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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

car parked outside my house for weeks

190 replies

Ceci03 · 13/09/2021 22:09

I know I know, there's nothing that can be done, it's a so-called public road, although it's a very small little cul de sac estate. It's right outside my house, where I would park. There are 3 spaces. this car is in the one nearest to me. I live beside a school so it's manic twice a day and I often cant get a space when I get back from dropping ds so end up parking round the corner then moving my car when it calms down again. He's taking up a precious space for school mums too. Just having a moan I suppose. I checked and it is taxed so police wont do anything. I just wouldnt have the nerve to park right outside someone's house for weeks on end. Apparently he lives round the corner and it's been going on for years. Different neighbours have asked him not to but he's said h'es not breaking any laws. Trouble is there are only 3 spaces, and the rest of the cul de sac is no parking 8-9.30 and 3-5pm so if you have a workman in, or visitors there's one less spare space for them.

OP posts:

Macncheeseballs · 14/09/2021 14:27

It's usually when someone owns more th

Macncheeseballs · 14/09/2021 14:28

More than one vehicle, he's an inconsiderate arse, a bit of sharing wouldn't go amiss

Booknooks · 14/09/2021 14:29

We have a drive that's big enough for our vehicles, which we always use, so maybewecould kick off about all of these 'selfish' people insisting on parking on the road and blocking the free, unimpeded passage for drivers like us. Wecoulddo that, but we'd be entirely wrong to do so, as it's a completely normal, legal use of the public road.

Ah yes because that's the same thing.

dannydyerismydad · 14/09/2021 14:33

I think you're getting an unnecessarily hard time, OP.

Whilst it's true, you own the house, not the road and you can't dictate who does doesn't park in your street, this guy is a CF, running a used car business from home and littering nearby streets with his stock.

We had similar issues locally a few years back. It took time working with local councillors, but they were able to gather evidence from selling sites and put a stop to him trading illegally from his home. I think HMRC ended up involved as well, as it was a bigger business he was running than they were aware of.

Dbank · 14/09/2021 14:42

This is another case of "The law doesn't suit me, so I'll make up my own rules".

While it might be "nice" if someone didn't leave their car in the same point for months, it's the law and you're welcome to try to changing it.

You didn't buy a house with parking, so your choices are compromised, I've been there too.

StoneofDestiny · 14/09/2021 15:04

Must be a nice neighbourhood if it hasn't been damaged.

simitra · 14/09/2021 15:09

Some years ago the resident opposite was doing up and selling cars from his driveway. Not only was there the inconvenience of the cars being there but the noise of their being worked on. Plus the customers who came to try them out and gun the engines at all hours. Eventually someone reported him to the council because he had "visitors". He chose to move elsewhere.

McFarts · 14/09/2021 15:29

We have a car thats been park and not moved since the middle of July! this is on a street of victorian semi's/terrace house, where parking is of a premium. Its frustrating for sure!, but nothing can be done if the car is taxed/mot'd and insured.

WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll · 14/09/2021 15:49

Ah yes because that's the same thing.

How is it not the same thing? The law states that any road-legal vehicle can occupy a safe, legal, unrestricted space for as long as the driver/owner wants to - very simple.

Anything else is just people trying to justify why they should have more rights than others, just because they happen to have a house nearby, have whatever quantity of vehicles, have a drive, don't have a drive, live next to double yellow lines or whatever.

Either we allow all vehicles to use unrestricted public spaces as they wish or we don't allow any parking on the roads at all - how can you possibly legislate for anything in between those two extremes?

Booknooks · 14/09/2021 15:51

I didn't say I thought the law should change, but the example of I'm alright I've got a drive way but I don't like cars on the road as it might be a tiny bit more effort for me to get round them isn't the same annoyance as not being able to park near your house. Classic I'm alright Jack.

sayanythingelse · 14/09/2021 16:08

@SantaSue

Maybe one of these?

Ha! Someone got one of these slapped on their car in my town. Turns out it was a lady visiting from Manchester and she'd just ditched her car on a residential street for days instead of paying for parking. It was posted on the local Facebook page, the local busybodies went mental and it ended up in the papers.

OP, do you have a local Facebook page full of outraged people with nothing better to do?

Lockheart · 14/09/2021 16:19

A few posters keep mentioning how it's selfish for this man to use a public space. Well unfortunately he IS a member of the public, and he's allowed to do so.

If we accept the premise that we're allowed to store our private possessions on a public road then you have to accept that other people - not just you - will do just that.

Which is why I circle back to the point about proof-of-parking in Japan. On-street parking is very heavily restricted. I live on a street of Victorian terraces and I can only imagine how much nicer it would be if the road wasn't reduced to one lane constantly. Not just aesthetically but in terms of congestion, air and noise pollution, and safety.

