Upstairs neighbours blocking the porch with their car..

[Morningcoffeeee]

We have an open drive that leads from the pavement on the street to our porchway where our front door is. The driveway is our allocated parking but we don't have a car so the neighbours from the flat upstairs use it for theirs.

Instead of parking it horizontally like normal they've taken to parking it vertically, blocking our path that we use to get in and out of the flat. As such there is a 1 metre gap between our front door and their horizontally parked car which we have to navigate a pram around. It's very awkward.

As soon as I open the door it's there in my face blocking the view to the street.

Aibu to think it's CF?

Will try to attatch a photo but it's not letting me at the moment.

Believe it or not the upstairs neighbour and the neighbour down the road got into a row about who should park there, when it's neither of their spaces in the first place.

Then he speaks English enough to understand your DH when he asked him to move the car.

You need a bollard.

.

OP you’re paying for a parking space that someone else is using for free!!! Get yourself a junk car and park it on it! No way would I be paying for someone else to inconvenience me!

Can you ask landlord to just put in a chain?

I haven’t read the whole thread but just a thought, you pay for the space as part of your rent, if the landlord is going to rent it out surely you should have a reduction in rent as it isn’t yours anymore??
Also just be aware if you buy planters they might get damaged (if CFs try to park there) or stolen (MIL had hers nicked from her drive in SE London which even had a fence and gate

I think the OP did already say that there would be a reduction in rent.

OP, I think you need to mention this to the landlord and send a picture. Hopefully the LL will pay to get a wall put up or something.

It's your space so you need to make that a bit clearer to your neighbours. If nothing has changed in a few days then it is time to go back and speak to them together and see what they say.

Just get their car towed 😂

You need to grab your neighbours when they get into the car and show them what the problem is. Once you've done that you can be sure they understand and can get nasty if needs be.

Have a look and see if any car clubs would be interested in the space and if so pass on the info to your landlord, telling him about how the whole thing is becoming a pain in the arse. A car club like zipcar would make damn sure nobody else parked there.

You told them two days ago but haven't followed up, you need to be more assertive about the blocking and more vocal that it is your space.

Did you hear the neighbours arguing over it? Didn't you think to speak up then? Perhaps send a letter to both, saying your landlord is going to rent it out and they have to stop using it, they obviously don't realise it belongs to anyone.

I never understand threads like this. Stop being a doormat OP and speak up!

I would speak to them one more time. If that failed I would just buy a load of those difficult to remove 'no parking' stickers and plaster them all over the windshield and side windows. If their bad behaviour is repeated, my sticker campaign would be as well. (Maybe just start with a few.)

I would say,
Hello, Do you speak English, if you park in MY parking space, you will need to Leave me room to get out of my house with a pram , if not I will be putting a chain across

Do you have a garden or is this your only outside space? Do your neighbours walk through it to their entrance? Claim it as a play area for your child, but make barriers portable in case you have guests.

I'd ask the LL to put up those bollards, that you can unlock and take down.The bottom part is cemented into the ground.

I'd complain to next doors LL.

Planters are the way to go. Make them heavy concrete ones so hard to move. I'd also put up a notice saying this is your parking area, and anyone who parks there without a permit will have their car towed.

I can't believe the cheek of some people.

Make sure they know it is your space, they may think they share it.
Then police it heavily, tell your landlord who should safeguard it by putting a gate or fence up, or employ clampers who will put a notice up and deal with cf parking

If there's some doubt that the CFs understood your dh's request to park elsewhere, send them a note. Sometimes a written thing is easier to decipher (or can be shown to someone who can understand it).

Try that before taking further steps. Your parking situation doessound like you'll need a bollard or planters even if your neighbours stop using the space.

@Morningcoffeeee I would get them to move and tell them quite firmly it is your space.
When you have baby #2 you wil have midwife visits and visitors. Why the actual F should your visitors park down the road and not in your space?

Have you thought of a letter / note to the neighbours instead of speaking? Then they can have that translated if they do not understand.

"Dear neighbours please do not park on our drive. We pay for it and it is our access and parking place.
Regards, OWNERS OF THE FUCKING PARKING SPOT"

Can you clarify that you're paying for the use of this parking space (built into your monthly rental) but you currently don't have a vehicle of your own to fill the space. So your upstairs neighbours are using the space free of charge (as they are not paying for it as part of their monthly rental as far as you're aware).

If my understanding is correct, I'd be printing off a document and putting it in their letter box saying that from X date, they will be subject to a flat fee of Y amount (per hour/per day/per week) for parking in a space that is not theirs to park in.

I would also get a sign (sometimes the likes of B&Q or other hardware stores have them made up), that says "Private Parking - Unauthorised vehicles will be towed at the owners expense" and then carry that out.

I think you need to go to your landlord with this and get him or her to sort it out. The last thing they would want is good tenants being annoyed by a cf parking in a space they own and their tenants pay for. Whether that's putting a bollard in or whatever.

It's probably been said, but why not offer them the space for a fee ... as long as they park properly, of course ...

quite frankly didn't care about upstairs parking there until they started parking vertically across our doorway

To be honest, unless you really DO care and can be bothered to enforce this, you are basically paying for nothing. I'm surprised you started a thread about it as you don't seem that bothered (as other posters have pointed out).

@Morningcoffeeee have you spoken with them?

Did you resolve this?