To bump this car out of the way?

[GenericUsername404]

Every Monday I need to get my van out to pick up my dc from school and take them to their club. Other days I use my car but on Mondays it’s kayaking so I need the van until a place in the kayak storage becomes available. My van is 20year old and very bashed.

Every Monday at 2.30 a brand new Volvo parks directly opposite my drive, in front of my neighbours dropped kerb. When they park here I can get my car out but not my van meaning my dc cannot go to their club which I have already paid for. I know they are inside the house opposite, I knock on the door but they don’t answer but then when I’m attempting to manoeuvre my van out I see them peeping out of the window. I put a note through the door a couple of weeks ago asking them not to do it after they still wouldn’t open the door. They put a note back through mine saying they were parking in front of their dropped kerb, they were entitled to and many others on the road did the same. This is true but I am the only house on my side of the street so no one else has anyone else opposite. I’ve also put a sign on my gate saying please do not park opposite

Having again had to carefully get the car out and not be able to get my kids to their club I’m thinking next week I’ll just bump it. I’m pretty sure I could get out with a couple of touches to their car but it would probably leave dents.

I’ve tried calling the police to say I’m blocked in but by the time they arrived neighbours friend had moved their car and when the police knocked they hid again 🙄

Btw I know I’m unreasonable and I almost certainly won’t do it. I’m just bloody pissed off.

@ForeverSausages

Hahaha but that has nothing to do with dropped kerbs? It's quite obvious what they mean by that. I'm currently parked on the road in front of an entrance to a property (no driveway or dropped kerb). I can't find anything that says you can't park in front of a driveway dropped kerb with the permission of the owner of the driveway. The police would only enforce it if it's causing an obstruction to the person who owns the driveway (as in they can't get their vehicle on or off their drive).

But a dropped kerb IS the entrance to the property.

I would start parking the van on the road, not the drive. Its the only way.

Put your van on the road on the morning

But the only person that will be causing an obstruction to is the person who owns the driveway. Surely? Or am I being dense? And the reason the kerb has been dropped is solely due to the driveway.

Given that it is you and your children who miss out as a result of their twattery, I would move your van earlier so at least you can get to your club. They are massive tools for not popping out to move for a moment while you get out though.

You should move your van to a legal parking space before the Volvo gets there. Even the night before if you have to. Not seeing the big drama tbh? Easy to solve.

Sorry, I thought I said in my OP but obviously didn’t - no option or park in the road. On my side of the road there is only the entrance to my drive and then steep grass banks. The entrance to my drive isn’t wide enough to park perpendicular to it. The only other places to park would be in front only neighbours dropped kerb and I’m not going to do that. I live in a tourist town not designed for traffic - from about May- Sept unless you have a drive you have to park at the park and ride about a 20 minute walk away. My Mondays are always busy and I don’t have time to be arseing about with park and ride when I’ve got my own drive that I paid a massive premium to have.

The only other option I can think of is standing on patrol outside the drive between about 2-2.30 every weekend. It’ll be annoying but if they’re too terrified to even speak to me about it face to face I can’t imagine they’ll park there while I’m stood in the space.

YABVU for not providing a diagram!

Right - hang on weathertoday I’ll get my crayons out. I was rage typing my OP so didn’t include a diagram or the vital information that I don’t have the option to park on the road.

Cor OP that does sound a nightmare and I understand why you're tempted to bump their car. When they are parked is there any overlap across your drive? Also could you speak to the Council about having a H painted on the road in front of your drive? I don't know how close the driveways are to eachother but one of my neighbours had this as it was incredibly tight to get his van off his drive and the council kind of lengthened to H to help. No idea if I'm making sense haha.

@ForeverSausages

But the only person that will be causing an obstruction to is the person who owns the driveway. Surely? Or am I being dense? And the reason the kerb has been dropped is solely due to the driveway.

Yes, but it's illegal to park across the entrance to a property (even your own) regardless of if it's causing an obstruction at the time you're parked there.

I could park across the dropped kerb in front of my drive and not be blocking anyone in, but if a parking warden came past, I could still get fined for parking there.

Oh a diagram would help! 😂

@FuckUcuntychops

As far as I’m aware it’s illegal to park across a dropped curb even if it’s your own.

No, it’s not. I thought this too, but another poster linked a while ago to the law on this and i was incorrect (after an embarrassing bun fight too, I was sure I was correct!)

There’s a discrepancy between the Highway Code and the actual legislation (which trumps the HC)

You (and presumably your guests) can park over your own dropped kerb, but you’re not allowed to charge others for parking there.

But an obstruction to who is what I'm asking? Who would it be obstructing? I just can't see how the police would enforce this. I mean you have to apply and pay to drop a kerb in front of your driveway, and is essentially your own dropped kerb. If you hadn't there would be no dropped kerb. And if I got a parking ticket for that I would hugely dispute it. I often park in front of my sister's driveway and the only person it's obstructing is my sister 🤷. Never said "kerb" so much in my entire life 😂😂.

Bump the car

Not to scale

They are being an ass not moving. Why can’t you pull the van out and park it anywhere else on the road/next road for the hour or so that you need it out? Or would you have to sit in the van the whole time in case you need to move for traffic ?

Widening the painted line wouldn’t help unfortunately as it’s the swing room that I need across the road to get out iyswim. The driveway itself isn’t wide enough to allow me to come at it from a different angle and as the wall itself is listed I’m not allowed to widen it.

Of course you can't bump their car!

I've voted YABU only because body work repair to a new volvo is incredibly expensive (I own one and I also managed to ding a neighbours brand new XC90. £800 for a little bump thank you very much). No matter how annoying this is, you'd be liable for the damage.

Can you reverse into your driveway so you drive out nose first giving you a bit more manoeuvrability??

Drive out as far as you can, stop, put your hand in your horn and sit there.

Oh wow OP. I get it now. Have you spoken to the Council? If you reverse onto the drive is it possible to get out? Although with those angles you wouldn't even be able to reverse on with that car parked there.

akire there is literally nowhere else to park. It might be possible in winter to find somewhere about a half a mile away but from May-Sept it’s the park and ride or nowhere. It’s a small tourist town not designed for cars. If you don’t have a drive you don’t have a car here.

Unless it's a private road, you have as much entitlement to park across the drop kerb as they do.

Put your van there before they arrive.

OMG love the diagram, including hiding twat neighbour!