Ring doorbell hell!

[Biddums]

Hi all,

My neighbors door is right next to mine with only a brick between them. They have just got a ring doorbell (2 days ago) and I hate it!

Not only is the noise bloody annoying but it's covering my door. There is no way they can set it up to not cover both doors, they are just too close.

I don't like the fact whoever comes to my door is now on their bell cam. I also feel uneasy about the fact my kids will be on there, because you know kids leave the house, my house!

I'm pissed off that anything I buy, like a new TV, they will see and be able to have a good nose. Because they can rewatch and bloody pause.

So I need Mumsneters help. How do I go about this? Do I talk to them? How do I word it? How do I tell them that the bell they paid for has got to go? Do I offer to pay for it?

What if they say no? Do I have a leg to stand on here?

Or do I just get a family member with face covered in the night to nick it and smash it? Yes ring do replace nicked bells but not unlimited. I could get it nicked time and again.

AIBU here? Should I just accept that this is the way now? People videoing your door and kids? Idk I just feel they were wrong to get it without asking if I minded.

Funny enough a family member asked me if I wanted one about a year ago and I said no because it would invade my neighbors door.

[SarahBelles86]

I 100% agree OP. We are in the same situation with our neighbour. We have a shared drive and his camera looks directly at our car. We cannot leave the house without walking past the thing. I really hate it, it is such an invasion of privacy. I find him really creepy too so wouldn't know how to approach him to discuss it. I also think he wouldn't be willing to do anything about it and may even please him to know we don't like it. We started one of us standing in front of it while the other loads the kids in the car!

[prh47bridge]

@PerkingFaintly

prh47bridge, I have been wondering about the efficacy of making Subject Access Requests under data protection legislation to Amazon and to the owner of any Ring doorbell one encounters.

Surely if we, Joe Public, start doing that, the Ring system will collapse under its own weight?

Amazon are slurping so much data about random passer-bys and people approaching Ring doorbells without signage, they won't be able to cope. Individual users will have less data on their hands – but even less clue about how to meet data protection legislation.

Amazon would be forced to massively reduce the scope of their system.

Apologies for the belated response.

The homeowner is the data controller. Amazon is just the data processor. Subject access requests to Amazon relating to Ring doorbells will therefore fail.

There is an exemption in GDPR for personal or household activities. As long as the doorbell does not record beyond the property boundary it is covered by that exemption so an SAR would again fail. However, if a doorbell is recording images outside the property boundary the homeowner is required to respond to subject access requests, although they will only be able to provide images from the preceding 30 days - Amazon automatically delete anything older than that.

I very much doubt you could force Amazon to reduce the scope of their system in this way.

[chaosmaker]

@PerkingFaintly

prh47bridge, I have been wondering about the efficacy of making Subject Access Requests under data protection legislation to Amazon and to the owner of any Ring doorbell one encounters.

Surely if we, Joe Public, start doing that, the Ring system will collapse under its own weight?

Amazon are slurping so much data about random passer-bys and people approaching Ring doorbells without signage, they won't be able to cope. Individual users will have less data on their hands – but even less clue about how to meet data protection legislation.

Amazon would be forced to massively reduce the scope of their system.

That's a really good idea. Amazon are just growing ever more powerful by lack of understanding from the public cos they like getting tat quicker than they would and without understanding how many small companies they've shut down.

[Kinneddar]

@llGrantyll. The OP spoke to her neighbour and the problems resolved 🙄

[llGrantyll]

I think maybe you think that they care about your life far far more than they do in reality.
If It really bothers you i'd let them know politely and ask if they can work with you to (as others suggested) hang a basket that blocks the majority of your pathway or a piece of plastic next to it that does that.
Its security for you, unless you have 100's of other peoples property coming in and out of your house i don't see the issue.

[Adviceneeded4]

@Frazzledstar1 what happened to the shoe!?

[GlummyMcGlummerson]

I don't think people suggested always make notifications go off are as clever as they think. You can have it so that, whilst it records all activity, it only notifies you when the doorbell rings.