This article is a very good read. The average car is only used 1 hour out of every 24. Cars are horrendously space inefficient.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56748346

Parking is going to increasingly become an issue if we don't rein in our desire to all own cars.

ChampionOfTheSun · 14/09/2021 16:23

@Travelledtheworld I agree, we keep trying, gets rejected every time, apparently has done since before we moved in (5.5yrs ago). The people who lived here before had 4 cars and told us proudly they petitioned against it every time We're one of the only roads in the area that isn't permit only so it seems a bit silly!

SkinnyMirror · 14/09/2021 16:23

This article is a very good read. The average car is only used 1 hour out of every 24. Cars are horrendously space inefficient.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56748346

Parking is going to increasingly become an issue if we don't rein in our desire to all own cars.

An idealistic view but not practical for many of us. There needs to be a huge investment in public transport if the government wants us to move away from owning a car.

Minfilia · 14/09/2021 16:25

Just because he CAN do it doesn’t mean he should. He’s inconveniencing someone else to avoid inconveniencing himself! Why doesn’t he park his eyesore in front of his own house?

We had a similar nobhead where I used to live. He bought a house with a driveway with room for one car and no parking outside his own house as it was an access route. However they moved in with five cars and parked them in front of everyone else’s houses.

Why buy a house with no parking when you know you have five cars?!

Happily we now have a large gated driveway so nobody is parking near us

Lockheart · 14/09/2021 16:29

@SkinnyMirror I agree, but I also think there are a lot of cars that people are hanging onto because they like the convenience and not because they really actually need them.

If the average car is only driven 1 hour a day and the majority of car journeys are under 5 miles (again per the article), that's a lot of trips that could be walked or cycled.

IWentAwayIStayedAway · 14/09/2021 16:32

So annoying. Id be bouncing it into middle of road or birdseed idea. Every blinking time

SkinnyMirror · 14/09/2021 16:36

[quote Lockheart]@SkinnyMirror I agree, but I also think there are a lot of cars that people are hanging onto because they like the convenience and not because they really actually need them.

If the average car is only driven 1 hour a day and the majority of car journeys are under 5 miles (again per the article), that's a lot of trips that could be walked or cycled.[/quote]
I do think people are starting to consider how many cars they need - I know a number of people who are now wfh so are now a one car family.

However, it's still not that easy for many of us.
I only use my car three times a week at the moment..... probably totalling around 3 hours per week. Twice to drive to work and once to take my little boy to his swimming lessons. Neither of those journeys could be walked or done on public transport.

SkinnyMirror · 14/09/2021 16:38

And my journeys are 11 miles and 4 miles but there are no feasible public transport options.

NerrSnerr · 14/09/2021 16:38

@IWentAwayIStayedAway

So annoying. Id be bouncing it into middle of road or birdseed idea. Every blinking time

Even though he's parked legally?

TheWayTheLightFalls · 14/09/2021 16:48

I had this outside my door. It was really odd - car we’d never seen before, parked illegally and never got ticketed despite wardens usually being about frequently, stayed put for over a month, then vanished within an hour once neighbours rang the police (I think) because of a skip arriving.

I know on MN this is curtain-twitching of the highest order but in real life we know our neighbours’ cars and comings and goings without being welded to the telescope.

DGRossetti · 14/09/2021 16:50

This has happened a few times in our road. Cars appear overnight for weeks on end. Highly likely it's an outfit of "we'll park your car cheaper than airport parking" cowboys who are using your road to make a profit.

starfishmummy · 14/09/2021 16:56

@Ceci03

One of the neighbours told me he used to be a car dealer and has quite a few cars and they wont all fit on his driveway - yeah he has a fancy house.So he 'rotates' them. the one that's there now is a regular, he leaves it for about 6 weeks or so. then he moves it and another one appears. Yeah it's just a moan. I know there's nothing I can do. It's just a slap in the face I suppose, like there are 3 spaces, and he's parked in the one right outside my house. At least it's better than the last time when he parked half in the 2nd and half in the 3rd space, so he was basically taking up 2 spaces. (There's double yellow and zig zags that you cant park on)

We can report to our council as an abandoned car if it has been there for 21 days and then they will send an inspector to decide if it is abandoned and whether to take action .

Recently someone got arsey on our local FB page as his old camper van was reported as abandoned and he was told to move it. It was legally parked, taxed etc but presumably the council decided it was abandoned and needed to be moved. He lived in a nearby street where the houses had huge drives with room for about 6 cars. This was his 7th!!

Or there's the DVLA route before 21 days if it is not taxed or insured

mumwon · 14/09/2021 16:59

perhaps an official note on his car that they are going to be doing roadworks .... (making sure your road neighbours know the truth)

mumwon · 14/09/2021 17:00

can you park in front of his (if there is parking space available)

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