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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Neighbour double parking me

65 replies

Biancadelrioisback · 11/01/2020 19:38

My side of the road is houses, opposite is flats. We all have drive ways and gardens, flats have gardens but no drive. Most of the people in the flats don't seem to have cars, or at least never park them outside, most of the houses do and park on their driveways. When we first bought the house we were very excited to have a driveway, having never had one before. We have a Focus so not a huge car but we're very surprised to discover that it didn't fit on the drive way. Entrance to drive is gated with two brick walls either side and actual drive way has large stones to separate garden from drive. We had to spend quite a lot of our saving on the house and so never had the money to spend on widening the driveway so we park on the street. The road is probably just three car widths wide. Neighbour across from us has regular visitors, probably about 3-4 different cars throughout the day and for some reason, they insist on double parking us. We generally park outside our house, but if they're there when we come home, we'll park further up or down the street to avoid double parking. They, however, will only park directly opposite our car. Tonight is a great example. There are no cars on the street other than ours so absolutely no need to park where they have. I'm starting to wonder if this is a PA way of trying to tell us to park on our drive (presuming they don't know we can't).
The reason it's a problem is other cars can barely fit through the gap, some refuse to even try and will lay on their horns to get one of us to shift. At first I did move but after a year I've gotten sick of it. They don't need to park where they are parking and we're there first, why do I still have to move? I know this sounds daft but it's doing my head in. I've tried speaking to the person who lives in the flat and she just barked at me that it's not her car so not her problem. I hardly ever see her guests coming or going to ask them to stop double parking but DH says it's quite cheeky but they aren't doing anything wrong. I know they can park where they like and no one owns the road, that isn't my problem. Like I say I have no problem parking elsewhere if they're there first.
So WWYD? And AIBU to be annoyed and refuse to shift my car from now on?

OP posts:
HappyHammy · 11/01/2020 19:40

Can you remove the stones so you park on your drive and a section of your garden.

FraglesRock · 11/01/2020 19:45

Tell anyone who comes to the door. Sorry you've had a drink/taken medication.
Are you allowed to slightly park on the kerb, don't know how wide you pavement is obv.
And I'd keep on parking outside my house happily. But get a boulder round. Prob not as big a job as you think.

Biancadelrioisback · 11/01/2020 19:46

Can you remove the stones so you park on your drive and a section of your garden

It's the small wall either side of the entrance to the drive that stops us from getting on. The stones are half buried in and are big enough that we wouldn't be able to open the doors even if we could get on

OP posts:
thenightsky · 11/01/2020 19:49

I suspect you are correct re the PA stuff. They probably don't realise you cannot get on your drive. Can you remove one of your brick pillars a bit?

Biancadelrioisback · 11/01/2020 19:49

Are you allowed to slightly park on the kerb, don't know how wide you pavement is obv

I thought about that, but the path isn't very wide and there is a lady in a wheelchair about 4 doors up from us and loads of parents (we are right next to a school). I'd worry about people getting past safely.

OP posts:
Biancadelrioisback · 11/01/2020 19:50

Can you remove one of your brick pillars a bit?

Would love to but we can't. It's at the end of the wall bit so I think we'd need a bricky to do that and just don't have the money.

OP posts:
BanjoStarz · 11/01/2020 19:53

Do you know which flat it is?

I’d direct anyone that knocks to ask you to move your car to the flat - explaining you’ve had a drink/medication/can’t leave a sleeping baby so can’t move your car as it wasn’t double parked when you parked it.

Long term I’d get the drive way sorted though - you paid for a house with a drive so you should sort it so it’s useable, otherwise you’ve devalued it’s future resale value.

Biancadelrioisback · 11/01/2020 19:53

Attempt at diagram

Neighbour double parking me
OP posts:
Howcouldyoubelieveme · 11/01/2020 19:55

If this is anything like my street, rather than being passive aggressive people are just lazy and think they have the right to be able to see their cars from the window of the house they’re in. I know this from various local Facebook group discussions and it does my head in! No way could an ambulance ever get down my road between 5pm-8am when all residents are home.

