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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Neighbour parked on my drive

306 replies

maltesersplease · 20/06/2019 15:50

In February, neighbour/friend gets clamped and fined for no tax, MOT, insurance. Asks if she can park on my drive a few days until she can afford to sort it all out.

We fell out over something else a few weeks ago over something much more serious, and don't speak anymore. Don't need to drip feed, this part's irrelevant.

The car is still on my drive. I've asked her to move it, she says she will SORN it. Car doesn't start either so I can't just move it myself. If she SORNs it, she will never move it! It's still not taxed or MOTd.

So now I seem to be stuck with it on my drive. Each of the police, DVLA and council have told me it's one of the other responsibilities.

I'm feeling really irritated by life in general and if I wasn't worried it would harm a person, I'd have taken the handbrake off it by now!

(This isn't AIBU to remove the handbrake, it's more of a "I'm really fed up can anyone help please?).

OP posts:
RighteousSista · 21/06/2019 07:14

Contact your local MP about lack of council / police action they might have a word with the powers that be. Alternatively i would be extremely tempted to tip off our local roma scrap dealers ( Google translate ad put on postcard place in your nearest Polish shop!)

ispepsiok · 21/06/2019 07:31

Start taking parts off it and depositing them on her doorstep. Start with the wipers and tell her you're moving it a little at a time as it's too heavy to move altogether

LazyDaisey · 21/06/2019 08:09

“But she also does know the law, and would know I was making it up. She also doesn't care. She has no credit rating...”

In that case, I would go down the you route that she has violated the the current verbal agreement/contract by overstaying the agreed upon dates and by refusing to move the vehicle after agreed upon date.

As the current contract has now been voided, your new terms and conditions are as follows. Google standard contracts for rent my drive. Give her X days to move it, otherwise contract will begin on x day, at a rate of £10 day. Invoices to be paid a week in advance, every week.

She will most likely email you back, so you will have her acknowledgment of your email.

Tell the finance company she is illegally trespassing as she’s voided the contract that existed between you.

Start sending her weekly invoices, overdue notices and tell her you’re just waiting to sell the debt to a collection agency so the bailiffs start harassing her (to wind her up and get her to hopefully move)

You need to pester. Emailing once and not confronting her doesn’t add to her problems, so she’s ignoring you.

MummaGiles · 21/06/2019 08:23

Demand that the police act. If they say it is private land ask if it is ok for you to murder your neighbour on private land. Obviously not so they can act on private land if you push them.

Hardly analogous. The OP’s neighbour hasn’t committed a criminal offence. As has been said many times upthread, this is a civil matter and therefore isn’t in the police’s jurisdiction.

PanGalaticGargleBlaster · 21/06/2019 08:36

Around my way you can donate your old car to the fire brigade who will tow it away for free and chop it into small pieces during training

newmomof1 · 21/06/2019 08:36

@PanGalaticGargleBlaster great idea but she'd definitely need the logbook

BumandChips · 21/06/2019 09:12

I would tell her unless she moves it you’re sticking a ‘free’ sign on it.

Dec2019mumtobe · 21/06/2019 09:39

If phoning the finance company doesn't work, I'd definitely go down the "charging a car parking fee" route and then small claims court when she doesn't pay.

You should email proper invoices over. Plenty of free templates online.

Include property penalty fees for non payment of car parking charges.

No different to parking on privately owned car park in town where they charge per hour. If you don't pay, they send you a £75 fine and double it within 7 days if you don't pay up! Then they threaten court!

RosaWaiting · 21/06/2019 09:52

Sorry if you said it and I missed it

When you contacted the council, did you report it as an abandoned car? That’s more likely to get a response than “my neighbor left her car on my drive”.

SlothMama · 21/06/2019 10:03

If it were me the handbreak would mysteriously suddenly come loose. She's a CF and knows she can walk all over you, you need to be firm with her. If you can't do that you'll have to get solicitors involved. It's a shame that the UK has stupid laws when it comes to drives and vehicles. I spent a year dealing with idiots parking on my drive.

IsabellaLinton · 21/06/2019 10:16

Then again, I have never heard of such a thing happening in Canada where I live.

Space isn’t exactly at a premium in Canada! Grin

MoveOnTheCards · 21/06/2019 10:21

If CF neighbour isn’t arsed about the fact she’s left her car there for so long and clearly isn’t making moves to shift it now I seriously doubt threatening to charge her to keep it there will bother her.

I would also go down the finance company route based on the posts of PPs who work in the industry.

Homebird8 · 21/06/2019 10:45

Look what can be done with an old car!

Estonians convert old car into sauna

tomatostottie · 21/06/2019 11:25

The finance company route does seem to be a sensible way to go but does the OP actually know who the finance company is with? And if not, how could she find out?

TowelNumber42 · 21/06/2019 12:12

Get some blokes to move the car. Deny all knowledge. "I don't know what you are talking about. I emailed you/her to move it. Yesterday I saw that it had been moved. Bye."

MrMeSeeks · 21/06/2019 12:29

What a cf Shock

rose789 · 21/06/2019 12:44

If it’s not insured/MOT’d/taxed and not declared as SORN report it here

www.gov.uk/report-untaxed-vehicle

The vehicle owner will receive a warning letter from MIB warning them to get insurance. If they don’t comply the vehicle will be seized and impounded.

SerendipityJane · 21/06/2019 15:28

If it’s not insured/MOT’d/taxed and not declared as SORN

Then the registered keeper is committing an offence already

A car must be insured or SORNd. Anything which isn't one of those two is an offence. And if it's not SORNd, it must be taxed too.

I don't like "two wrongs make a right" - that way anarchy lies. But I'm also a little less scrupulous when it seems the law makes things harder for the law abiding and easier for the lawless (as in this case). Certainly enough to carefully consider the possibility of the car being moved off the drive in a midnight flit.

SoupDragon · 21/06/2019 15:44

The problem with that link is that it states If you see an untaxed vehicle on a public road, you can report it and this is not on a public road. Whilst it should be taxed or SORNed there doesn't seem to be an appropriate way to report it as it's on private land.

Emelene · 21/06/2019 15:47

Is there any way you could write to her and tell her you are starting charging for use of the drive from x date, then take her to small claims court if she leaves it there? Hmm

anothernewone · 21/06/2019 16:12

There is parking co.that are registered with the car park assoc/dvla etc that you can sign up with for about £20- you put up the signs and photograph her car in shot of them and they do rest-the fines are enforcable- might be worth a shot?

SerendipityJane · 21/06/2019 16:24

Is there any way you could write to her and tell her you are starting charging for use of the drive from x date, then take her to small claims court if she leaves it there?

That's the easiest thing in the world to do.

Now you get that money .....

SerendipityJane · 21/06/2019 16:25

There is parking co.that are registered with the car park assoc/dvla etc that you can sign up with for about £20

So the OP is £20 down from the off ...

LakieLady · 21/06/2019 16:45

The finance company route does seem to be a sensible way to go but does the OP actually know who the finance company is with? And if not, how could she find out?

If you know anyone in the motor trade, they may have access to the database that shows if a vehicle is on finance. Sadly, my friend who worked for a big car dealership has now retired, so I'm not in a position to help!

I think an HPI check costs around £25 for a private individual.

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