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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To think five cars is fucking ridiculous

191 replies

VividVoltage · 22/02/2022 13:56

Background: New neighbours moved in around a year ago. They are loud, rude, and messy. Loud parties in the summer where they're out in the garden shouting until the small hours, coming home drunk from nights out and spewing all over the street on their way to their door, leaving their rubbish where it lands, whole can of paint spilled on the pavement and just left, the husband was tipping paint and oil down the drains in the street, loud music played outdoors at all hours, and so on. Anyone who complains to their faces gets told to "fuck right off" and then usually gets a follow up doorstep visit from the husband. We live in a nice area and a small street that was quiet until they arrived. Last week we had the fire brigade out to the street because he started a bonfire on the driveway (at 10am) chucked petrol on it and then went off in his car, leaving it to burn on its own. The front garden daytime bonfire is an almost weekly occurrence.

So yes, they're nobs and yes, we have complained about them as have other neighbours.

He's been working on a scrap car in his driveway since they moved in. When he's working on the car he has loud music thumping the entire time, he will go out or go in the house and leave the music going even when he's not there with it. He has tools everywhere, not just on his driveway but scattered all over the pavement too and just leaves them there for days so you have to step around them to get past. He uses various chemicals, spray paint, etc and again they're just left lying around before, during, and after plus they stink. He has power tools going, and so on. And this isn't just in daylight hours, he's out there at 10pm at times. Even when it is daylight hours, explicit rap music at top.volume for 8-10 hours straight is too much (and by explicit I mean sexually explicit language as well as swearing).

This scrap car was then joined by a second scrap car that he is also working on and is side by side with the one one on the driveway.

In addition to this they have three running cars. They drive these like utter dickheads, speeding in the street (it's a 20 zone). The three cars get parked on what used to be the grass verges in the street but are now tyre-churned mud baths where they're ripped all the grass up from parking on them. They don't park considerately on these either and will park wholly on the verge so that two wheels are on the grass verge and two are on the pavement so you have to go on the road to get around them. Or they'll park directly opposite a driveway (narrow street) so that you can't get your car on or off without knocking and asking them to move it.

This morning a third scrap car has been delivered and squashed onto the driveway with its back end hanging out and completely blocking the pavement.

AIBU to make yet another complaint to the council and how do I get them to fucking listen? I know I'm not the only person in the street who has complained and the most they do is send a letter. We know when they receive the letter because he will stand at his door and bellow "fuck you all" and then will blast his music or bang around or set a bonfire like he's punishing us all.

OP posts:
BlokeHereInPeace · 22/02/2022 15:27

Ex councillor here. This is a horrible thing to deal with.

  1. Start a diary. Be really specific on the time that anything anti-social happens, when it started and finished, what happened. Take photos if you can but don't put yourself in danger. Ask neighbours to do the same.
  2. You may have more than one councillor. Use www.writetothem.com/ to find out your councillors are if you don't know who they are. Avoid the temptation to write to them all, as they wil often leave it to each other. If you have more than one party represented in your ward, say 2 conservative and one labour, it's often worth writing to one of each party.
  3. Email your councillor(s) or go to their surgery if they have started doing them. You'll find this out from the council's website, search for their name and the name of the council.
  4. Tell them your problem and take/attach your diary evidence. If neighbours will go with you, that's even better.
  5. You can ask them to ask the Housing team if they are in breach of their tenancy and ask the planning team if they are in breach of planning by running a business of fixing cars.
  6. Unfortunately, it's really hard to get people kicked out. Almost always, it'll end up with some kind of acceptable behaviour contract which will probably be ignored. Sorry to tell you that.
  7. Ring the fire brigade the next time they have a bonfire.
  8. It is for councils to investigate and prosecute oil being poured down drains, so something else for your councillors. Water companies have also managed prosecutions so look on your bill, if you can find it, or their website. Also read environmentagency.blog.gov.uk/2015/07/29/waste-crime-help-spot-it-and-stop-it/
  9. Copy this info to your MP, again, this depends how good their office is at following up casework. Their job is usually to make sure that the council and other agencies are doing what they are supposed to do. Again, lots of your neighbours joining you will have a bigger impact.

Good luck.

ChargingBuck · 22/02/2022 15:28

@VividVoltage

Will the police come out for parking and antisocial behaviour though? And the fire brigade for an unattended bonfire even though its at a house?
Yes, when you tell them about all the chemicals he leaves around near the fire. They are pretty good about 'outreach' ie teaching people how not to set light to themselves & their property ...

You could also ask them for expert guidance in how to tackle the nuisance aspect. as well as the safety. They will have heard it all before.

ChargingBuck · 22/02/2022 15:29

Sorry - when I said "they" I meant fire brigade, not police.

ivykaty44 · 22/02/2022 15:31

Report to environmental health for use of pavement with chemicals and tools, also running a business from home. One car could be a project hobby but 6 cars is clearly not just a hobby

Report to tenancy officer for anti social behaviour- make a log of dates and time

Put these in writing and send in by email and back up with a phone call

Ask other neighbors to do the same, write in and call

MrsMoastyToasty · 22/02/2022 15:32

It sounds like they are running a business from the house. I bet they are not registered with HMRC or paying business rates.

Kr1spyKr3m3 · 22/02/2022 15:32

Apart from the cars, they sound like my neighbours. Always out in the garden blasting loud music. Always throwing all night loud parties. Bonfires in the garden. Council noise team said unless I made a formal complaint they could do nothing, but if I did make a formal complaint it would be flagged as a dispute and devalue my own house. I didn’t make the complaint because I want to be able sell. It’s illogical that I should be penalised for complaining about someone else’s antisocial behaviour.

