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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Neighbours and parking - what is reasonable / unreasonable?

37 replies

PersonAtHome · 25/05/2018 17:47

So... on my street parking used to be horrible but now we have residents parking so you can usually get a space somewhere, but it's a bit hotchpotch, there are a few houses with driveways, a business on the road with lots of cars dropping off and picking up.

Outside my house there's a run of three parking spaces available (before you hit gaps for driveways) that stretches across three houses - we're in the middle.

I have two cars, but I only ever put one outside my house, I leave the other across the road in the no man's parking bit, or find another area on the road that isn't so popular (it varies depending on what's available). My neighbour has two cars but ALWAYS has both cars outside on this little stretch of spaces and they don't move or use the cars for weeks at a time. And the other neighbour runs out into the street at every opportunity to move her car to the third space (so if we get this space it's gone as soon as we do a school run). So it means we can rarely get one of the spaces outside our house.

I don't mind this for exercise purposes but when we want to load the car to go to the tip, come back with heavy plants from garden centre, come back from school run with loads of bags and instruments etc, want to wash the car it's getting really wearing never being allowed to park outside our house. And it feels like the spaces belong to our neighbours rather than us.

WIBU if I wrote to the two car neighbour and asked them politely if they'd mind keeping one of their cars off this stretch like we do? Obviously I'd say that it's not about me creating some kind of rule, but more about common sense - if they had shopping or tired or something I'm not expecting them to not park outside their own house.

I'd go and ask in person but the man of the couple is very overbearing - negotiation is not his strong point and he's shouted me down on various other issues. Not literally shouting, just very strongly opinionated and not good at listening to others. Him and his wife are very polite though and if I put it down nicely in writing they might even be mortified to know how much inconvenience it's causing us.

OP posts:
BrilliantDarling · 25/05/2018 19:44

My mum lives in a street in which multiple neighbours put their wheelie bins out in the road , save 'their' parking space everytime they go. It's not even just 1 wheelie bin either, the majority of them do 2 bins, one of the neighbours puts 3...

BrightYellowDaffodil · 25/05/2018 19:49

On street parking is first come, first served. Always. Even if neighbours decide to divvy up spaces into "This one's mine, that's yours" etc, you can't stop other residents or their visitors parking there. If there's a space, great - if not, park somewhere else.

I have on street parking - I often have to park way away from my house and it's just how it is. If one of my neighbours asked me to park/not park somewhere specific I'd be extremely cheesed off.

bimbobaggins · 25/05/2018 19:53

I’d seriously consider getting off street parking. It’s an absolute godsend. And will be a great addition to your house if you ever decide to sell.

ScrubTheDecks · 25/05/2018 19:57

You have to get council permission for a dropped kerb, get the paperwork and payment sorted out first.

Or next time 2-car neighbour moves one, zap straight in there.

TroubledLichen · 25/05/2018 19:58

You’re over thinking it; park in the closest available space to your house when you get home. To be considerate park reasonably close to any other cars already parked to allow space for someone else to park behind you (if applicable). No need to over complicate matters, it usually makes things worse in my experience as saying I won’t park there because Jill next door usually does, or I’ll leave my second car elsewhere leads to ‘Jill’ thinking that the space is hers and flipping out if someone else parks there.

DontCallMeCharlotte · 25/05/2018 20:00

We live in one of "those" roads. We can't make off street parking because there's a tree in the way. Also both neighbours have railings (that's another story) and there would only be room for a very small car.

We are mid-terrace, have only one car, but never get to park outside our house, not least because I'm last home usually. Neighbours on both sides (who we're really good friends with) have three cars each. Both have off road parking and dropped kerbs meaning I can't park in front of either of their houses but they can, and do park in front of mine which is fine. As PP have said, first come first served. I used to park across the road but new neighbours a couple of doors down have commandeered those spaces (previous owners only had one car which they parked elsewhere). And now two houses a bit further down are making off street parking and having their kerbs dropped so that's two more road spaces lost for general use. Sigh. On the upside, I'm really good at parking now!

ScrubTheDecks · 25/05/2018 20:04

OK, it is a right taradiddle getting a dropped kerb. Just looked at our council’s website,
You have to get Transport Dept permission. The space you intend to put your car on has a minimum size (can’t be a real squeeze) and depending on tne road they might insist that you have space to turn round and can go in and come out forwards. Then you have to get planning permission. Then it has to be cleared with Utilities and any cables , poles etc running underneath have to be relocated. Then you wait for the council to install it.

DontCallMeCharlotte · 25/05/2018 20:07

Sorry, got a bit carried away with my own parking misery there! I meant to say no one is being particularly unreasonable in your case OP but I'm not sure asking them to leave you a space will work - even though I'd like to do the same.

dejectedharry · 25/05/2018 20:12

We got our kerb dropped and made a new drive! It's made a huge difference. We had some trouble with our awful neighbour refusing to accept we had dropped the kerb but it soon stopped after he had a barny with a lady in a wheelchair about his selfish parking causing her issues. Thank you lovely lady you will never know how much I love you!

PersonAtHome · 25/05/2018 20:34

I just looked at the council website - our front garden might be too small to meet their requirements, but next door but one have done it so I'm not sure if I can switch their width and length requirements - we have the length they require in width (if that even makes sense).

Great to hear everyone's views, I definitely won't write to ask them, but I will be braver about taking the one car neighbour's space. I'll also keep an eye out for when one of the two cars move.

Or maybe I should try that wheelie bin tactic sometime!

OP posts:
bimbobaggins · 25/05/2018 20:44

Please don’t try the wheelie bins!

seven201 · 26/05/2018 17:33

We recently had a dropped kerb put in. Really pleased we did. We can only fit one car on so one of us blocks the others in, to not piss the neighbours off. They do get pissed off even if one car is only outside their house for a few hours and that neighbour doesn't even own a car! She does get deliveries you know Hmm. Our drive was technically 20cm or so too short but we received an enforcement notice (a neighbour must have shopped us for parking in our front garden (block paved by previous owner)) as we didn't have a dropped kerb. Helped us though as when we rang up the person said they'd allow our application as we could prove our car fitted without obstructing the pavement. We previously hadn't applied because we knew it was too short

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