Was I wrong to call the police over neighbours blocking our drive?

[Lovedogs2]

I really need some advice as I’m getting so upset. My husband, myself and our two children live down a narrow public road, approximately a car and a half’s width wide and we’ve lived here for over 20yrs. We have a drive next to our house where we can park two cars. Both houses opposite us do not have parking and choose to park outside their homes. We do not have an issue with this at all, as long as they leave enough room for a “turning circle” for us to be able to get in and out when needed. A problem has now arisen, one of the neighbours opposite (whose mobility is poor) has now got carers calling twice a day, these carers and her family have been blocking our drive by parking across it. I mentioned this politely to her daughter who apologised but it kept happening. On three occasions in a month I was late to work as I couldn’t get out of my drive.
This elderly neighbour then had her car removed as she was physically unable to drive any longer. The carers continued to call and continued to block me in. This is where it gets complicated. My daughter, who’s 20 works two jobs, one of them is working late shifts in the local hospital a couple of times a week. Due to the parking issue, she has up until recently parked in a local village hall some 10minutes walk away, (as does my son). The walk home is often after 11pm and down an unlit road, so it can be scary. When the elderly neighbours car was taken away, my daughter, for two evenings a week parked outside our property, as the space was now free, she was there from approx 11pm - 8:20am the following morning when she left for work. This also helped me, as the carers were now unable to block me in as they couldn’t park opposite our drive but they were still able to park infront of my daughter. Anyhow, the daughter of the elderly lady approached my daughter one morning as she was leaving and told her quite rudely that she could not park infront of her own home and that she must park down on the main road. My daughter explained the situation about her working etc … my daughter parked outside our home one more time, then we received a rather shirty letter from the neighbour stating that our daughter couldn't park there, that she was stopping v the carers doing their jobs etc.. I responded politely but assertively, explaining the situation and that as soon as her mother has her car back, she can once again resuming parking outside her home and my daughter will once again park in the hall as her needs were greater. I explained that during the winter months when it’s dark and raining it would be reassuring for both me and her Dad if she could park outside her own home, after all she does live there. Next thing I know, the neighbour brought her car back, and just left it there as she couldn’t drive it to stop my daughter parking … this then started the whole cycle of us being blocked in again. The other neighbour, a young girl in her late 20’s befriended the elderly neighbour and decided to block us in from her side, I’m assuming only through spite. So last weekend,both myself and my husband were unable to get to work, as she’d gone away for the weekend there was no way of getting the vehicle or moved. When she returned, my husband was in the drive and politely asked her if she could move forward, she did but only after muttering u see her breath. Fast forward to last night, they had a visitor over who completely blocked me in and I needed to go to my mothers house (82yrs). I knocked politely on the front door, no answer. So I went to the back door. The driver answered the door, I asked if he could move his car, he asked why?? I said that he was blocking the drive and I needed to get out. He refused to move, I explained that what he was doing was illegal, he cannot block me in, he said it wasn’t and that he wasn’t moving and closed the door. Wasn’t sure what to do so I called the police and took photos of our problem. Police arrived and were lovely and could instantly see the problem and went to speak to our neighbour. I’m not sure what was said or done but my husband now says that I shouldn’t have called the police that I took it too far, I’m at my wits end and just want to sell up and move … any advice please!

Er, yes, I know. My comment was in response to the elderly neighbour telling off OP’s DD for parking in front of her own home.

How does your husband think you should have dealt with this, then?

I think you were absolutely right to call the police. They are being totally inconsiderate and acting illegally.
If it were me and they said anything about it, I would let them know I will call the police every single time they do it.
Your husband sounds a bit daft.

You were left with no choice other than to call the police. Hopefully the neighbours will stop being such... you know what. I've called the police in a similar situation, a random car parked in front of my garage. The police were really helpful.

Go and ask them to move EVERY time they block you in. Even if you’re not going anyway. It’s not acceptable.
can you reverse onto your drive to make leaving easier?
I think we need a diagram!!

You need to read the OPs post. The whole point is that they are continually blocking OPs driveway!

How can they think they are not blocking your driveway? Are they parking on the other side of the road, or overhanging your drive? Just struggling to see what their argument could be if they are literally parking across your driveway

My advice is stop being accommodating now.
Be clear and firm that you are parking legally and every time they block you, you will call the police and if it happens enough you will have a case against them for harassment.

