back home. 7 cars at a house with parking for 2. When DH went round reasonably they stopped, as soon as they started. I guess they assumed it was OK because we hadn't complained before.

[BreakfastAtSquiffanys]

Just speak politely to him.
He most probably does not realise how much he is inconveniencing you, because you're not letting him know!
You're parking down the road etc!

He most probably doesn't realise that you come home from work in the middle of the day, most people don't.

I know MN likes to whip people up into a frenzy about parking but give him a chance to prove he's NOT a cunt before you stick notes on his car calling him one...

[SoggyChopSuey]

He does know though, he's seen me have to reverse out of the drive after realising his van is blocking it, he's seen me running to the house from down the street as the drive is blocked. He's seen me and DH come out on a Sunday morning only to realise we're blocked in etc

To be fair whenever we ask him to move it, he does no problem but we shouldn't need to keep asking! It should be common sense that he shouldn't make our driveway unusable. Also I can't block him in without causing a nuisance to the other neighbour at the end

[harderandharder2breathe]

Ask him nicely to stop blocking you in/out.

If he continues, every single time, go ask him to move it.

If he continues, every single time, block him in.

If he continues, complain to the company he works for that their company vans are blocking access to and from your property.