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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

neighbour opposite with no dropped kerb and parking

71 replies

annoyednow · 12/06/2012 16:46

AIBU to be fed up that neighbour put notice on my car when I parked in front of her house with normal kerb. There was no car in their property at the time. They simply took their front wall away and paved their front garden. We still have our front wall and they park in front of our house. I am in London and parking in this area is problematic. No resident parking.

I think it needs to be a dropped kerb at road to be a legal access. Is this correct? There was no parking on my side as one of their cars was parked nearby.

Can they just take the wall away and call it a legal access or do they have to apply to council and drop kerb. TIA.

OP posts:
Sausagedog27 · 12/06/2012 18:51

As a side point, the permitted development rights changed in 2010 and paving over your front garden can sometimes require planning permission, depending on the size of the area and drainage. It was introduced to try and stop everyone concreting their front gardens in relation to flooding (water running onto the road). Not sure if this is relevant here, but thought I'd raise it! :o

HeadsShouldersKneesandToes · 12/06/2012 19:21

I wouldn't do a "playing the innocent" type response as you describe. I would find and print out your local council's equivalent web page to this one and put it through the door, with their note stapled to it.

Vickles · 12/06/2012 19:40

Spot on headsshoulders. X

Original poster
annoyednow · 12/06/2012 19:56

Well. I went over with just their note and a tired yawning young man arrived at door. He didn't seem to know anything about and asked me where I parked. I pointed to the front and said I didn't block any driveway. He said 'no problem.'

I should have stapled the print-out, but didn't. I don't believe the fact they don't have a driveway is not quite home. I think he thinks I wasn't parked beside the pavement in front of their wall opening. Not that it doesn't constitute a driveway.

Should I ring council. It is so hard to get parking on the street, I don't want to be illegally prevented from parking in a public one.

OP posts:
RandomNumbers · 12/06/2012 20:36

before you do ANYTHING else - do you have a mortgage ? because a dispute with a neighbour can, IIRC, impact on future sale of your property

Original poster
annoyednow · 12/06/2012 20:51

Well, all I did was say I didn't obstruct any driveway and I gave him the note back.

If I ring the council, it will be the council dealing with their infringement, not me.

OP posts:
OfMiceandCats · 13/06/2012 22:12

Reporting an unauthorised driveway to the local authority is hardly a dispute with a neighbour. It's not official anyway, so I wouldn't worry about that too much.

OP wouldn't even need to give her details. She could ring and say that she parked in front of such and such address and was shocked to find a note on her car telling her she couldn't because they park on their front garden. However there was no dropped kerb and she was wondering what her rights are.

alemci · 13/06/2012 22:21

they should pay to have the kerb dropped like everyone else has had to do at some point.

The other day I noticed a house where someone was blatantly driving out of with no dropped kerb. They are breaking the law and shouldn't have the audacity to stick a note on your car IMO.

DamnBamboo · 13/06/2012 22:23

It needs to be a dropped kerb!

Taking down your front wall does not mean you get to keep that bit of road to yourself.

Buntingbunny · 13/06/2012 22:32

Good, I always thought the house that had doubled it's drive still could only expect to have the lowered half kept clear.

whenyouseeitwaveorcheer · 13/06/2012 22:33

What was the tone of their note? Can you say what it said? Or just say whether it was polite/abrupt/formal/neighbourly/whatever?

I think that would dictate how I approached them.

wonkylegs · 13/06/2012 22:36

I was going to point out about planning permission but sausagedog27 beat me to it. They changed the rules following serious flooding in 2007 (one of the causes of was... Water not being able to drain away as everyone has paved over their front gardens for parking esp London) so you can only do certain things and you generally have to apply for permission for it if it's hardstanding.
Councils have a responsibility to restrict use of unauthorised crossings over a pavement (ie without an authorised dropped kerb)

Original poster
annoyednow · 14/06/2012 17:00

This is where I hang my head in shame and lose righteousness. I think. I could not find parking space at all nearby. There is a guy with a dropped kerb beside the non dropped kerb family. I parked as I thought ok. I did not cover the level /flat ground access bit in any way. He has a very wide access area and the side I was parked at did not access the driveway. Only a wall with gate. My bumper was in the middle of the slope between ground and completely raised area.