[Millybe3]

I am sure it will start to annoy them if you & your family go up & down your path to your door 40/50 times over a couple of days cos their phones will notify them & they will soon get fed up with spying on you , especially if you do this at 5 am or 11/12 at night . Just a suggestion

[stayathomer]

I think a lot of people here think you're being ott but if their own neighbour did it it would be a different story. And while they may not be doing a sliver job and inspecting it all the day I wouldn't like it. Very curtain twitchy!!!

[YourWinter]

My neighbour's front door is on the side of their house and mine's on the front, but if they were side by side I'd be delighted that they had a camera that would show who was outside my door too. But I love my wonderful neighbours.

[Frazzledstar1]

I think you’re thinking too much about this. We have a ring doorbell and the only time we ever look at footage is a) to answer if someone rings when we’re out (rare at the moment anyway as I wfh) b) if something has happened outside our house and we want to look back for more info (eg DP left his shoes on doorstep overnight and ONE went missing!) I never look at ring footage unless it’s necessary and I doubt your neighbours have any interest in spying on you or your kids. So unless you’ve got a particularly exciting life I shouldn’t worry about it!
I wouldn’t be surprised if they don’t keep it for too long as I expect the motion sensor going off every time someone approaches both your door and theirs will get quite irritating anyway! Drives me up the wall just our house!

[NewspaperTaxis]

Is the OP being precious? Some people do find this stuff annoying like the person who objects to someone reading their newspaper over their shoulder. I mean, it doesn't stop them reading, but it's irritating.

The whole Ring doorbell thing is very iffy when you look into it. I'm currently reading Privacy Is Power, a new book by Carissa Veliz, and it goes into the whole area of how much data we're handing over to Google, and what they can do with it. It's kind of like Alexa, which can pick up on your activities and harvest it for its own means.

Ring is provided by Google. The police can seize the info recorded. I hesitate to say the police are corrupt, but the fact is they can be. Look at Greater Manchester, look at the Met, look at Surrey. It's true you might be dodgy yourself to be worried about this, but let's face it, with selfies taken next to corpses (the Met), cosy relationships with Stephen Lawrence's actual killers (the Met), shooting an unarmed suspect on the Tube and coming out with a cock and bull story about it later (an op run by Cressida Dick who now runs, er, the Met) not to mention strip searches by Hampshire and Hertfordshire Police, plus vile banter, well I could go on, but do you want that crowd access to your data?

That said, Council operatives can turn funny about any CCTV you install that impinges on the road outside and not just on your property. I understand they did this with one acquaintance of mine largely I admit because they were in dispute, they wouldn't care otherwise, but there might be a legal footing there.

Smart technology can be hacked. The book I recommended goes in to this point in some detail. Someone can find out if you're away or not, the equivalent of not cancelling your milk order, they can hack a smart meter to see if you're using any electricity and if not, you're away.

Can anyone recommend a form of CCTV that is not Google related, not Nest etc and is 'ethical' or the equivalent in data terms, that is can't be hacked, can't be seized by the police, can't harvest your data?

[TalkToTheHand123]

Who are your neighbours? (as in how many, age etc)

[PinkSparklyPussyCat]

@jillybeanclevertips

There's got to be someway that this is an invasion of privacy. A basic human right. With neighbours who are not willing to consider the effectb this has on you, I would retaliate, with a gong which goes off everytime their doorbell rings. It would scare the hell out of their visitors, and mnaybe cause them to rethiunk their choice. Set up your own "Black box" Looks like a camera, but isn't.Let them think you are taking videos of them.

Unless you're a perfect neighbour then live and let live FFS! My neighbour slams the door so hard my hall door shakes, I can hear their phone calls clearly, they have no carpet and walk I can hear them walking around all the time, they drag chairs across the wooden floor. If they complained about my Ring doorbell I would have a few things to say to them and one of them would not be 'I'll remove it'! We get on very well so we just get on with our lives.

[LovelyIssues]

Unless your part of Mi5 I'm sure you're really not THAT interesting to them

[jillybeanclevertips]

There's got to be someway that this is an invasion of privacy. A basic human right. With neighbours who are not willing to consider the effectb this has on you, I would retaliate, with a gong which goes off everytime their doorbell rings. It would scare the hell out of their visitors, and mnaybe cause them to rethiunk their choice. Set up your own "Black box" Looks like a camera, but isn't.Let them think you are taking videos of them.