You are not wrong, this is bad behaviour on your neighbours part and they have been rude.

But I think you have missed a trick. I would have been ringing the caring company and I would have complained about them blocking your drive.

But then I maybe biased as I have the exact same problem with my neighbours who have more cars than drive and even when the parking space outside my home is free, they still choose to block my or a neighbours drive for ingress and egress and say we only need to knock and they will move.

I, on the other hand, think they need to use their legs and park in the totally legitimate free space a few foot further along and then there would be no issue at all for anyone. But then I am apparently unreasonable because their little leggies will ache from the 4 ft extra they have to walk.

You were absolutely not wrong to phone the police. It is illegal to block someone in.

I am assuming of course that you have a dropped kerb and that when your dd parks outside your house she is legally parked.

The carers should park elsewhere and walk to the house

You need the council to paint a box in the "turning circle" section outside your drive. There's one near us where the end of the cul de sac has a big box with diagonal lines and it's written "keep clear", something like this:

www.acculine.co.uk/our-work/line-marking-images/ea%20kent.jpg

Pretty sure from the OP that they are not parking over the OP's drive, they are parking outside their house opposite which doesn't leave the OP much room to get out of her drive. Which makes it much more of a grey area, as arguably the way the OP and her husband are parked two on a drive (meaning you need to go out very straight) is part of the problem.

Presumably the street is quite narrow, but unless you get the council involved and have the other side marked out with a white line, I'm not sure you can really stop them parking in a space on the street (annoying though it may be).

YABVU not to provide a diagram. Diagrams remove confusion and the stress of trying to picture it all in our head. They are also pleasant to look it, no matter how ruidmentary they are.

They shouldn’t park across your drive. But what solution do you have for them? Where do you suggest everyone parks?

You’ve not been very clear at all OP in your very unnecessarily detailed account. Are the cars parked over your actual drive or on the path opposite? This makes a big difference as to what you can do and what the law states.

Yanbu the carers should park on the main road and walk up. I have worked in a similar role and that is what I used to do!

What is it with these unreadable walls of text? I've just clicked on three in a row. Can't people try to be a little more succinct?

To clarify: I added this comment because OP said that her elderly neighbour told OP’s dd that she couldn’t park in front of her own house. This is incorrect.

I have read the thread. I know that the elderly neighbour is parking over OP’s drive, which is clearly not on.

You absolutely did the right thing calling the police.

You have tried numerous times to solve this situation amicably, but it has only made the situation worse for you. Sadly, you are clearly dealing with inconsiderate, spiteful idiots, so it is best to let the police deal with them.

I would also keep a record of dates, times, conversations, and also dates when any of you were late for work etc.

I feel for you OP - they sound truly awful people.

One or two of you should park on your drive and one of you park over the drive. That way you control getting out of the drive. You did nothing wrong calling the police and the driver who refused to move was an absolute idiot.

It's not like you went straight to the police. You've put enough into other measures first to warrant it.

Other ideas that spring to mind, speaking specifically to the carers as they park over your drive if that is still an issue. Your neighbour might have told them it's fine. If you know or can find out the name of the care agency (if there is one) - the carer might tell you if you ask outright - bring it up with them too. Also could you switch places with your daughter so you or your husband is on the road? It's even harder for her to fight this battle than for you.

Yeah - that would have made sense rather than initiating what may be a disclosable (on sale) neighbour dispute

Fuck your neighbours. Cheeky bastards.
Keep calling police if it keeps happening

I don’t think that YABU calling the police. However were they actually blocking you in, or just not leaving the “turning circle”?
In my village Facebook a lot of people complain about being blocked in, but in fact they just mean that visibility might be limited or they had to reverse instead of drive in a massive circle!

And was your daughter parking on the road in front of your own house? If so why were the neighbours so annoyed as they/ the carers could still park outside the neighbours house surely?

I do sympathise with the carers though as there is simply not enough time in a visit for a 5 minute walk to the house and then back to a car. Isn’t the obvious solution for the neighbour who can’t drive to keep her car elsewhere or sell it, and then the carers/ relatives use her drive or park outside her house?