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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

WWYD if someone parked on your drive

166 replies

FlippertyFlip80 · 28/06/2021 16:42

or in your private parking space?

You point it out to them that they are parking on your private space and they mumble a sorry and walk off without moving their car...

I have blocked them in. AIBU?

OP posts:
TurquoiseDragon · 28/06/2021 20:05

I sympathise but if the 'disabled parking space' is one of those on a road with a white line around it isn't owned by anyone and has no legal right to say it is a particular persons.

I wouldn't park in one but there is no legal right to stop others from parking there.

If it's a designated disabled space, only other blue badge holders can park there.

I live in a cul de sac with permit only parking (well, it's three streets forming a cul de sac like three sides of a square. It's terraced housing, and immediately outside my house I have double yellows as the main parking is across the road, with people needing space to reverse off the car park. I still get a good number of people parking on the double yellows, either taking their DC to the primary across the road from the streets, or are wazzocks related to the NDN, who park up and visit for ages.

The three streets are narrow, and people parking on the double yellows can make it extremely hard to exit the car parking opposite. At least the traffic warden has cottoned on to people parking badly at school arrival/departure times.

NoProblem123 · 28/06/2021 20:23

**put something like flour over the windscreen

Wasn’t there a story of someone doing this, and then it rained and dried into a hard dough and caused £’sssss of damage.

You need to get better at blocking in OP - if you’d done a diagram we could have advised accordingly Sad

Crankley · 28/06/2021 20:33

I applied to the council for a designated disabled space, Others with a blue badge could park on it but this woman did not have a blue badge.

Congressdingo · 28/06/2021 20:46

@Willowowisp

I can't believe it either but the site says:

What if someone else parks on my driveway?
If a vehicle is parked on your driveway without your permission, they are trespassing. As trespass is a civil and not criminal offence, the police will not always get involved. At most, they may send an officer to try and determine the owner of the vehicle and ask them to remove it.

If a car is parked on my driveway, can I block them in?
If someone has parked on your driveway and you were to block them in, your vehicle may be causing an obstruction to the public highway and this is a criminal offence. The owner of the vehicle could therefore call the police.

As the first instance (some random parked on your drive) is a civil matter and police generally don't get involved, the second instance (you blocking them in) should also be a civil matter and police generally dont get involved.

And in the end if the police did come round to tell you off for parking on your own drive, you can (if you didnt already report it) say you didnt see it, you were desperate for the toilet or anything really, and then have had a drink so you cant possibly move your car now.
There are ways around that dont involve damage to anyone, but still get the point across that parking on my drive or in my spot will mean you are stuck there for as long as I feel like.

VienneseWhirligig · 29/06/2021 06:50

@Blossomtoes probably was lucky, but then I don't know how sympathetic anyone would be to someone keying the motability car of a dying man. The neighbours were cunts, but I don't think the matriarch of the family would have been impressed.

Gabriellejayne · 29/06/2021 17:47

Now, I wouldn't recommend what I'm about to say I did in that situation!
It was 18 years ago and I was a young mum with a tiny baby, PND, and an absent husband on military deployment. I couldn't drive and my mum was due to pick me up in the car to go shopping.

CF parked on my driveway, and despite me shouting from the window (sleep deprived, in pyjamas, and with baby attached to boob, so didn't want to go out) that it was my bloody driveway, he laughed and walked off. Where I lived was near a shopping centre, so public parking was so limited, and my mum ended up having to park a ten minute walk up the road.

SO, in temper, that car got every acidic condiment I could lay my hands on all over the windscreen and bonnet. Petty and childish, I know, and I wouldn't recommend doing it now. By the time we got back hours later, he'd gone, and funnily enough he never came back 🙈

Pitmanshorthand · 29/06/2021 17:47

If it’s in a private car park and you own the space why not get a lockable parking post. My neighbour got one for his space. I haven’t got one yet as I haven’t moved the car much since working from home, I intend getting one when I start going out more again.

Lweji · 29/06/2021 17:54

They must have had to do a 30 point turn to get out.

Hopefully, that was annoying enough for them.

AliceLivesHere · 29/06/2021 17:55

So basically it's not a drive (as in the thread title) it is as you say:

"there are 4 signs up all over the car park saying private parking" a car park.

A car park isn't treated quite the same way as a drive which is next to the property and so on the title deeds. This is a car park with signs up. A little different than the OP suggests then.

earsup · 29/06/2021 17:57

people sometimes do that to us...not often...school pick up times....i stick a large note on their window.

WrongWayApricot · 29/06/2021 18:15

Do you mean there are 10 spaces (not drives) 5 of which are for residents, 5 are for visitors. He had parked in your space instead of one of the guest spaces which were available? I could not get angry about this unless it was a regular occurrence. I would have parked in the visitor space and got on with my life.

pollypot123 · 29/06/2021 18:16

I also like to stick a note on their car advising them to move it, with lots and lots of sticky tape…

Blossomtoes · 29/06/2021 18:21

@Lweji

They must have had to do a 30 point turn to get out.

Hopefully, that was annoying enough for them.

It wouldn’t annoy me. It would give me a great sense of achievement.
Pitmanshorthand · 29/06/2021 18:27

@AliceLivesHere

So basically it's not a drive (as in the thread title) it is as you say:

"there are 4 signs up all over the car park saying private parking" a car park.

A car park isn't treated quite the same way as a drive which is next to the property and so on the title deeds. This is a car park with signs up. A little different than the OP suggests then.

My car park space is in the title deeds. When I bought my flat I also bought the space and own the space so it is exactly like a drive on a private property and is treated as such. Trespassers using my space are not insured. If something happens to their car whilst illegally parked in the space the owner of the space or their insurers are not liable. A trespasser parked in my space and a fence blew down on their car, my car insurance , the property public liability didn’t pay because it was illegally parked. I also didn’t pay.
bellocchild · 29/06/2021 18:38

It's probably illegal, but tempting to let a tyre down...

AllTheUsernamesAreAlreadyTaken · 29/06/2021 18:43

I might have let their tyres down but I’d have absolutely bobbed my pants after

Harmonypuss · 29/06/2021 19:27

I've only read the first page so sorry if someone had already said this.

Even if someone parks in your driveway ie on your private property or is illegal to block them in because you would be obstructing them from accessing the highway. It is also NOT illegal to park on someone's driveway believe it or not so the police won't get involved in trying to get them to move the vehicle, you either have to just wait for them to move it or if it goes on long term you can take them to court on a trespassing charge.

TemptedToSleepInTheShed · 29/06/2021 19:52

They wouldn’t!

ShitPoetryClub · 29/06/2021 20:01

YANBU but there are certain circumstances where I would turn the other cheek. For example, I used to have to visit a patient in a really posh apartment block where all the parking spaces were numbered. Not one space for visitors. Absolutely no where withing 300m nearby to park as all double yellow lines. Where exactly did they expect me to park when delivering a toilet frame and bath lift. Confused
I still got a mouthful of abuse.

Ddot · 29/06/2021 20:06

You pay for that spot so if he does it again put a bill on his windscreen. Feed the birds, on his roof 🤣🤣🤣

BringBackThinEyebrows · 29/06/2021 20:14

@ShitPoetryClub

If the patient had an allocated parking space, I would expect them to confirm the appointment and instruct you to park in their spot (obviously leaving their space empty for you). I understand this may not be straightforward if the person has mobility issues, but it can be arranged.

I always free up my space when I'm expecting someone doing work on my address and tell them where to park.

PumpkinPie2016 · 29/06/2021 20:20

We are rural and had someone park on our (very obviously!) private driveway to go for a walkAngry

I parked my car in the gateway (the only way in/out) so they would have to knock on! When they came back, I could see them through the window panicking. They eventually knocked on and did, begrudgingly, apologise but apparently they 'didn't think I'd mind'Confused I pointed out that it's private land and not a public car park. I also told them if they did it again, not only would I block them in, I would contact the police as they were trespassing.

They went off looking very sheepish!

Darlingx · 30/06/2021 05:48

I had the misfortune of having a driveway and garage in a street where everyone used my driveway to reverse their cars at all hours with headlights shining to my bedroom window. I had for budget reasons no ability to invest in one of those poles that blocks a driveway unless u have the fob on your car and I wish I could have done this but I was fixing the place up and moving on. If the situation is going to be your problem going forward invest in a real deterrant because people are selfish and lazy at times and u don’t want to have to enforce it in person just put an obstacle to it being available if u can and its your space.

whatthejiggeries · 30/06/2021 07:16

I used to have a driveway at the end of the lane that everyone used to turn around when visiting the neighbours. Had to put gates up in the end