To ask new neighbours not to block our driveway (see Diagram!

[starrain]

Hi all (please see my artistic diagram- im at work so no pic)

We have recently moved into a new build, the whole block of houses have just moved in. Our driveway is on a slight incline and at the bottom of it is a lowered kerb. Our neighbours have a house which has a long driveway where u have to park cars infront on each other. They knew this when they bought the house, many other houses on the development are made like this, and if it was going to be an issue for them they shouldnt have bought it

Now she keeps parking at the bottom of our drive half on the pavemement infront of their house, partially blocking our drive.
It s real nuisance trying to get in and out.

I have asked them once that can they move it as im struggling to get my car out, to which they replied well Steve is leaving in a bit so i dont wana block him in.
We have asked them twice now and they say its causing them a problem as one leaves after the other so they will be constantly moving cars, but i dont see why we should have the problem whilst they dont, its our house our drive and dropped kerb?!

Will speak to the customer care lady at the housing development, but i fear they will keep doing it. What can we do :((

Sorry if I missed it but did you go and speak to the site office or whatever it's called?

If you (whoever gets home first) parks alongside the curb, in front of your right hand parking space does this block them acessing their drive or would it resolve your access issue?

I’d park directly in front of your own drive on the road. What utter tossers.

Similar happened to my mum when neighbours paved front garden to accommodate their own business work van. This meant they no longer had space to park beside kerb (not on keen as it’s illegal in our council) and routinely blocked mums drive. Every single time we knocked, mum knocked, sisters and hubby’s knocked. They got the message and we now park up to boundary line.

Check deeds as to ownership of pavement and where drives extend to. If it covers front of your drive/dropped kerb get a fence or hedge put in!

My hubby and I have 1 drive for 2 cars. We try to plan access but with busy family (4kids) and both working it doesn’t always work. It’s no hassle to take 2mins to swap cars 🤷🏻‍♀️ Or take each other’s?

If it gets bad, take pics, record everything in case it all goes t*ts up.

Depending on who the builder is I know from working on behalf of different developers and renting on a new build site that parking issues are taken seriously by customer care and letters and phone calls have been done to resolve parking issues stating that residents may only park in their bays or driveways and cannot park blocking other people and must park where is stated on the deeds of the house of what is their land etc etc. I would keep taking it up with customer care and escalate to customer care management and the builder CEO if you need to to get it resolved. Hope you get sorted soon. Those neighbours sound like a nightmare.

Dont fanny about, they are blocking your drive, totally unacceptable, tell them once more, and ask them not to do it again.

We have a long driveway, 2 car length but only one car width.
Same as your neighbours....and we just move our cars around when we need to or park one car in a visitor space.
I dont get why they think they can block you in for their convenience. If we can manage, then anyone can...my little boy has SEN and we have to be very cautious with road safety...loading him in and out of the car as hes been known to run away, and were on a busy ish rat run road. Put your foot down know or it will eat away at you...some people are just entitled...dont put up with it. It's their problem, not yours!

You need to be clear with them.

Passing their problem into you is not acceptable. They bought the house knowing the parking situation so it's their issue to sort out

Knock them up ever time you want to leave

I’ve never heard the phrase knocking someone up apart from getting them pregnant .

The fact is...They can’t buy a house with the sort of driveway where they would have to move one of their cars to get the other out, but not like doing this, so expect you (with your 2 car-wide driveway) to do it instead so they don’t have to!

I think you need to point this fact out very clearly to them.

Put metal gates up at the end of your drive that open outwards, accidentally leave them open. They won't be so keen to park there then.

Give the customer care manager a kick in the arse. It is NOT a neighbour dispute, the CF are breaking the rules of the covenant. This needs to be dealt with.

This.

Our new build estate has the same problems. When the site office closed it was even worse and became anarchy. We have visitor spaces and some are directly outside some of the houses. If our visitors park on them, they get abuse screamed at them. I can’t help you as my neighbours completely ignore the fact I can’t get my car out. Nobody cares, the developer, the council, no-one. My advice to anyone buying on a new estate is to make sure your drive is not one car blocking in the other and check that nobody is likely to block your parking for that reason. I wish I had realised before I bought!

Park another car there, and leave it there!

I eerily have exactly the same issue, down to house, drive and car placement 😂 it’s not a taylor wimpy development is it? Drives me nuts and we’ve been here 5 years now - they still do it.

Ok.. try having someone you don't know actually parking ON your driveway... that's what's been happening for me... I've had to get another neighbor I actually know to park there to stop him parking there... he's now parking in front of my house instead

Do you have kids? I know it’s not good to lie but you could explain one of them has a medical condition and may need an emergency drive to hospital during the night and knocking to ask them to move will delay..

I'm also in a new build housing association house with open plan driveways ... I can't help feeling that a gate across the driveway might have helped matters...

Fixed penalty notice can be issued, it jyst depends on the police force, West Midlands are very pro active on stuff like this but other forces vary as I guess the laws vary around the country

Stars in

Why not have a house warming party, lots of wine and get to know your neighbours. Then when your on friendly terms jyst say...look this is making things difficult how can we sort it out as friends

Don't know if this is of any help OP, but I just searched parking problems and found this:

'Parking a vehicle fully or partially across a dropped kerb is classed as an obstruction and either the police or local council can enforce the contravention. Based on the resources a particular authority has in dealing with this, attention will usually be focussed on offences that impede those with disabilities'.

'Complaints can be made to the local police via the non-emergency 101 number, although it's usually better to contact the local council first. Action from the council can only occur when it's the occupier of the premises involved who has complained.'

I would be inclined when you speak to them to tell them that blocking a dropped kerb and footpath is an offence, and while obviously you're not going to make a fuss at present as you haven't yet moved in yet, when you do it will have to stop, otherwise you'll be forced to take action!

Good luck with it all.

I would be inclined to park where they are parking if that is the only way you are not blocked in. If they complain you can say in a reasoned way 'well it's the only way we are not blocked in ourselves'. Say it with a smile. Don't say it's the only way to stop you blocking us in'. That is more confrontational and implies tit for tat. The other comment is just telling them about a problem you have when others park there.

There was some bonkers shit parking round my way and unfortunately I did actually clip the corner of a car that shouldn't have been there, attempting a manoeuvre that I probably shouldn't have done but was partly forced to. In the dark.

It is shit and my car has a dent and it will affect my no claims but the bonkers shit parking hasn't happened again.

Like others have suggested OP is park either your or OH car where they normally park theirs.... half on kerb and half ok grass.

But try and do it in such a way there is no way they can park on your drive

When they come over and complain, reply with “hmmm yes that is a problem isn’t it”

Also, I'd like to add, that it's actually illegal to park within 10 metres of a junction, as it is to park on the pavement, so if they're being unreasonable, there's always that angle to force them to change their ways...

A few clarifications of inaccurate posts I've seen...

1. It's not illegal to block a drop kerb, provided the vehicle parked CAN exit the property. If this means moving your other car and having to do a 27 point manoeuvre, that legally means you can exit the property. It also means if you can exit by driving over your own lawn and flower beds you can exit the property, the law is that stupid.

2. Even more stupidly there is NO law against blocking a drop kerb when the driveway is empty, as a drop kerb does not grant legal right of access a property! Police and local authorities are powerless if someone blocks you out of your driveway!

3. Parking on the pavement is not illegal, it's only illegal to create a dangerous obstruction (and simply casting doubt that anyone would actually use the path, or be in danger if they had to walk round negates this), but it's easier to get a photo with God than it is to get anything done, unless you live in London, where it is 100% illegal.

4. The only way to deal with people who park incosiderately is to appeal to their better nature, or if this fails, to beat them at their own game.

I know all of this from bitter experience as we live in the street next to a busy commuter train station and have had to deal with all of them in the last 6 months, and we've lived here for 3 years now!

Ask them nicely. If this doesn't work, park there yourself. If this doesn't work, or you come home to find their car parked blocking your drive, but their drive empty, just block their driveway. When they complain, remind them that you tried to sort it out amicably, but they insisted on passing their problem onto you, you're simply giving it back to them to deal with, as they should have all along.

Everything @thismumisaman said above is not true