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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

AIBU to report neighbour for running a business?

137 replies

bookstearocknroll · 09/11/2020 13:55

It's lockdown, everyone's having a hard time in one way or another and the last thing I want to do is add to anyone's struggles...but my neighbour is pissing me right off.

He's some kind of handyman/mechanic and for years, has had at least five cars parked along our street, often so close to my drive that it makes it almost impossible to get out.

For the past couple of weeks, the number of cars has gone up, he's out on his driveway working on them all through the day and it's fairly obvious he's running a business from home. Right now, there's a windscreen repair van literally parked right across my driveway with two men fixing a windscreen with the table set up at next to their van. I've asked them to move as my partner's due home any minute with a week's worth of shopping and the neighbour's cars are parked all along the road taking up the rest of the room and they say they'll be done in 20 minutes but have made no effort to move despite me saying they have to.

My partner asked the neighbour directly if he was running a business, told him that we didn't mind him messing on with cars a few days a week as a hobby but if it was going to be banging and drilling throughout the day every day as it has been, it's a business and it's not fair on us with regards to noise (we have babies and both work from home, so it's not like we can easily escape it). Neighbour said he wasn't running a business, his garage had closed and he was just finishing a few MOTs - he got pretty arsey about it.

This latest escalation has been going on for a few weeks - would you report it or cut him some slack given the lockdown situation?

To avoid drip feeds, he's got form for being a bit of a cheeky fucker in other respects too so I'm not convinced of his explanation.

OP posts:
delilahbucket · 09/11/2020 14:55

Report to the council. He cannot run this kind of business from home. I worked from home and looked into whether I had to register with the council. As long as I wasn't using more than 50% of my home, having customers visiting or causing a nuisance to the neighbours with noise or parking, I didn't have to register a change of use to the building or pay business rates. He is doing two out of those three things.

LindyLou2020 · 09/11/2020 14:56

Not an expert on stuff like this, but your local authority would be interested in this guy if he's running a business, but not paying business rates.....

Nanny0gg · 09/11/2020 14:56

@Tiltheend

1. I thought garages were allowed to stay open during this lockdown
  1. Could this not count as working from home
You can't just have working garages in residential streets without permission. Think of the chemicals and oil and petrol. Not safe.
Nanny0gg · 09/11/2020 14:58

Oh and no, nobody was anywhere near vaguely apologetic for anything! I'd like to think I'd have the courtesy to knock and ask if it's ok to set up in front of my drive while simultaneously blocking it, but they just shrugged and said they wouldn't be long.

Are they a national company? I'd be putting in a complaint to them too.

PenguinIce · 09/11/2020 15:01

Op, I have exactly the same problem although I don’t think I would call what my neighbour is doing a business. Not sure how spending approx 10 hours a week fixing cars (all that are worth £200 max each) can equate to a profitable business. Cars are parked all over the street and don’t move for months at a time. My car that was parked on my own drive was damaged as they were using a grinder on a car parked on their drive which is adjacent to mine. My drive is constantly blocked and even when it is not they park so close to the edge of my drive that it is still a nightmare to get out. Oh and to top it all off my house is now unsellable due to all the scrap cars parked everywhere so I am stuck living here. I don’t know what the solution is, but if you find one op please let me know.

Feellikefrighteningyeah · 09/11/2020 15:02

Report him. Also environmental concerns with oil etc

dizzy174 · 09/11/2020 15:02

why not approach the council to request a lower council tax banding as you are living next to a business?

Jaxhog · 09/11/2020 15:03

If he's noisy - call the council.
If he's obstructing the highway or your drive - call the police

DynamoKev · 09/11/2020 15:06

@saraclara

I don't see how he can be doing MOT's. You have to be a certified tester in a certified testing station. And his drive is not going to be a certified testing station.
Assume he meant doing the work required not the actual tests.

I have a mate who is a hobbyist who caused way less agro than this and was still hassled by his Local Authority so this CF is definitely out of order - get in touch with Local Council soonest I reckon.

