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.

[quote JesusIsAnyNameFree]@MikeWozniaksGloriousTache

It says the grass is next to the drive, so it's clearly her front garden. That doesn't work with your point though, does it.

Just because she may have worked around the OPs car for the past 2 years it doesn't mean she should have to anymore. Why should she have to wait until the OP moves or do it during the weekend?[/quote]
Ok, I'm probably just stupid, but why would the OP need to wait until the OP moves or wait for the weekend to mow the lawn? Am I missing something?

Not a popular question, but Op what do you drive?
HG lorry judging by some of the more frothy replies.

I live in a London terrace, used to live in a Brighton terrace. There’s never not a car a metre from my front window.

It does also sound like you're treating it like a car park. Which is quite cheeky and might be winding her up. You're not doing anything wrong, but it's perhaps not massively considerate as the owner didn't purchase a house with a car park right in front of it, which I'm guessing is what it feels like to her.
The owner did purchase a house with a road outside it, with no parking restrictions, hence it is to be expected that a car might park there.

I’m not sure if people are kind of understanding the op parks right in front of her front garden. So the woman is looking at her car all day every day.

@RichardMarxisinnocent - because the OP has said in one of her posts that there is no pavement, the woman's lawn goes straight down to the road as does her drive. Therefore, quite difficult to cut all the grass.

I’m not sure if people are kind of understanding the op parks right in front of her front garden. So the woman is looking at her car all day every day.

Only of she spends all day looking out of her window.

@Bluntness100

I’m not sure if people are kind of understanding the op parks right in front of her front garden. So the woman is looking at her car all day every day.

And?

[quote Thiscantreallybehappening]**@RichardMarxisinnocent - because the OP has said in one of her posts that there is no pavement, the woman's lawn goes straight down to the road as does her drive. Therefore, quite difficult to cut all the grass.[/quote]
The comment about cutting the grass was a threat to damage the OP’s car, not a genuine need to cut the grass.

@WowIlikereallyhateyou

I don’t blame the woman who’s home you park outside everyday. My mum experiences the same, so her visitors, some who are disabled cannot get to park anywhere near her house. It is irritating, why not park somewhere where you are not affecting someone else or at least refrain from parking there all the time. You are being unfair and if others constantly experienced this and it affected their visitors they eould be pissed of at you.

This woman has FOUR car spaces on her drive!!

@Crocidura

TBF though, VED is the mechanism by which you buy the right for your car to be on the road. And it does go into the big pot which pays for roads.

I know that it just amuses me that people who pay VED think they own the roads because they pay 'road tax' which they seem to think is used solely for roads which it is isn't and hasn't been for eons - all taxpayers pay for the roads whether they own a vehicle or not.

Wonder if the home owner has mowed the OP and her car as she seems not to be returning.

@Bluntness100

I’m not sure if people are kind of understanding the op parks right in front of her front garden. So the woman is looking at her car all day every day.

She'll see the car when she's looking out of her window. Onto a public road with public spaces for cars to be parked!

@MikeWozniaksGloriousTache
*But it's not really about the mowing is it?
Of course it’s not. There’s nothing to suggest this is even her lawn, just a “patch of grass outside her house” I have that and we definitely don’t own it. She has had multiple opportunities to mow it outside of OP parking there (post, 3pm school run and weekends) if the car is actually causing problems. And if she genuinely can’t mow it any other time then after 2 years the grass would be so pissing long she wouldn’t even be able to see the car grin

The woman said to OP "I should make you aware that I will be cutting my grass today" Also, OP has referred to the patch of grass as belonging to the woman in another post. Both these comments suggest the grass does belong to the woman and also suggests that OP knows this.

@Doris86

The comment about cutting the grass was a threat to damage the OP’s car, not a genuine need to cut the grass.

You do not know that at all, that is just what you want to believe. To be fair, OP has parked there every day for 2 years and the woman hasn't said anything before now.