I have never met him before but he came over very aggressively. He kept his finger on the door bell and when I opened the door, he said 'move it' very tersely with a gesture of his hand. I said 'move what'. He was raising his voice and said 'just move the car'. I had to find my keys and went across.

I said I wasn't covering access but he started shouting you can't go on slope. I said I was sorry and I had thought it was not wrong and got in to move the car. While I was starting the car, he then started shouting out the window 'Just move the bloody thing' etc.

I said there was not need to shout and curse at me. I then found some parking that had been vacated in the meantime.

I'm a bit shaken. He was very aggressive straight off. He didn't use the road for access you see, but to park his van parallel to it. It looks like a bit of extra tarmac has extended the access. It has no white line, but may have been put in a while back.

I'm a bit worried about him as he was very, very aggressive. Living here just gets better.

I'm going to have to drop my kerb.

OP posts:
porcamiseria · 14/06/2012 17:01

tell her to FUCK OFF AND DIE and key her car!

not....

Original poster
annoyednow · 14/06/2012 17:03

Thinking the dropped kerb and access route aren't used, just to make sure of a parking space.

OP posts:
Original poster
annoyednow · 14/06/2012 17:04

The gate was a small pedestrian width gate. Not double

OP posts:
4goingon14 · 14/06/2012 17:12

Yes it must be a dropped kerb in London to Park. I have the exact same problem with my neighbour. They park in the 'drive' in front of their house and complain if anyone parks there. They are not parking legally, yet raise a real stink about it.

The council sent out letters before to people on the street, but there were different tenants there when that happened.

Yes it is a ridiculous amount of money to get it done because you can only get it done through the council contractor.

It is a difficult situation when it is a neighbour...

Original poster
annoyednow · 14/06/2012 17:16

I have an update 4 posts ago.

OP posts:
Sallyingforth · 14/06/2012 17:18

When I moved here I found someone parked across the dropped kerb "because I've always parked there" and I had to complain to the Council.
They said that to enforce it I had to have a white line across the dropped kerb, which I had to pay for (they called it a Tee bar). That cost £75 but it certainly stopped people blocking it. The Council said that there is a statutory width for a dropped kerb, and a statutory length for a Tee bar, and if anyone extended their access width to get two cars side by side it was illegal.

Original poster
annoyednow · 14/06/2012 17:18

My wheels weren't over the raised bit, just the bumper on the slope, not the flat area. I wasn't near the egress to the house.

OP posts:
Original poster
annoyednow · 14/06/2012 17:22

I'm thinking of ringing the police re his aggression.

OP posts:
nymets · 14/06/2012 17:24

blimey i wouldn't have moved it and shut door on him! scary

Sallyingforth · 14/06/2012 17:25

Just to add the Council said the dropped kerb and even the Tee bar specifically is NOT a no-parking space. It is to permit access across the public footway into a private parking space, which is something different. In other words if the parking space is not used you could in theory park in front. Of course even someone without a car might sometimes have a visitor with one.

minsmum · 14/06/2012 17:46

Complain to the local authority in our authority they will go round say they have had complaints and explain that they stop using the drive till they have had a dropped kerb done, with planning permission etc, and if they don't and another complaint is received a concrete bollard will be installed in front of their property immediately. They would also be told that any damage to the footpath they will have to pay for. Very hard line here in North london

Original poster
annoyednow · 14/06/2012 19:02

Where can I find out if it is illegal to park on the slope just before flat bit of dropped kerb. My wheels were adjacent to the raised kerb.

Also, if you have a dropped kerb with driveway access, can you have long dropped kerb extended for parking in front of wall. ie. large length 1 to 2m kerb behind my car was unable to access front parking area of the house as there was a wall and gate blocking.

OP posts: