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.

@Rillington

Legally you haven't done anything wrong. However you are taking the piss not varying where you park. That's really cheeky just to abandon your car there every day.

She's not "abandoning" her car. She is parking it perfectly legally on a public street. Jesus.

Well yes you can park there. But I would be seriously pissed off if it were my house you were parking outside every. single. day.
Can you not find somewhere else to park?

@Thiscantreallybehappening

So, what would posters say is this was posted.

I live on a quiet residential street, near a school. There is no restricted parking but most people drop off children at school then pick them up at 3pm. So people do park there but only around school times. This one woman has, for the past 2 years parked directly outside my house everyday Mon - Fri and she is parked from 9am-3pm. She drops her DC at school and then comes back to the car, where she is picked up by someone. I am assuming she goes to work because I don't see her again until 3pm when she is dropped back at the car, she then collects DC from school. I have no idea why she is always outside my house and why she doesn't park elsewhere in the road sometimes. Anyway, this is my dilemma - my front garden is extends to the road as does my driveway, there is no pavement. So where she parks there is no gap between her car and my lawn.

I'm a keyworker and today is my day off, I want to cut my grass but I can't because I will damage her car. For the next few days I am then working so unable to cut the grass. I am fed up with having to juggle this job around her parking.

AIBU to ask her to park elsewhere some days or do I just have to accept this?

^This.

Imagine that the very first poster replies, "Oh, OP, that would do my head in. Could you have a quiet word with her and explain the situation?"

Then like a school of fish, 95% of the responses follow suit: "The cheeky mare!" "How dare she!" "What a CF..." with a few dissenting voices: "It's a public road, she can park where she wants," "Are you on glue?" "Give your head a wobble," etc.

Emboldened by the responses, OP thinks, I could write her a little note... What will I say? Practices note... Chickens out from putting note on windscreen. Sucks it up. This situation goes on for 2 years...

Then one day, after a long bad few weeks at work, she thinks screw this and goes out to have a word about the parking and her grass she has to mow on the parker's schedule and is met by a CF response and a blank entitled stare, "It's a public road."

Note: Everyone involved recognises it's a public road, but it is a "wide, quiet road" (as stated by the OP/entitled 5 day a week, 6 hour parker) with plenty of other spots to choose from.

House owner loses her rag. Afterwards, mortified, she weeps for hours. That night she bucks up and resolves to park there herself when she wants to mow. The next day, the permanent parker drives up and is outraged, "Someone is in my spot!!!"

Well, it's not against the law but it would honestly annoy me. I'm biased though because this was a huge issue for me when I was renting a room in the house of a couple I'm friends with.

As they both had cars, I was forced to park on the road outside the house. It was ok at first but we then had a huge influx of people parking there when the council put double yellows on the next road down (slightly closer to town).

I'd get back from my night shift and have to park literally five mins from my house as all the other roads were double yellow. It was a real fucker when it was raining.

Technically, they had as much right as me, but it still irked me that I couldn't park close to my house because strangers who lived miles away wanted to save £2. It was often the same girl in a mini too and sometimes she would be getting out her car and give me a smug look just as I turned into our cul de sac (she knew I lived there).

Frustratingly, they painted double yellows on there a few months after I moved out.

For some reason, I'd find it less annoying for people to park on the road if there was a pavement separating the fence and road.

It would annoy me more if it was a detached house and people were basically parking right at the edge of my lawn. It's feel more like they were parking 'on my property' than 'on my street' although I appreciate that sounds bonkers.

I must admit that I've accidentally 'lost' the camera footage on a couple of occasions where our truck drivers have taken wing mirrors off of badly parked cars. In every instance the truck wouldn't have been able to get past nor a fire engine. If somebody sees a truck making a delivery and still decides to block it in they're either a prick or totally oblivious and need a wake up call IMO!

Even if the OPs car was damaged she would have to prove by witness, cctv or other means that the householder and not someone else had deliberately damaged it. Courts are not interested in anecdotal accounts. Its a bit of a cheek to always park opposite the same house and it would be common courtesy to place your vehicle in different spots. Just because you CAN do something does not mean that you SHOULD!

Just because you CAN do something does not mean that you SHOULD!

Indeed. I'd be perfectly within my legal rights to sit next to a mother and young child enjoying their lunch outside and light up a fat cigar whilst they were eating. Doesn't make it right.

@MrsTroutfireVII

Just because you CAN do something does not mean that you SHOULD!

Indeed. I'd be perfectly within my legal rights to sit next to a mother and young child enjoying their lunch outside and light up a fat cigar whilst they were eating. Doesn't make it right.

Ah yes cancer causing second hand smoke being inflicted onto a baby is exactly the same as being annoyed because you can see someone’s car

Ok, well let's try another example.

Those of you who live in nice cul de sacs with a bit of grass for the kids to play on. None of you would mind me and a few random mates rocking up several times a week and getting pissed on the grass? You'd just say "fair enuff, we don't own it".

@MrsTroutfireVII

Ok, well let's try another example.

Those of you who live in nice cul de sacs with a bit of grass for the kids to play on. None of you would mind me and a few random mates rocking up several times a week and getting pissed on the grass? You'd just say "fair enuff, we don't own it".

Public drunken disorderly vs being annoyed because you can see a car Try again

Who said anything about disorderly? Just a nice picnic and some drinks on the grass opposite your house.

I live on a small road and due to roadworks people keep parking on my road outside my house so when I have several bags it’s a nightmare.

However it is a public road and she has no right to speak to you like that.

You arent doing anything wrong legally, but I think I'd be pretty pissed off if someones vehicle was outside my property 5 days a week. It isnt her land but it's a nuisance doing that. Like someone mentioned also if someone is coming over to hers and some strangers car is always there. And just always seeing some strangers car directly outside my house daily would be annoying.

Honestly, I'd just let a tire down and chuckle as I watched from between the blinds. 😂 Wouldn't do any real damage, just major inconvenience.

When I'm out with our truck drivers, I try and encourage them not to take shortcuts down residential streets. They're perfectly entitled to do so unless there's a weight restriction but who wants massive trucks thundering past and shaking the window panes. It's common courtesy like not making your car a permanent fixture outside somebody's kitchen window.

Generally speaking it would be better to park somewhere else and away from the grassy area since it could obstruct and inconvenience people in wheelchairs or people with pushchairs, as they might have to go out further into the road around your car in order to not have to go through the grass especially on a wet and muddy day. I also think you should be changing it up and parking elsewhere some days. You mention that her drive is raised on a hill, and generally you shouldn’t really be parking on the the brow of a hill, I.e, the top part of it either.

@Zzelda

Well, firstly we only have OP's word for it that there is space for four cars. That would certainly be an unusually large driveway and I question her judgment on that.

Secondly, she could be using it for anything - cars, a caravan, a skip, a truck. That doesn't automatically disentitle her from having visitors.

Thirdly, some delivery vehicles still won't necessarily fit into the driveway but still definitely need to be near the house.

Fourthly, if we're talking about people with unused spaces, how about the unused space near OP's house? What's wrong with walking to school or taking public transport?

You're calling the Op a liar? That's outrageous! I have room for 4 cars on my driveway comfortable and I'm in a semi. A large detached house can easily have room for four cars. It depends how much of the front is dedicated to lawn and how much to driveway.

Can't believe you 'question her judgement' on something as simple as that.

Her visitors have things called legs and can walk down the road. The unused space near Ops house may well be occupied by someone else - who cares? - and she doesn't have to walk or use public transport because she has a car and she isn't the problem here. The home owner having a tantrum and threatening criminal damage is the one who seems to have lost control of her senses; Op is behaving like a normal rational human being.

@notangelinajolie

Well yes you can park there. But I would be seriously pissed off if it were my house you were parking outside every. single. day. Can you not find somewhere else to park?

Why would the Op go out of her way to park somewhere less convenient when this space is available?

This thread just highlights the difference of opinion/experience as to what residential roads are for.

In London and other cities, I know from living there, there are often no driveways or certainly insufficient space to park off road, and its standard for residential roads to be lined with cars most of the time. Councils regularly limit non residents from using residential roads as car parks by adding resident only parking restrictions.

In suburban towns where houses often have driveways, it is not the norm for residential roads to routinely have cars along them. There are seldom more than one or two in my road and those are occasional visitors or tradespeople, parked for short periods.

In these areas people do not consider residential roads as suitable places to leave a car parked all day every day, when you aren't visiting anyone in the road and have zero connection with the place. Roads are considered places cars drive along, not car parks. Where I live OP would have had numerous shirty notes on the windscreen doing this for 2 years, not to mention people deliberately moving off drives on to the road to deter.

@MrsTroutfireVII

Ok, well let's try another example.

Those of you who live in nice cul de sacs with a bit of grass for the kids to play on. None of you would mind me and a few random mates rocking up several times a week and getting pissed on the grass? You'd just say "fair enuff, we don't own it".

Depends how they act. If really noisy, vomiting, wandering into front gardens, falling over and damaging plants, leaving tjiwr rubbish, then I'd be annoyed. If just sitting quietly, and leaving no mess, then fine.

Again, what exactly is annoying or a nuisamce about a stationary, silent car?

@notangelinajolie

Well yes you can park there. But I would be seriously pissed off if it were my house you were parking outside every. single. day. Can you not find somewhere else to park?

Why would you be pissed off? What exactly is annoying about this?

@MrsTroutfireVII

Who said anything about disorderly? Just a nice picnic and some drinks on the grass opposite your house.

Then there is nothing to complain about. The kids would need to be taken to the nearest park or play in the garden. Equally, an elderly lady from a nearby street might choose to come and sit on the bench on ‘your’ green for two hours a day and read a book. I would expect her to be able to do that without being hit with a football so would also steer the children elsewhere during that time or have them play something that wouldn’t risk injuring her.

What with her having as much entitlement to be there as they do.

Where I live OP would have had numerous shirty notes on the windscreen doing this for 2 years, not to mention people deliberately moving off drives on to the road to deter.

🙄 How pleasant.