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AIBU?

Would you ask neighbours to stop doing this? (parking, with amazing diagram)

195 replies

HopkinsLeftLeg · 20/10/2021 10:05

We live rurally. At the front of our house is a private lane, leading to small clusters of houses for around a mile along the road.

The school bus picks up kids at the B-road running along our house.

Diagram attached.

We've had issues with 1 neighbour parking on our land (yes, literally) and waiting for 10 mins until the bus picks their child up, turning on our grass, destroying it. Large boulders and sowing a load of replacement grass last summer put a stop to this, but we had a word with them, and asked them to park at the front of our house at drop off and pickup times, twice a day. It blocks our 2nd car parking space, and means i need to keep shutting the bedroom curtain to get dressed as they always arrive as i get changed for work Blush , but we were also trying to be reasonable - there isn't anywhere else for parents to park, so don't mind it for 15min in the morning and 15min in the afternoons. (that's car 1 in my picture)

However, this morning we've found that other parents in the area are using the private lane to park with their engines running, while they wait on school bus pickups. Car 2 and Car 3, right outside our living room window with their engines running, blocking our main driveway meaning we can't get the car out.

DH and I agree that this is annoying but there's nothing we can do - we don't own the private road at the front of the house.

But this feels odd - the parents in question aren't people we know, but we know they are the closest 2 houses (literally about 200 yards up the road) and i can see this might be an issue for years and years to come, 2x a day as their kids are still young. No idea why they've started doing it now, maybe because they've seen car 1 parking at our house?

Would you park as these cars have done?
Would you say anything if you were us, bearing in mind we don't own the road and have zero legal support - the private land owner of the lane is not one of the cars doing this.

Are we being unreasonable to think this is a bit crap of the neighbours?

(I'm originally from the city so no idea of the rural ettiquette involved here)

Would you ask neighbours to stop doing this? (parking, with amazing diagram)
OP posts:
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Am I being unreasonable?

374 votes. Final results.

POLL
You are being unreasonable
14%
You are NOT being unreasonable
86%
Lovelymincepies · 20/10/2021 10:09

Speak to the school and give the school their number plates.

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IveGotASongThatllGetOnYNerves · 20/10/2021 10:11

I would park my cars across my driveway to block the space as far as possible

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MrsWooster · 20/10/2021 10:12

I would park my own car(s) in the space for a few days to break the habit

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oviraptor21 · 20/10/2021 10:13

Anyone who parks across your driveway or in such a way that you can't get your car out is being unreasonable.

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Aprilx · 20/10/2021 10:13

The turning on your garden was obviously crap of your neighbours, but it seems this is sorted and the AIBU is about the parking, unless I am misunderstanding. To that, yes I think you are unreasonable to think this is crap of the neighbours. Well unless I am misunderstanding something, but I can’t even see what it has to do with the neighbours, never mind be crap of them. 🤨

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JellyMouldJnr · 20/10/2021 10:14

parents are driving their kids 200 yards down the road and sitting there with the engine running? YANBU. You need to chat to them and explain they can't park in front of your drive.

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HopkinsLeftLeg · 20/10/2021 10:16

sorry car 2 and 3 are definitely parents from the houses along the road, i.e. sort of our "neighbours" in the area. they aren't randoms. they live in some of the houses along the private lane (imagine driving left on my diagram).

OP posts:
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MrsTulipTattsyrup · 20/10/2021 10:18

Park both your own cars outside so that there isn’t room for a third, and then nobody can park there, if you want to try to deter them.

People shouldn’t be blocking your drives, but you can’t be cross with someone parking on the bit outside your house if they aren’t overhanging the drives. So you might have to put up with one car there each time.

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KaycePollard · 20/10/2021 10:18

So these parents don't walk down to the bus stop (200 metres is nothing) and drive their children 200 metres.

You're not the townie here, frankly ...

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GreenFingersWouldBeHandy · 20/10/2021 10:18

If they are blocking your driveway with the engine running, i would knock on their car window and tell them to shift! CFs!

Oh and ask them to turn their engines OFF while waiting for their little darlings.

