Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Flip

Original poster

Lift Etiquette

16 replies

LouLou2020 · 24/12/2019 22:35

When getting in a lift do you get in regardless of the direction of travel or do you just get in and hope that the lift eventually changes direction and goes to the floor you require?

I always check to see if the lift is going up or down then only get in if it’s going in the right direction for me. However I’ve noticed that a number of people seem to get in to “ride the lift” even if it’s, for example, going down when they want to go up. I was shopping today and was not able to get out of the lift at the bottom floor due to a number of people getting in the lift travelling down when they wanted higher floors. I asked people to move out of my way and tried to get my pram out but people seemed reluctant to step out of the lift to enable me to get out, nor did anyone hold the door resulting in the doors closing and the lift going back up with me still in it.

YABU - get in the lift regardless of direction
YANBU - only get in the lift if it is going in the direction required.

OP posts:

Mads123 · 24/12/2019 22:38

If it was the only lift I'd get in regardless of direction but would ensure I let everyone out first!!

sweeneytoddsrazor · 24/12/2019 22:40

People do this so the lift isnt full and they have to wait for the next one. My only lift etiquette is don't fart.

imnottoofussed · 24/12/2019 22:45

In my opinion you just get in the lift when it arrives. I couldn't care which direction it is travelling. If I didn't get in because it was going down and I wanted to go up, I would then be waiting for it to go down, pick up a load of people and come back up risking it being too full for me to get in.

soapboxqueen · 24/12/2019 22:48

Two Separate issues there.

People should have let you off. Tbh I've never even heard of that happening so you must have been very unlucky to be in a lift with so many arseholes.

In general I would agree that I would wait until the lift was going in my direction before getting on. However, there is a set of lifts in my local shopping centre that seems to dance to their own tune and if you don't get in when there is space, you might never get on.

MrsT1405 · 24/12/2019 22:51

It is one of my pet hates! I worked in a very high building and must have spent days with people pressing BOTH buttons....why?? Just press the button for the direction you want to fucking well travel !! It took years off my life!

IamFriedSpam · 24/12/2019 22:52

If it was the only lift I'd get in regardless of direction but would ensure I let everyone out first!!

This. Otherwise I just wait for one going the correct direction.

NannyPear · 24/12/2019 22:55

This drives me nuts. DH works at the top floor of a high building. People get on at the second to the top floor, ride it going up, so that when it opens at the top it's full

NannyPear · 24/12/2019 22:57

Pressed send too soon! Then they ride it down to the bottom. They do it deliberately to avoid the lift being full coming down when it gets to their floor. Of course it makes sense, but if there ever was lift etiquette then this would go against that IMO

Ariadnepersephonecloud · 24/12/2019 22:58

I get in regardless, as @imnottoofussed said, no point waiting. That said I'd always get out of the way to let people out!

Original poster

LouLou2020 · 24/12/2019 23:03

I understand that people do it to avoid the lift being full but surely getting in regardless just creates this problem. E.g. people getting in at floor 4 to go to floor 6 when lift is going down could prevent people who want to travel from 1 to 2/3/4, 2-3/4 or 3-4 from being able to get in the lift.

OP posts:

Havaina · 24/12/2019 23:04

It depends. The lifts at work are numerous and quick, so I wait for one that's going in the right direction.

The lifts in some department stores are terrible (John Lewis, Debenhams etc) so I just get on regardless of the direction of travel just to make sure I'm in.

AntiHop · 24/12/2019 23:08

Yanbu. I remember being in a department store with a pushchair and waiting ages to get in a lift as they were full. I bet most of those people could have used the escalator, which I couldn't with a pushchair.

bridgetreilly · 24/12/2019 23:11

That is bonkers! If everyone gets in whatever the direction, the lift is going to be much fuller causing more problems. Wait until it's going the right way. Or, if you can, walk.

schafernaker · 24/12/2019 23:12

@AntiHop that’s my biggest hate! When you know most of the people in the lift could have happily got on the escalator but you can’t get in with a wheelchair or pushchair... and then they still don’t move 🤬

Sirzy · 24/12/2019 23:13

With Ds in his wheelchair if we didn’t get in when there was space then in a lot of places we would never get in at all!

LonelyBones · 24/12/2019 23:44

Argh!

My local shopping centre lifts are very slow. But people get on to go up ONE floor when they can use the escalator or the stairs, and i cant get in the packed lift with my buggy.

Or when people make no attempts to hold open the door when people try to step on. They just stare blankly at you when im staring furiously back while the door closes.....

People that dont move forward into the back of the lift to allow people to get on.

People that dont get out to let people at the back out, so you have to squish your way out and past these idiotic people....

Flip

Swipe left for the next trending thread