[Cheeseandlobster]

@Babyyodasmacarons

*The OP sounds like a character from the tv show Shameless bragging about how she would smash up the doorbell but says it wouldn’t be her and she would get someone else to do it so basically it would be some shady criminal characters.

Who even knows people like this? Unless they are rough as fuck themselves. Normal people don’t associate with criminals or criminal activity and the OP talks openly about not only committing a crime but getting in touch with criminals to do so.

Anyone who thinks this is in the realms of normality is just as unhinged as she is.*

This. You can’t just damage something because you don’t like it OP. The fact you even thought out it. You’re going to get yourself arrested but maybe that’s what you need.

This This This

I cannot believe you actually have the audacity to go round and tell them that you want it gone. I hope they tell you where to go and laugh a lot behind your back. Do you really think you and your family are that interesting to them?

[fairydustandpixies]

They are not going to be analysing every motion clip on the camera, trust me. In no time at all, when the novelty has worn off, they will just ignore it. I give it a couple of days. I have one, my neighbour whose front door is next to mine like yours has one, they're just normal now. They are a source of comfort if, like me, you live alone. I'm sure you're not so interesting that they'll be watching your every move. If you are then perhaps they're gathering evidence for the police????

[prh47bridge]

@mollypuss1 - you are partly right and partly wrong. You are right where you agreed with me but wrong on the bit where you said I was wrong

You said I was wrong in saying that a Ring doorbell falls under the same regulations as a CCTV system. Specifically, you said, "A doorbell only falls under the same regulations as a CCTV system if it records beyond the boundary of your private domestic property which includes your garden". That is not true. A doorbell that can record images always falls under the same regulations as a CCTV system. However, just as with a CCTV system, it only breaks those regulations if it records beyond your boundary (and even then it does not necessarily break the regulations).

[sheridanstar]

Why dont you take a photo of the layout of your front doors and post a link to it here so we can see what we're working with and if theres something that can be done?

[GlummyMcGlummerson]

Personally I wouldn't be bothered about it as it is some form of security for me, however I would be a bit miffed at my doorbell keep going off because you are in and out of your house. They might get fed up with soon.

The doorbell only goes off when people ring the doorbell, not when a motion is detected

[GlummyMcGlummerson]

@ruby4ever

I don't for a second believe her neighbours agreed to take it down!! As if the ring they paid for isnt 'W orking right'

Neither do I.

I think either he OP is saving face or they nodded and agreed because she sounds pretty rough TBH, but have no intention of taking it down

[KindredSpirit1]

I am glad that it has been resolved, though you could have avoided all the worry by talking to them sooner & not imagining the worse. We have cameras but not set to record audio and our neighbour was happy to have their path covered. The point is we didn’t assume anything and asked. I think most people just cannot be bothered to sit and watch the equivalent of paint drying. The main reason we got cameras is that children were petrified of anyone being outside and they could check for themselves that they were safe.
I totally agree that Amazon get away with far too much especially as they aren’t allegedly paying their fair share of tax and the Ring tone is so annoying.

[PinkSparklyPussyCat]

I’m wondering how it works in my case (not that my neighbour is bothered). We have a shared path leading to our front doors which are next to each other. The front garden is ours. As we are leasehold I presume the path belongs to the freeholder (can’t remember without checking the lease) and he would have to sort out any disputes

[mollypuss1]

@prh47bridge

The fact a doorbell can record images does not mean it definitely breaks regulations. A doorbell only falls under the same regulations as a CCTV system if it records beyond the boundary of your private domestic property which includes your garden

Wrong. It always falls under the same regulations. Just like a CCTV system, it is fine if it only records things within the boundary of your property. Just like a CCTV system there are restrictions if it records beyond your boundary.

You are correct that it does not break any regulations if it only records within the boundary of your property. I did not say anything contrary to that. But you are quite wrong to say that it only falls under the same regulations as a CCTV system if it records beyond the boundary. It always falls under the same regulations.

If you want to disagree with that I suggest you take it up with the ICO since they agree with me.

You seem to be telling me I’m wrong by explaining to me why I’m right?

I have just checked and the ICO states “Data protection laws don’t apply if the cameras cover only the user’s own private property, including their garden” which is what I said.