Really shaken up. Did I do anything wrong here?

[seventymodules]

For past two years I have done the school run, I park on a street near the school. There is a detached house with a driveway and a patch of grass next to the driveway. I park in front of the patch of grass, not blocking the driveway whatsoever.

Once I drop my child at school I get collected by my workmate (we are cleaners so have company car) and then work till 3 until I have to return for school run and car.

This morning as I was getting out of the car the lady in the house came charging out, she said 'can you stop parking your car in front of my house?' I said 'it's a public road' and she said 'you park out here 5 days a week, if you refuse to move it I should make you aware that I will be cutting my grass today and any damage to your car is not my responsibility' said with a sarcastic smile on her face, she then walked back into the house shaking her head.

I've left the car but worried now she is going to damage it.

Am I being unreasonable parking it there? It's a public road and not on her property at all.

The biggest issue I can see with this is that it will eventually ruin the parking for people who live there. Our friends live on the outskirts of London and parking was always free but people kept parking their cars there all day and getting the train into the city so the rules changed and you now need permits.

Can anyone explain why a car parked near, but not on your property annoys people so much?

One of my neighbours got really angry and threatening because my BIL parked outside their house (not blocking their driveway or anything like it) when he was visiting for a few hours. We tell our visitors not to park there now because we don’t want any hassle, but I just don’t see why it would annoy them.

I think it's really rude. We lived a village previously and our next door neighbours Visitors parked outside of our house 2/3 times per day (neighbours were elderly). I didn't say anything as they needed the care but it drove me mad and was a factor in us moving as my own visitors and tradesmen struggled to park every single time.

Do you park on the grass @seventymodules? Even just a couple of wheels?
If so then she may have a point as it is probably her responsibility to cut and part of her property even if it’s the other side of her fence. That’s how it is on our road. She was rude I’m not justifying her response.
If you’re 100% on the road then point that out to her.

It’s amazing the amount of people on this thread saying it’s cheeky to legally park your car on a public road.

An enormous white van used to park all day, every day in front of our house. It might have been a "legal" space but it didn't stop me from feeling extremely annoyed to see it every day outside my window.

And although it didn't technically block the drive, it made turning right very awkward because I couldn't see past it, and it parked a shade too close meaning I had to really go out in the road to avoid it's front corner.

Can anyone explain why
I think it's to do with personal space, you start to feel invaded if people get within a certain zone, not rational just an instinctive thing 🤷

She sounds like one of them idiots that put cones out to keep the road clear outside their house on a public road. Ignore her she is definitely one of the people who has nothing better to do with their time

It's a suburban norm, that most people are/were once upon a time generally aware of. Obviously, in inner city areas all bets are off, but where there is space to avoid doing such things, most people know it's best not to park in the same spot repeatedly or at length. It grates.

Two freaking years! Five days a week! You'd get your car torched for much less than that some places I've lived.

@unwuthering

It's a suburban norm, that most people are/were once upon a time generally aware of. Obviously, in inner city areas all bets are off, but where there is space to avoid doing such things, most people know it's best not to park in the same spot repeatedly or at length. It grates.

Two freaking years! Five days a week! You'd get your car torched for much less than that some places I've lived.

Sorry to hear you've lived in such places

YABU - a public road isn’t a carpark - even if you are legally able to park there..

@Peachee

YABU - a public road isn’t a carpark - even if you are legally able to park there..

Huh?

Legally you haven't done anything wrong. I can imagine it's irritating that you leave you car there all day 5 days a week especially as it's so close to her house. But equally you are allowed to do so and it's not stopping her using her drive.

Maybe she has visitors who can’t park or you’re parking too close to her drive so she finds it hard getting in or out?

So why doesn’t she say so instead of being aggressive and threatening to damage OP’s car?

Sorry to hear you've lived in such places

Oh, no need. Alternatively, you'd arrange for four to six enormous men to come and lift it to another position!

People are really territorial, I think.

Op as it’s a “wide quiet road” surely you can mix it up a bit? Why her spot? For all you know she may have weekly shopping delivery or perhaps Carers coming in twice a week for example, even that means you’ve basically block booked the space for two years from Monday to Friday! That’s mad!

I think she quite restrained actually!

I can see both sides of this. You aren't doing anything wrong because she doesn't own the road but at the same time, the people who live opposite me have a 1 car driveway and 2 cars so every day they park their biggest car outside my house. It doesn't effect my parking as we have a driveway but it's not nice to look at all day and it makes it awkward to get off the drive and turn left.

I think if I were you I'd remain stubborn and continue parking there for the next few days, then change it after that. I wouldn't alternate straight away purely because she was such an arse when she approached you.

Residents permits would eliminate everyone’s ability to park there if they are a non resident. It’s possible the mower woman is the kind of resident who is lobbying for that sort of change. Residents permits are normally introduced because people are sick of non residents parking on their road long term. It’s not that unusual a viewpoint.

@Doris86

It’s amazing the amount of people on this thread saying it’s cheeky to legally park your car on a public road.

It's not that it's cheeky, but it's annoying and inconsiderate. The roads in a residential area are set up to cater to residents and their cars. When people start using it as their work/ school car park it makes it difficult for the residents to find parking spots.

@DandelionRose

An enormous white van used to park all day, every day in front of our house. It might have been a "legal" space but it didn't stop me from feeling extremely annoyed to see it every day outside my window.

And although it didn't technically block the drive, it made turning right very awkward because I couldn't see past it, and it parked a shade too close meaning I had to really go out in the road to avoid it's front corner.

Former neighbours of ours had a huge silver van - they had a water sport/sailing shop or something - which was parked outside ours a lot more often than theirs. It was an eyesore. Legally they weren't doing anything wrong but they were being very inconsiderate.

I don't understand parking etiquette in the UK - as long as you pay road tax you are legally allowed to park on any street without restrictions unless stated otherwise.
My neighbour across the road used to shout out her window whenever anyone would park outside her house legally, she has driveway and doesn't own a car. One day someone shouldn't back they were only dropping something into a house and wouldn't be long but that they paid their road tax and it was legally parked. After a bit of a heated discussion she has never shouted out her window about parking again.

I have people park outside my house all the time it's a pain as I have a disabled badge for my oldest I could apply for a disabled space outside but is it really worth it for a short walk? And no guarantee I'll have the badge forever.

If it's legally parked has road tax insurance and MOT nothing can be done! People really need to let it go and not expect to own the road they live on.

[quote SquirtleSquad]@MiddleParking it wouldn't invalidate your insurance unless she starts parking on the road instead of the drive most of the time. She could just move her car to that space at 7.30am until after the school run if she's so inclined and it wouldn't invalidate anything.[/quote]
This.

This would annoy me as well!

Why not park in different places and give her a day off? She doesn’t want to look at your car all day long. It’s inconsiderate.

Legally allowed yes- morally it's a shit thing to do and would annoy the hell out of me too.

I would be highly irritated if a stranger had been leaving their car on a full-time basis outside my lawn for two years and treating it as their permanent parking space without thinking that that was OTT or could be inconveniencing their delivery drivers or visitors. Switch it up a bit!