@Bluntness100

I’m not sure if people are kind of understanding the op parks right in front of her front garden. So the woman is looking at her car all day every day.

Goodness. How dull for her. She should get on with some gardening. Or do some housework maybe. Or watch gogglebox.

[quote Thiscantreallybehappening]**@Doris86

The comment about cutting the grass was a threat to damage the OP’s car, not a genuine need to cut the grass.

You do not know that at all, that is just what you want to believe. To be fair, OP has parked there every day for 2 years and the woman hasn't said anything before now.[/quote]
She’s said nothing because she has no cause for complaint.

It does also sound like you're treating it like a car park.

That's exactly what the OP is doing and it is cheeky to use a residential street you have no connection to as your own personal car park whilst you go off to work.

@Mmn654123
She’s said nothing because she has no cause for complaint.

Again, you are assuming you don't know that for certain. All you say is that OP can park there legally. Yes, she can but is parking near the entrance to the drive and making it difficult for the woman to get in and out of her drive, has the woman had to do lawn mowing around OP for 2 years and she is fed up with it.

[quote JesusIsAnyNameFree]@MikeWozniaksGloriousTache

It says the grass is next to the drive, so it's clearly her front garden. That doesn't work with your point though, does it.

Just because she may have worked around the OPs car for the past 2 years it doesn't mean she should have to anymore. Why should she have to wait until the OP moves or do it during the weekend?[/quote]
Do you mean you think she’s parking in the woman’s garden, on her lawn?

Or that the woman chooses to have no fence or wall between her lawn and the road.
Which is her right. But then she can expect to encounter parked cars in front of her lawn.

@BronwenFrideswide

It does also sound like you're treating it like a car park.

That's exactly what the OP is doing and it is cheeky to use a residential street you have no connection to as your own personal car park whilst you go off to work.

Is it "cheeky?"

Is she doesn't do it, is anyone else who then chooses to use the opportunity "cheeky" also?

Or is it the case the residents should contact the council repeatedly, then fork out for a CPZ and permits if they want control over their street, like everyone else has to when parking becomes an issue?

The OP is perfectly within their rights to park there.

sent too early, maybe the woman has put up with obstacles and bad parking by OP for 2 years and today she decided to say something.

@Bluntness100

I’m not sure if people are kind of understanding the op parks right in front of her front garden. So the woman is looking at her car all day every day.

Only if she stands and stares out her window all day every day! Alternatively she could just get on with her life.

But the fact is, it’s legal unless it’s permit holders only. So frothing at the mouth about it is ridiculous.

The lady has space for four cars in her drive so the OP isn’t preventing anyone from parking. I get the annoyance if the resident doesn’t have a drive. We face this when we visit my MIL, finding a place to park can be tricky, as she has to park her own car outside her house.

[quote Thiscantreallybehappening]**@Mmn654123
She’s said nothing because she has no cause for complaint.

Again, you are assuming you don't know that for certain. All you say is that OP can park there legally. Yes, she can but is parking near the entrance to the drive and making it difficult for the woman to get in and out of her drive, has the woman had to do lawn mowing around OP for 2 years and she is fed up with it.[/quote]
She would only have to mow around the Ops car of the Op was parking on her lawn. Where did that idea come from?

And there is no suggestion it makes leaving her driveway difficult. If that was the issue I am quite sure she would have complained to Op about it rather than scraping the barrel with her mowing accident scenario.......

@Bluntness100

I’m not sure if people are kind of understanding the op parks right in front of her front garden. So the woman is looking at her car all day every day.

Yes I always spend my days standing in front of my house, back to my long luxurious driveway and capacious parking spaces, gazing at a car which has the audacity to be parked legally on a street. Absolutely nothing would take priority over this ritual except using a lawnmower to direct missiles of gravel at parked car and perhaps also accidentally scrape it.

We have people round where we live who park their cars , then catch the fat link bus to the airport and go on holiday for a week !