Parking advice please

[gonewiththegin]

Hi all, not sure if this is the correct place.

I have moved in to a house a few years ago that had a driveway but not dropped the kerb. As far as I can’t tell this had been done around 10 years ago and no issues. There are concrete blocks against the kerbside to act as a ramp.

Letter received form council today telling me I have 14 days to remove the ramps as they are an obstruction on the road. If I do not they will remove themselves and bill me.

AIBU to think I shouldn’t have to fit the bill for this? I bought the house and I am not responsible for the obstruction. I do agree that it is that however I bought the house and surely not responsible for something that was done long before I purchased.

Do you use them? If yes, then IMHO I would say it's not unreasonable to expect you to apply for a proper dropped kerb and it's unfortunate if you didn't discuss the legalities of the drive with your conveyancing solicitor when you made the purchase.

If you don't use them, tell the council they are nothing to do with you and you would be very grateful if they'd remove the obstruction someone else has left there.

As I understand it it is illegal to drive across a footpath. They are not generally built to take the weight of a car. That's why a dropped kerb is important as it should include any reinforcement to allow a car to cross the footpath.

But if you don't have a car, don't allow others to park on your "patio" then I would state this to the city and say you were unaware of the situation and ask why you should be responsible for what some other person has done to city property.

Where I used to live there was no off road parking so a number of people paved their front gardens and claimed access and got really nasty with anyone who quite legally parked in front of the house either restricting access onto the property or sometimes blocking a car in. The city was firmly on the side of those parking legally.

You've clearly been using it to access your patio so I guess that might be what makes it your responsibility? Will it cost much to remove it? Can't you hit it with a hammer and take the hardcore to the tip?

Some really good advice here.

I would definitely check your paperwork from the sale of the property. However, I also think that you will have to accept responsibility.

And if you are using the off street parking, I also think that you should check the council bylaws because it also might be that you cannot cross the footpath without a dropped kerb. I think it is so in my council area. And certainly, if you are needing off street parking, you will need to go through the process of legally obtaining one now.

We very nearly bought a house with a driveway but no dropped kerb.

After speaking to a solicitor friend we were told we have no legal access to this driveway due to the lack of dropped kerb and anyone could park in front of the house without being considered to be blocking our access.

On further inspection it seems owners had applied for a dropped kerb and been rejected due to a tree that would need removing.

There were many reasons for backing out of this house but this was one.

Unfortunately as you are using the blocks to get access to your property and they were almost certainly installed by previous owners I'm pretty sure you would be liable for the cost of removal. I say this we were warned repairing costs for any damage to the kerb or pavement outside the house we viewed as a clear result of vehicle access would be billed to us.

I'm surprised this wasn't bought up by your solicitors when you purchased.

as pps have said, it’s not a driveway without a dropped kerb. It’s a patio. This should have been addressed when you bought it.

The ramps are not only obstructing the night way, they are preventing someone from parking there, as they have a right to do (because it’s not a driveway). So they are helping you to use it as a driveway in more ways than one. I think it might also be illegal to drive across the pavement if it’s not a dropped kerb.

I agree with pp who says if you ever want to be able to use this as a driveway then you should engage with the council and try to sort it.

Very simple, you don't have a driveway, you have a paved lawn that you park your car on. To have a driveway, the council would of needed to approve an application for it, they consider the lack of parking a dropped kerb woukd have on the neighbourhood during this process. If approved, you have to use approved contractors to drop the kerb.
As shitty as it is, you're going to be liable for removal.
Not sure if you could submit a retrospective application? But I dont think you can.
Take uo the illegal highway obstruction and apply for an official dropped kerb would be best.

@Santaiscovidfree

Ah a patio with aspirations... Apply for a dropped kerb and pay up. Or it isn't a drive at all.