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HopkinsLeftLeg · 20/10/2021 10:18

parents are driving their kids 200 yards down the road and sitting there with the engine running?

Yes. car 2 and 3 have never done this before and the drivers and their kids live the closest out of all the houses along the lane. it wasn't even raining today.

i suppose my AIBU is about car 2 and 3 in particular. i couldn't believe it when i couldn't get my car out due to car 3 this morning - who parks OVER someone's driveway so i can't get out?!

OP posts:
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whosaidtha · 20/10/2021 10:20

Car 2 isn't doing anything wrong. However car 3 is absolutely blocking your driveway and I would first go out and speak to them. If that fails I would park across my driveway to stop them blocking me in.

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Leftbutcameback · 20/10/2021 10:20

Anyone blocking your drive is wrong, but I suspect they would say that as they are in their cars with engine running they would be able to move out the way easily.

But I don't understand why the closest two houses don't just send their children on foot to wait for the bus. Are they very young? under 7?

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thenightsky · 20/10/2021 10:21

They need to stop using cars to drive their kids 200 yards for a start!! Madness. I used to live in a similar set up (private lane, spread apart neighbours) and we all had our DC walk up the road to meet the bus.

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yeahitsabadidea · 20/10/2021 10:23

I came for the diagram.

I stayed to say yeah anyone parking over a driveway is a dick. I'm on a private road and the number of people who think parking randomly on my drive/over my drive/in the middle of the road (totally blocking it) is obscene. So I share your frustration

If they're neighbours and you don't want to start an all out war I like the idea of parking there yourself for a while to break the habit. But if it persists I'd go out every single time to get them to move. Even if you go round the block. Thems the breaks for parking over a driveway.

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SE13Mummy · 20/10/2021 10:23

Are you at home when the extra cars are parking there? Perhaps you could offer the three vehicles use of your second driveway so they park on it properly, one in front of the other but on the condition they turn their engines off. It might be less convenient for them but may put a stop to the driveway blocking.

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KaycePollard · 20/10/2021 10:23

And isn't the Great Parking Law that it is illegal to block someone in on their driveway? So your "neighbours" (not much neighbourly about them, frankly) are acting illegally if they block your car in and you need to get out/off your driveway.

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Clymene · 20/10/2021 10:25

@SE13Mummy

Are you at home when the extra cars are parking there? Perhaps you could offer the three vehicles use of your second driveway so they park on it properly, one in front of the other but on the condition they turn their engines off. It might be less convenient for them but may put a stop to the driveway blocking.

Your solution is for the OP to provide a car park? Confused
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AutumnLeafy · 20/10/2021 10:25

Block your own driveway for a bit?

Nice diagram

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HopkinsLeftLeg · 20/10/2021 10:26

correction - i've just measured it on google maps. the distance between the B road bus stop pickup is 0.3 miles which apparently is 528 yards. so not quite the 200 yards i'd guessed. but not far.

OP posts:
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southcarolina · 20/10/2021 10:26

Of course the ones blocking your drives are wrong, I would start by putting notes on the window screen

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AutumnLeafy · 20/10/2021 10:26

@SE13Mummy

Are you at home when the extra cars are parking there? Perhaps you could offer the three vehicles use of your second driveway so they park on it properly, one in front of the other but on the condition they turn their engines off. It might be less convenient for them but may put a stop to the driveway blocking.

So OP needs to set up a private car park? I mean that's very enterprising I guess, is it legal to charge?
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AutumnLeafy · 20/10/2021 10:27

Are they dropping them off on their way to work perhaps (now some people are back in the offices). Seems a bizarre thing to do otherwise.

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SarahMused · 20/10/2021 10:28

Put some “Don’t park here, driveway in constant use” signs up to deter people from parking across your driveway and speak to anyone who still does it. Who owns the lane? We are in a similar situation and there are signs making it clear that the parking is for residents only. If the others are also residents they may well have the right to park, as long as they don’t block your access. When you buy a house these things are usually stated on the deeds. For example if there are restrictive covenants.

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GreenFingersWouldBeHandy · 20/10/2021 10:28

i couldn't believe it when i couldn't get my car out due to car 3 this morning

Why on earth didn't you ask them to move?

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