Lurkingforawhile · 09/11/2020 15:07

PPs have made really good points about chemicals, oil etc. That would worry me most. There’s a reason he probably wouldn’t be allowed to run that kind of business if he asked for permission. I would make sure I had lots of evidence though - videos, diary etc plus check online for any adverts

andyoldlabour · 09/11/2020 15:09

It is illegal to run a car repair/garage business from a residential property.

retailmotorlaw.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=275:repairing-cars-at-home-for-cash&catid=34:our-company&Itemid=78

Hollyhocksarenotmessy · 09/11/2020 15:10

As hes being a CF, I'd report to the council. There are restrictions on the type of businesses that can be run from residential properties, for obvious reasons. I dont think this would count as a neighbour dispute? I'm pretty sure you could work out a way to report anonymously anyway.

Re the men blocking your drive...are you a nice polite person, OP, even when you are cross? I give people the chance to respond to a friendly request, but if that gets nowhere channel my inner fish wife. Fishwife never fails.

2bazookas · 09/11/2020 15:17

Inform your local council, and they will investigate. If he's running a business he may need planning consent for change of use, and have to pay business CT.

Ferrari458 · 09/11/2020 15:17

The windscreen people - report them to their employers.
Your neighbour - he can't legally run a car mechanic business from home without approval from the council. Honestly, if he was just working away in his garage and not causing any problems I'd probably ignore it. Times are hard and all that. But if he's taking over large areas of the street and allowing situations such as your driveway being blocked then I would.
He's not going to be legally licenced to do this, which means that he won't have the proper insurance for what he's doing. Meaning if he hits your car with one of his customer's cars things could get rather complicated.

JoeCalFuckingZaghe · 09/11/2020 15:23

Report. If he was genuinely “struggling during lockdown” you think he’d be doing everything he could to keep his neighbours on his side so this kind of situation wouldn’t arise, affecting his ability to make money. If he was being nice, not blocking access, apologising for the noise etc then I’d give him a pass. Once the twatty behaviour started and you ASKED him to be more considerate then he’s fair game.

netstaller · 09/11/2020 15:25

Just report he's taking the piss

Felifox · 09/11/2020 15:32

I would quietly take the registration no of these vehicles, go on the DVLA site to check if they have a current MOT, insurance and tax so can be legally parked on the street. Clearly when he refers to carrying out MOT's he means repairs to vehicles. What type of work is he carrying out, is he welding or spraying? Is it safe?

Are cars on the street for a while, ie is he a S/H car dealer? As @Lowkeevslucille says if you put the house on the market prospective buyers will be put off by his workshop.o

cortex10 · 09/11/2020 15:37

We had something similar. I reported to the business rates team at the council. Not sure if it made a difference but the vehicles soon disappeared.

BeaMends · 09/11/2020 15:38

Garages are allowed to remain open and you are allowed to work from home.

What you aren't allowed to do is run a garage like this in a residential area without the proper permission etc from the council. You are not supposed to use the street for parking either. If he is running a business from that address, then he should be paying business rates too.

Lovemusic33 · 09/11/2020 15:39

Report to who? I don’t understand.

He’s fixing cars outside his house, pretty sure there is no law against it. Yes it’s a pain if he blocks your house but I’m sure you can come to some agreement. Maybe stop curtain twitching and find something else to worry yourself about?

Most people on my road run a business from home, yes there are extra vans/cars and sometimes some noise but that’s pretty normal?

DespairingHomeowner · 09/11/2020 15:50

What he’s doing is illegal, unjustified (garages are open) and should be reported

However, I’d be wary of getting into a neighbour dispute you have to declare

I’d get around this by asking any local family/friends to report to council on my behalf

BefuddledPerson · 09/11/2020 15:53

He’s fixing cars outside his house, pretty sure there is no law against it.

There are laws against it. Fixing your own car is not the same as fixing multiple cars for money.

Hopeisnotastrategy · 09/11/2020 15:53

Could this not count as working from home?

You can't just up sticks and transfer operations regardless of what you do. What if he ran an abbatoir, or a pig farm? 😄

m0therofdragons · 09/11/2020 15:57

@Lovemusic33 actually yes there is a law against running a garage from your home. The council is who you report it to.

BlairWaldorfLovesShopping · 09/11/2020 16:01

@Lovemusic33

Report to who? I don’t understand.

He’s fixing cars outside his house, pretty sure there is no law against it. Yes it’s a pain if he blocks your house but I’m sure you can come to some agreement. Maybe stop curtain twitching and find something else to worry yourself about?

Most people on my road run a business from home, yes there are extra vans/cars and sometimes some noise but that’s pretty normal?

Sounds like maybe some of your neighbours need reporting! Grin