Biancadelrioisback · 11/01/2020 19:57

Long term I’d get the drive way sorted though - you paid for a house with a drive so you should sort it so it’s useable, otherwise you’ve devalued it’s future resale value

It's definitely on our to do list. The house was a bit of a mess when we bought it and despite having a full survey we had a few more surprises than we budgeted for.

OP posts:
Biancadelrioisback · 11/01/2020 19:59

The houses and flats are wide enough that you could park two cars one in front of each other and still be outside your own house IYSWIM. So all they need to do is drive for an extra split second and not be directly opposite our car. They would still be able to see their car and get to it in a hurry for whatever reason.

OP posts:
PettyContractor · 11/01/2020 20:01

It took me a very long time to understand this OP. "Double parking" is not parking on the other side of the street. If people were "double parking" in a three-car-width-road, they would be parked in the centre of the road.

Biancadelrioisback · 11/01/2020 20:01

Have spoken to lady who lives there once and she was very blunt with me telling me it's not her problem as it's not her car.

OP posts:
RandomMess · 11/01/2020 20:02

Take a sledgehammer to your wall 😍 ok so you can't make it pretty again until you have money but knocking down the pillar and a bit of the brick wall is the best bit!

Biancadelrioisback · 11/01/2020 20:02

@PettyContractor really??? In which case I've been using that phrase wrong for most of my adult life Blush

OP posts:
Biancadelrioisback · 11/01/2020 20:04

@RandomMess haha now that is my kind of Saturday night!!
But I have the rock/stone issue too, no way could DH or I dig them out.

The person who lived here before us really liked big rocks as they line our entire back garden too

OP posts:
Lulualla · 11/01/2020 20:04

I was confused by the double parking title because that's not what they are doing, but it is pretty clear to understand the issue.

Start putting notes on the cars each time to tell them that they are blocking the road. If there is loads of parking available then they can just move down a bit.

BruceAndNosh · 11/01/2020 20:05

Agree with @PettyContractor - that's not double parking. That's just parking on the other side of the road!

Surfskatefamily · 11/01/2020 20:06

What a crappy design for your drive entrance if you cant get a focus on. Must be really annoying. I'd just try your best for now to park super close to pavement..like and inch. If the road is 3 cars wide should be fine really. Some drivers seem to think their driving a bus.
Theres not much you can do about the double parkers. But is it a big problem for the street? Just wondering if theres multiple cars up and down the road that do this as you could suggest to the council double yellows for one side. If it would prevent emergency vehicle access they may consider it.

Lulualla · 11/01/2020 20:07

@Biancadelrioisback
Double parking is when someone parks up next to your car. Not infront of or behind you car, but right next to it.
So if you're parked on the street, and they pull up and park beside you then they have double parked you. Usually Taxis will pull up and wait alongside a row of street parked cars, or if a passenger is running into a shop then people will pull up beside other parked cars. It's not really something people do and then leave there car sitting like that.

Biancadelrioisback · 11/01/2020 20:09

I swear that's what my driving instructor told me it was called!!
Stupid Antonio teaching me things wrong.

OP posts:
BanjoStarz · 11/01/2020 20:10

I wonder if double parking definition is a regional thing? In my area double parking is parking exactly level on the opposite side of the road.

What else do people consider double parking to be?

Lulualla · 11/01/2020 20:10

(When I say not infront or behind you, I mean not parallel parked infront of behind you. It's also double parking if you're parked in a bay and the park across the bay so you cant get out)

Biancadelrioisback · 11/01/2020 20:11

Surfskatefamily tell me about it!
The house was built in the 50s and I know cars weren't as big then but all my neighbours have said it's always been a problem

OP posts:
ZacharyQuack · 11/01/2020 20:11

Park on their side of the road. Hopefully they’ll park behind or in front of your car so they are both on the same side.