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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to park my car on a residential street for two weeks and walk two miles to the airport

411 replies

suzzieanneba46 · 05/03/2015 15:11

Is any there anything legally / morally wrong with this? I would save almost 50 just for a short walk..

OP posts:
PurpleCrazyHorse · 05/03/2015 15:58

Someone might report it as abandoned I guess and it could be stolen or vandalised. Not sure I'd want to walk back to my car with my luggage to find it no longer there or the wheels gone.

Personally, I'd ask for a lift to the airport, look at cheap buses/coaches or have added the car park cost to the holiday budget. Much better to know I can definitely get home afterwards.

expatinscotland · 05/03/2015 16:00

I wouldn't chance this. People I know who have done this have returned to find their car long gone.

pinkbear82 · 05/03/2015 16:00

Full of terrorists Grin made me properly laugh out loud which then made my almost 2 year old laugh too.

Just make sure it isn't residents parking - could make any saving a potential loss.

TheCraicDealer · 05/03/2015 16:00

Agree with Agatha. Just because it's not illegal doesn't make it ok. If you live in one of those houses, presumably the old Victorian/Edwardian style without a driveway, you rely on the space outside the door being free. Ok, they don't own the space and should appreciate that on some days it isn't going to be free. But to park your car there over the entire course of your hols and make them walk however far to their own house for two weeks, rain or shine....well, it's a bit of a dick move in my eyes. It's just not very courteous.

Factor in the costs of getting to and from the airport like normal people.

MQv2 · 05/03/2015 16:01

Legally ? Fine

Morally???? .. Absolutely fine. The idea that there's any sort of moral issue with parking on a public street is laughable.

FunkyPeacock · 05/03/2015 16:01

As long as no parking restrictions on the street you are thinking of and you won't be blocking anyone's access then morally & legally absolutely fine

FirstWeTakeManhattan · 05/03/2015 16:01

You won't be taking anyone's parking space from in front of their house, precisely because no one owns the f*ing space in front of their house. If you piss them off by doing that, who gives a shit?

Heartwarming.

Someone did this very thing to someone I know when she had just had twins and it made a huge difference to her getting babies, equipment, shopping etc inside the house when she had to park 1/4 of a mile away.

I actually would try to be a bit more considerate than this. Life is nicer when people actually give a shit.

TheFecklessFairy · 05/03/2015 16:03

Yes, park there by all means. Just don't be surprised that it is gone, one way or another, when you get back.

expatinscotland · 05/03/2015 16:03

Yes, a stolen car is covered by insurance, but check your terms, it might not be in such a situation where it could be considered abandoned. Also, you will need to pay your excess fee. And even if you don't have one, you may find your premium increased at renewal more than £30.

wriggletto · 05/03/2015 16:07

If a strange car appeared outside my house and didn't move for a fortnight, yes, towards the end of the second week I probably would regard it as suspicious and consider reporting it as abandoned. and maybe also start a thread about it on MN in which posters would doubtless suggest creative ways to discourage the owner from doing it again

sosix · 05/03/2015 16:08

Yabvu.

SirChenjin · 05/03/2015 16:09

YANBU to want to save money

Whether YABU depends on the street. I live in a small cul de sac for example, we all have driveways, no on-street parking apart from the odd visitor. If you were to park your car outside one of our houses for 2 weeks damn right we'd be pissed off. A busy street with lots of comings and goings - it might not be noticed.

BalloonSlayer · 05/03/2015 16:10

I leave within a shortish hop to an airport and people leave cars with their friends in our area all the time. You see cars you have never noticed before parked up for 2 weeks all the time.

I have offered to have a friend's car and drive her to the airport this summer. I will leave her car on our driveway and park in the road myself, or I will leave her car parked in our road - I haven't decided yet. I do not expect anyone to raise an eyebrow and if anyone had it towed away I would be astonished. How the hell is anyone to know that someone who lives on that street didn't buy a new car the day before they went on holiday?

So, OP, you might as well but as others say - get a taxi.

AgathaF · 05/03/2015 16:13

People's lack of consideration for others is astounding.

PatricianOfAnkhMorpork · 05/03/2015 16:14

Seriously? That would be reported as abandoned in our street which is all terraces and parking is a nightmare at the best of times.

Frankly if you can afford your plane tickets, fork out the £50 to park at the airport.

BalloonSlayer · 05/03/2015 16:14

If a strange car appeared outside my house and didn't move for a fortnight, yes, towards the end of the second week I probably would regard it as suspicious and consider reporting it as abandoned.

Just to reiterate - the thing is that if you lived close-ish to an airport you WOULDN'T think that because it would happen all the time. And the police probably wouldn't tow it if you reported it because they would know it probably wasn't abandoned, it was just legally parked while someone went on holiday.

grenedeer · 05/03/2015 16:16

You might need to check with your insurance company. We get a discount based on whether the car is parked on a driveway or outside our house at night. Being in a different postcode & unchecked for 2 weeks might make a difference.

pollyenta · 05/03/2015 16:17

I live on a busy terraced street and probably wouldn't notice. Far too many cars to notice which ones move and which ones don't!

bbcessex · 05/03/2015 16:17

This happens all the time in a village near where I live. It's of course legal if you are parked in an unrestricted area and have a taxed car etc.

However; don't be surprised at all if you come back to flat tyres / sticker on the window (or worse), or two cars blocking you in. This also happens ALL the time - especially the blocking in part, because parking close to you front and behind is legal too.

I wouldn't ever abandon my car somewhere random for a period of time (not least because my car alarm goes if anyone so much as breathes on it!).

theendoftheendoftheend · 05/03/2015 16:17

What do people think happens when a car is reported as abandoned? If it's registered, taxed, insured and legally parked it obviously isn't abandoned what ever local residents think

Samcro · 05/03/2015 16:18

what if you car alarm goes off? and causes a disturbance(assuming you have one of course(

ShatnersBassoon · 05/03/2015 16:22

Why is a resident staking a claim on a patch of unrestricted public road near their house more morally sound than letting anyone park anywhere the law allows?

Neither the resident nor the visitor has more entitlement in my opinion. It's a free for all.

MinesaBottle · 05/03/2015 16:22

I grew up in a port town in Wales. In summer, tourists would sometimes park their cars in our street (near the port and station) while they went off for a few days to Dublin. As this was during the 80s when the IRA was v active, and this was a busy port, they would sometimes return to find the police had impounded their car and checked it for explosives. Yes, really.

This was a fairly busy street but believe me people notice a strange car parked in the same spot for a few days or more! I know it sounds a bit OTT but it only takes a call from one busybody.

countessmarkyabitch · 05/03/2015 16:24

i imagine it would be reported as a abandoned.

Sheitgeist · 05/03/2015 16:25

DH and I did this a few times about 25 years ago, pre internet car park booking days (and pre us having any money).
First time parked and walked (up the side of a dual carriageway) in the dark and rain. Grim.
Second time parked near a station 3 stops away from airport station. Train ticket cost a couple of pounds. Both times were fine, but we were aware it was a risk. Had ancient crappy car so didn't mind too much.

There is nothing legally or morally wrong in parking in unrestricted area, but do be careful, and take care not to restrict anyone's access.

Not sure that a car not being used for a week or so constitutes an abandonment... I've done this myself when parked on the street near where I lived (was in hospital). Would have been furious if it had towed away.

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