AIBU to leave my engine running for ten mins at 6.45 each morning (M-F)?

[ThreeJumpersIsNotEnough]

Neighbours have just come to the door with a Christmas card and a polite request to be more quiet in the mornings.

I usually leave at 7am to drop dd at breakfast club and get myself to work at 8am (I work Mon-Fri only - no weekends).

Now it's getting colder, the car is unbearably cold in the mornings so last week I started nipping out 10-15 mins earlier while dd was brushing her teeth so the car would be warm for us getting in and the frost/ice would be mostly melted from the window.

Neighbours have revealed that they are normally woken by me leaving most mornings at 7am but they can put up with it as I leave immediately so they are able to go back to sleep. However, they are not willing to put up with what I've been doing recently as they have found it impossible to go back to sleep having been awake for so long waiting for me to leave with the engine running ...

They have suggested I park further away from the house.

This is my first winter with these neighbours. They only moved in beginning of the year and we're polite to each other but not any more than 'hello' acquaintances. We live very rurally - just our two houses - in woodland area. Any noise carries and it is mostly silent (why I moved here - now I'm the one being a noise pest, it would appear). No street lights. 5 minute drive down our landlord's private (god awful road) onto the public road where there are other houses.

If I parked further away, that is further for me and DD to walk to the car each morning - in the pitch black - with our bags. Likewise, it is further for us to walk to the house each evening when we get back.

Not sure what the solution is. I told them I wasn't keen to park farther away (due to the above concerns) but they've asked me to give it a try at least for tomorrow. I've agreed to try it.

AIBU to ask for your ideas on what a peaceful resolution to this would be?

@BoebePhuffay - there's a reason why it's illegal. Stationary cars with engines running emit several times the poisonous fumes that moving vehicles do. Awful for the environment, and for those of us with conditions like asthma. It's just selfish and ignorant to ignore that.

heated car seat warmer

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LOL Judee: you might not think the same if you had the ‘luxury’ of staying in bed til 6.45 while farming and fisher folk racket about outside your windows at 5am / 3am / 11pm etc depending on harvest, tides etc.

People need to go about their business. Making unnecessary noise is never considerate.

@Princessmushroom whether you like it or not it's the law. That is why people are mentioning it. Would you prefer that the OP was left in ignorance of the law?

Judeee I’ve chosen to take a job that enabled me to work from home. Why should I have my quiet enjoyment of my home disturbed at an unreasonable hour because someone else wants to break the law?

People who have the luxury of being able to sleep in and not have to get up early for work shouldn't complain when those of us who do have to leave early for work start their engines or scrape ice away. Live and let live ffs.

Erm what about people who work back or night shifts?

I can’t believe this disrupts your neighbours tbh, so in this respect I think they are BU.

Yes there is environmental consideration.

But the big thing for me is do you leave your car unlocked when you do this? If so please heed this warning, my DH did this. 5 am in the morning, we live in a cup de sac so wouldn’t expect anyone going past.

Our car was stolen, and the insurance wouldn’t pay out as he had left the car unlocked with the key in it. A very expensive and inconvenient mistake.

Put your coots and hats on the radiator.
Cover thingies for the windows.

Surely you just have a spray bottle of de-Icer in the car and spray that on the windscreen? It works in seconds. And wear your coats in the car.

Don't be selfish. Defrost, clear your windows, put a coat on.

That’s what I’m doing when I run my car for 5 minutes before driving off! I’m defrosting and clearing the screen. Nothing to do with being cold. Im already wearing a coat because it’s December and I’m outside. (do you really think people aren’t already wearing coats when they’re cold? ) I can’t do any of that while driving. It’s impossible to see so incredibly dangerous. There is no way around it other than to run the car for a few minutes. Again, nothing to do with being cold or selfish.

Awful for the environment, and for those of us with conditions like asthma. It's just selfish and ignorant to ignore that.

So you’re ok with the fumes from moving cars, they don’t affect asthma? And no, it’s not selfish or ignorant to ensure my car is safe before driving it.

So glad I don’t live next to you. Sorry OP

whether you like it or not it's the law.

You didn’t answer before, is it illegal on a private driveway?

Who knows but its still selfish

@masterandmargarita that's the time I leave for work when I'm on an early shift. Can't run a fan heater and the car has to be scraped so it's tough really. TBF most people are out at that time doing it as where my car is, the side windows ice up badly

After a decade of them being abusive, threatening, damaging my car, refusing to move when blocking me despite me begging I needed to get to work for a major incident (ambulance staff, Cumbria shootings), I've given up. They were twats when we moved in and that was in summer!

Just found this

The legislation covers all vehicles on public roads including buses, taxis and private cars. It does NOT apply to vehicles moving slowly due to road works or congestion; vehicles stopped at traffic lights; vehicles under test or repair; or defrosting a windscreen.

You’re fine to defrost your windscreen OP.

It also says public roads so I suspect private roads and driveways are also fine. This is for England. Not sure about other parts of the U.K.

Don't get me wrong I think 15/20 mins is excessive, I literally start my car, shove heaters/AC on full and start scraping and then drive off as soon as safe to. And I'm not hanging about scraping as it's cold!

Who knows but its still selfish

No it’s necessary, otherwise the car can’t legally be driven due to zero visibility.

No-one's saying drive an unsafe car, just make it safe more quietly

My car engine doesn’t have a volume control.

I also don’t think 8:40am in a residential area is an unreasonable time to hear a car engine.

Didn't the op say 6.45?

you were talking to me, not OP.

I'd be annoyed if you did that to me. Sorry! I can see where you're coming from but some people are sensitive to noise and if its happening 5 days a week and stopping them from going back to sleep and they have contacted you about it then you should try and resolve it as if it was the other way around you would like to hope that they would do the same for you.

Good luck! :)

Will deffo try the air con to clear inside windscreen my cars a year old and really suffers with this.

Hope the environment worriers on here take heed when they get on the big polluting airplanes for their holidays