Patio with aspirations, I like it 👌

I’d write back and say they're nothing to do with you. Send them the proof of purchase date. And look if they're in any pictures from before that date, Google maps might help with that.
They cant prove that they're anything to do with your house and they can't just take money out your bank account. The state of the street outside your house is none of your concern

Eh? It’s everything to do with the OP! They’ve bought the house and have been merrily using unlawful access to a driveway that very possibly shouldn’t be there. Pay for the dropped kerb!

I’m not understanding the financial implications of removing the blocks either? I’m visualising them as cinder blocks so surely you just walk outside and lift them up?

In terms of removing the blocks, you can tell the council they aren’t yours and they’re free to remove them. But you can’t prevent them being removed. If you want to park on your property you will need to apply for a dropped kerb and pay for it. Otherwise you won’t be able to sell your house as having a driveway, which will reduce its value. You may have recourse with your solicitor if they failed to identify that your house was fraudulently marketed as having a driveway.

We do not use the driveway but is was listed as such when we bought the property and never mentioned by our solicitors. It would damage out car as the concrete blocks aren’t in line with the “driveway”.

The parking in our street is strictly on the opposite side so it’s not obstructing anyone.

I would have thought your surveyor should have picked this up if you didn't notice it at time of purchase. Might be worth a complaint there if you paid for a survey and it wasn't flagged.

Agree you should engage with the council, and let them know that you did not place the blocks.

Just respond that the blocks aren't yours and the road belongs to the council, so it is their responsibility to remove them.

Going by your update I’d contact the council and say they aren’t yours so they are welcome to move them but that you don’t think you’re liable for any charge.

Happy for them to be removed but not paying £500 we have been quoted as they are concrete.

We were planning on eventually getting the driveway redone and the kerb lowered. Will contact solicitor as property was advertised with driveway and no issue was ever highlighted that it wasn’t regarded as such

If they're concrete blocks, surely you can just ask someone to come along and move them?

@Mackerelpizza

If you want to be able to use it as a driveway you'll need to pay for a dropped kerb, so you might as well engage with the council and sort it out properly.

Exactly, get the concete cleared and drop the curb in one go.

We were planning on eventually getting the driveway redone and the kerb lowered. Will contact solicitor as property was advertised with driveway and no issue was ever highlighted that it wasn’t regarded as such

You won't be able to get a dropped kerb installed without getting permission from the council.

@gonewiththegin

We do not use the driveway but is was listed as such when we bought the property and never mentioned by our solicitors. It would damage out car as the concrete blocks aren’t in line with the “driveway”.

The parking in our street is strictly on the opposite side so it’s not obstructing anyone.

If parking is on other side, I can't see the council objecting a dropped kerb application, as it wouldn't reduce available parking in the area, unless other obstacles in the way? I woukd engage with them about having the kerb officially dropped

@vanillandhoney I am aware of that, thanks

You're happy to use the ramp to access the drive but don't want to take responsibility for it, have I got that right?!

You could have gone outside and removed the ramp in the time it's taken you to write this post

Not having a dropped kerb is the cheapskate way of having a drive. Your ramp is a trip hazard

@Burnthurst187 I didn’t use the ramp, instead of being passive aggressive you should maybe read what I have written. I can’t lift concrete as I’m not the hulk

If you still have the details from when you bought the house, you can prove to the council you didn't put the blocks there

Your OP doesn't make sense. You say you moved into a house "that had a driveway but not dropped the kerb". If the kerb isn't dropped it cannot be considered a driveway, surely?

Hi. Former highways engineer with a local authority. Well, I still am an engineer, but not currently employed due to DC duties.

You will be asked to foot the bill because the concrete blocks are only there to benefit your property.

There are a few things to think about:
The footway there will have utilities within the construction. At vehicle accesses, these utilities are lowered, giving greater protection from the impact of repeated trafficking.
You are illegally crossing the footway.
The council may want to put a streetlight or something right where you want your drive.
They will/could be blocking drainage channel paths.

To be fair it should have been flagged up when you bought the house.

If you can extend your mortgage by £2k, you will be able to cover the costs of permission and construction. (It will add more than that to the value of your house though!)