GrowBabyGrow · 22/02/2022 15:38

If you have evidence of them tipping paint and oil down drains then that is an offence as it is causing pollution. You could report them to the local council or environment agency

Tilltheend99 · 22/02/2022 15:57

He doesn’t own the public road/pavement so his tools can get moved for a start. Yes, keep complaining to the council about them parking on the grass verges until they put some posts up.

One of the nicest looking streets in our local area has posts in all their verges. It has a knock on effect of making the rest of the street put effort into keeping their gardens and properties tidy.

Don’t know if you have heard of broken window theory.

longwayoff · 22/02/2022 15:58

If they are as vile as they sound then they have probably been rehoused from somewhere else. Do as recommended upthread. Report them, keep a diary of events etc. And keep complaining to them local authority. The council have a duty to house them but not at the expense of neighbours' mental health.

dangermouseisace · 22/02/2022 16:02

Keep complaining to the housing manager. Have they told you what action they are taking/if they are?
This is just a thought; if the council are taking action they might not be able to tell you what it us specifically, due to GDPR. In our area the 1st year is a really fragile tenancy where you can get booted out very easily. You only get a secure tenancy after you've proved yourself...if you haven't but not to booting out extent, you stay on the fragile tenancy for longer. The list of things you are not allowed to do is lengthy, and there is no way your neighbour would be allowed a secure tenancy in my area. Evictions have been delayed due to the pandemic. Might be hopeful thinking but those letters might be more than “please stop being knobs thanks”

balalake · 22/02/2022 16:04

@BlokeHereInPeace agree 100% with your list of actions.

Elections are happening in many areas in May, perhaps this might help get some response.

jytdtysrht · 22/02/2022 16:07

It’s a shame people like this can’t be put down.

Classica · 22/02/2022 16:13

People power. Propose to your peaceful neighbours that you complain en masse, and regularly to the council and local MP.

Sounds bloody awful and you have my sympathies.

MimosaSunrise · 22/02/2022 16:15

Council ASB team are likely to be more effective than environmental health here. The team at my council don’t write letters - they make face to face visits, liaise with private landlords to resolve issues, etc. What you’re describing is definitely antisocial so ask to speak to whoever deals with that at the council.

Agree with getting a councillor on the case too.

rifling · 22/02/2022 16:17

I really feel for you OP. We had a similar problem a few years back but it was with motorbikes and he would rev them up all hours of the day and night and have loads of friends around to do the same - apparently he was fixing them but as soon as they were fixed, more arrived! The problem was solved in an unexpected manner but I used to dread coming home. So much more should be done to curb antisocial behaviour as it literally ruins lives.

Newgirls · 22/02/2022 16:26

@MrsMoastyToasty

It sounds like they are running a business from the house. I bet they are not registered with HMRC or paying business rates.
Isn’t everyone running a business from home these days? Not sure this means anything now?

They sound awful Op. clearly anti social and don’t care for others.

Lovemusic33 · 22/02/2022 16:41

Agree with ‘keep reporting to the council/housing association’. We had similar neighbours, loud parties, fights, shouting and swearing at all hours, we live on a road of housing association houses (including my home) but these were the first people to move in that caused problems, several people on the road made complaints, police were called several times, mainly for the fighting and shouting, eventually they were kicked out or moved somewhere else. Luckily our housing association don’t put up with this kind of behaviour, the front of our houses have t be kept tidy of they will will write to us to tidy it up, if anyone leaves a un taxed car on the road it will be reported.

ThePlumVan · 22/02/2022 16:43

I’ll bet you the council have a long history with the family, so it basically doesn’t matter to them as they’ll get complaints wherever they go.

Keep lots of notes and photos. Get the sound pollution app and use it.
Put anything you find on the pavement straight in the bin.

Sympathies as it sounds horrendous.

nitsandwormsdodger · 22/02/2022 16:44

Call fire brigade out every fire every time
Get a street whatsup going

gogohm · 22/02/2022 16:46

The cars are the least of your worries!

Having 5 running cars isn't unreasonable if you are a 5 adult household (we have 5 adults and we have 4 cars here in university holidays). Having all the mess, the scrap cars etc is unreasonable without even getting into the anti social behaviour.

oakleaffy · 22/02/2022 16:47

@VividVoltage

Just realised I put five cars in the thread title but it's bloody six now!
Oh OP, That sounds awful.

Are they a ''Problem family'' {A term used by community police} moved in from another area?

They sound very like ones that were moved in to a 'Quiet' area in hopes of ameliorating their behaviours, it didn't work, and was a nightmare for their poor neighbours.
Loud music, loads of cars in various states.. you name it, it went on.

Violinist64 · 22/02/2022 16:47

@Classica

People power. Propose to your peaceful neighbours that you complain en masse, and regularly to the council and local MP.

Sounds bloody awful and you have my sympathies.

I couldn’t agree more with this and the excellent points made by blokehereinpiece. I think we all feel great sympathy for you.
Nat94 · 22/02/2022 16:50

May be drastic but the only resolution is to put up with it or move house. You wont reason with people like this and they wont change.

Newgirls · 22/02/2022 16:53

It might be worth a different approach. Get to know them. They might be so used to neighbours hating them. If they get to know you all they will be less inclined to upset you? Hold a street party?

Silvershroud · 22/02/2022 17:11

Don't complain, move house. We had the same problem, it escalated. Just move to a quiet area for your own peace of mind.

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