Note left on car after parking outside someone's house.

[Thumbs]

Yesterday, a car was parked outside my house and there was no space on the pavement along my house so I parked around the corner.
There was no dropped curb so naturally presumed I could park there.

Spent my day doing things around the house when DH comes in saying there's a note on the car and that i've parked in front of their drive.
I read the note and it said something along the lines of
"Please don't park across our drive again, there are plenty of spaces on this street. Thanks."

I have never met this person despite living on the same street and never really took notice of their house to have known they have a "drive". Most of the houses on my street do not have drives apart from the odd one who has had their kerbs dropped.

But I was always led to believe that a 'drive' always has a dropped kerb. There is no dropped kerb outside their house.
Anyway I moved the car but DH told me it's obviously a drive even though it doesnt have a dropped kerb and he apologised to the owners of the house.

I feel stupid now because according to DH it was obvious.

And OP, I'd show your DH this thread.

OP's DH, why did you apologise, when it was nothing to do with you?

Hmmm I mean it’s just a simple mistake, I would probably say sorry to them

I'm sorry I didn't realise that you park your car on your patio.

I'm sorry I stopped you from illegally driving on the pavement.

I'm sorry I annoyed you by parking legally outside your house.

Yes, you could have fun with that one.

[quote Thumbs]@KarmaStar yes it's common sense that a drive must have a dropped curb.[/quote]
Again though OP, why does it matter when you can usually park elsewhere and only parked where you did because you assumed it wouldn't be a problem?

It's not like that specific place is the only space left the majority of the time.

I can't see why this even matters at all! You've not got a ticket or been clamped or towed. Someone has asked you not to park over what they use as their driveway (even if it doesn't have the dropped kerb) and you can just park in one of many other spaces?!

The issue here was that your DH gave you a negative reaction because of the sort of person he is, not because you did anything particularly wrong. Because he's a people pleaser he hoofed it around there quick smart to apologise. He's probably the sort who couldn't able to sleep nights if he thought next door's cat had a bad thought about him. If it were me I'd be absolutely outraged that my husband took it upon himself to apologise for something I did. Like I was a child.
If your DH had said 'oh right what'll we have for dinner' you would just have moved on with your life.
You didn't do anything wrong. To go over and apologise was over the top I think. How were you to know that the person in that house even had a car?

@gingerwhinger0

If it looks like someone is using the space in front of there house as a driveway, i.e. paved over and with big gates on it, then its a bit knobby to park in front of it irrespective of a dropped kerb. Maybe legally you are correct, but its just common courtesy not to do it.

I think it’s even more common courtesy not to deliberately damage public property by driving over it several times a day, causing damage not only to the pavement and kerb but also possibly to services like water meters, hydrants and drains.

Could people please CURB their spelling KERB incorrectly?

And ignore their patio with aspirations. Planning permission could make those aspirations become a reality. Until then @BarbaraofSeville's apology suggestions are perfect.

Print out relevant part of the highway code re: dropped curbs and driveways. Post through their door.

I think I’d be tempted to get a cheap car, tax and insure it then just leave it there. Teach the cheeky cunts a lesson.

YANBU

If my DH went and apologised to neighbours on my behalf in this situation I would be thinking he was a distinctly wet lettuce and also rather disloyal.

Technically you may be right, but it is often clear that peke do in fact park there.

@Bibidy Why does it matter?

Well, for starters it's illegal to drive on the pavement. It causes damage to non-reinforced pavements, and can also damage utilities lying beneath the pavement. Which can cost a lot of money, time and disruption to fix (this is why a dropped kerb also includes reinforced pavements). And these damaged pavements, kerbs and utility pipes, etc can cause disruption to neighbours, too.

So if people want a drive, pay the costs and obtain the correct permission.

In some areas, councils are restricting the dropped kerbs, as the resulting new driveways are reducing the amount of green area for rainwater runoff, and increasing the possibility of floods.

No dropped kerb = no ‘Official’ drive.

I’d be embarrassed if my OH went to apologise to when I’d done nothing wrong.

Yes it should have a dropped kirb but if they've got gates which make it look like a drive always just park somewhere else if you can.

Kerb**

If you intend to drive a vehicle over the footway into your driveway off a highway, then you will need a dropped kerb. If you do not have dropped kerb, you must not drive over the footway. If you do so, you are breaking the law and enforcement action could be taken to prevent such practice.

Your husband should not have apologised.

You should have them a note:

Please arrange to have a dropped kerb outside your house. Then you won't have to worry about anyone parking in front of your 'drive'. Just visit www.gov.uk/apply-dropped-kerb. Thanks.

In theory if there is no dropped kerb, you were okay to park there. But tbh, I would have noted they had a drive, so would potentially want access to it. It’s just about being a considerate person, not always about what’s legally right or not.

But tbh, I would have noted they had a drive, so would potentially want access to it.

But as has already been asked multiple times how on earth do you tell if its just a paved front garden or if its a 'drive' ? Surely the only real clue is a dropped kerb??

@dontdisturbmenow

It's not like you've got a parking ticket, they've just left a note and now you know they need access and not to park there. You're not in any trouble so why worry and go back and forward about it?
This exactly. Why make a drama of it? You parked there in good faith. They left a message to say you'd park in front of their drive. Drop curb or not, if you parked in good faith and wouldn't have otherwise if you thought you were blocking them, all you have to is not park there again as you've managed all this time. Matter resolved. Why turn it into a conflictual situation?

Or OP can keep parking there as she is allowed to do. Matter resolved.

@Thumbs

My DH apologised because I genuinely was not seeing how I was in the wrong so was not going to apologise

Are you saying he went round to their house and rang the bell and apologised?! These are total strangers, right?

I would be beyond furious if my DH did this.

littlemisslockdown because if someone uses part of their front as a parking for cars, there would be car sized access. If not, I would assume there would be a wall and pedestrian gateway. If people don’t have a wall or fence separating the front of their house from the public path, then it suggests it’s that way for access for parking. That would be my understanding anyway.

@IsFinnRogersDead

If it's not a dropped kerb it's just a patio with aspirations.

Perhaps you could print out your council's page about applying for planning permission for a dropped kerb and ram it through their door?

This made me laugh 😂😂

We have a patio with aspirations outside our home then! We rent, there’s a drive but no dropped Kerb! Since we don’t own we won’t be applying and spending money for the landlord! I’d be annoyed if I couldn’t park on my patio since someone blocked it 🤣 it’s clearly a drive

I'm a bit on the fence actually, no pun intended but I think you really should have noticed ,dropped kerb or not it wasn't very observant of you, which is a very important part of safe driving to be aware of what's going on around us and not to notice an opening wide enough for a drive a few feet to your left as you parked is a bit worrying.

You said that you have space to park a car on your own similar concreted front garden. Have you asked your DH why he doesn’t do that then? If he’s so adamant that the neighbours have a drive...