My neighbour and his flying bins

[Philthedendron]

I just need a quick sense check that I’m not being unreasonable here, I’m off work sick at the moment and I’ve lost all sense of proportion. I’ve NC’d because I have an active thread running under my main user name on a health issue that’s identifiable but I’m a long term user.

So, I live at the end of a short track that branches into 2 drives: my neighbours drive and mine. We’ve had high winds for a couple of nights, so the last couple of mornings I’ve found next doors bins blocking the shared track. As you do, I’ve just moved them out of the way and popped them back on his drive on his hard standing area where he keeps his bins.

I got back from dropping the kids off this morning and noticed the bins were back on the track, blocking access to our house (I could have squeezed passed them but I’m in a big car and didn’t want to risk knocking them).

Well out marches Mr Nextdoor when he sees me getting out of the car and he shouts from his front door ‘I hope you’ve not got out to move my bin??’

I didn’t quite process what he said in time and I thought he was apologising that his bin was on the track, so I said ‘I need to get on our drive so I’ll just move it back don’t worry it’s no problem!’

I carried on and he ran over and said ‘no no leave the bin where it is this is our property!’

So I said ‘I need to put the car on the drive and don’t want to damage your bin so can you move it please if you don’t want me to?’

It went back and forth but basically, the upshot of the conversation is he thinks the shared track is owned by him, and he wants to start keeping his bins on the track so the bin men will collect them from there and he won’t have to move them.

I don’t believe the track is owned by them, I’m pretty confident it’s not owned by either of us. I didn’t want to argue on the street so I left the conversation by offering to take his bins down the track and back again to his bin store on bin day but he said they didn’t need that thank you. So I said well the bins can’t stay where they are and I’ll need to check the deeds.

I’m sympathetic to them getting older so don’t want to start a fight, but if they don’t own the track (which I’m confident they dont), are they allowed to leave their bin there under any circumstances? How do I challenge it?

If your relationship with your neighbour has always been good until now, I would go and see him and ask if they are having problems putting the bins out and if that is why he feels he needs to leave them at the bottom of the drive. Explain that it makes it difficult for you to enter/exit your drive and see if their is an alternative arrangement that can be made. Perhaps you can assist him on bin day? Perhaps he struggles when the bins are full and heavy but could manage to bring them back up to the house when they have been emptied. A conversation at this level may prevent any more serious conversations later down the line.

Have you checked who does own the track OP? Perhaps your neighbour might own it but under a different title number?

I had to click on this to find out what a flying bin was

So who DOES own the track if it's neither of you? Obviously you need to give him a copy to show him he doesn't own it.

If you parked on the track would it only block his drive? Every time his bins are obstructing I'd do that.

Being more sensible I'd pop over with your partner and explain they only have eight of way over the track and it can't be used for bin storage.

@Philthedendron This all means nothing if we don't have a drawing 😁. Just so we can understand how he walks over your land to put bins on the shared track

I needed cheering up!!

Blimey how unreasonable of your neighbour to act like this all of a sudden.

I love a good parking/bins thread - straight on my watch list.

I would print off the deeds and pop round to discuss it with him.

Even if he did own the track he would be obliged to grant you unobstructed right of access. Given he seems unable or unwilling to grasp the concept of unobstructed access, I think the official word of the Land Registry might be the nudge he needs to stop being an inflexible fool.

My neighbours are all lovely. Common denominator here...

Surely the guy can figure out that putting the bins out in a way that blocks your access is going to cause issues.

Maybe you should start putting your bins in front of his drive access and see what he's got to say about it.

doesnt matter he cant block your access either way

I'd ask him for his email address, so you can send a copy of your deeds. Then send him a copy. If he continues to block your drive or even sends you something that shows he owns the drive, email him asking him not to block your access. Having all this in writing will help so much.

He can't block access to someone's home.
Get the awkward old sod told

I am unable to see the diagram you've definitely 100% provided....

I'm baffled. WHOMEVER owns the drive (is it the local council?), even if it were King Charles himself, nobody could ever think it reasonable to barricade you either in or out of your own driveway!

Does he think he's leaving the bins with sufficient gap for you to get in and out? This is the only thing I can grasp at, that he's misguidedly thinking that, as it's easier to leave the bins out, he's giving you 'plenty of space' to get past.

A diagram as requested. The green dotted line is our boundary according to the deeds and the red is his.

DH just got home and thinks we should go round and take the deeds with us, and offer again to sort his bins for him on bin day (we often bring his back anyway because the bin men leave all the bins at the bottom of the lane). We’re going to pop round once the kids are asleep and take the monitor with us.

Yes the lane is only wide enough for a single car to go up and down and when the bins are there it’s very very tight. You’d get through in a little hatchback maybe but we drive a big 4x4 so I didn’t want to risk squeezing past. It’s a high brick wall on either side as well so no flexibility to go on a pavement or anything to avoid the bins.

He might think he’s giving us enough space, he does leave them right on the side up against the wall but it’s far too tight for comfort in our car. The other problem is that in the wind, it blows very strong up the lane and his bins will always get blown over if he leaves them on the lane. They were knocked over the last few days which is why I assumed they’d been blown off his drive and down the lane.

Obviously batshit!

I'd have gone with a pleasantly bemused
'Just explain to me what it is you want to happen....?'
Then
'And when we are leaving and returning to our home......then.....?'
Just leaving it hang there!

Also, I assume the lane is owned by the council, there’s a telephone pole half way down and on the deeds it’s just called ‘unclassified road access’ so either council or highways?

I think to keep it simple, it doesn't even need to be a debate about who owns what. If him putting the bins there means you can't fit, then it is blatantly not a place for the bins to be kept.

Incidentally, surely putting the bins out is only once per week, but having to walk to put stuff in them happens more regularly? So I isn't it better to have them near the house?

This is what DH said! I think it’s the weight of the bin rather than the walk that’s hard for him - he’s in his mid-60’s and still working and doesn’t struggle with walking, he’s seemingly fit and well but you never know.

We live rurally so have a bin collection every 2 weeks rather than weekly and have quite large bins to compensate.

Does he live alone, or with a partner?
If so, can you try talking to the partner first? They might be more reasonable, and help you deal with him.

If you're in England/Wales, you might be able to find out the status of the road from this: https://www.findmystreet.co.uk/street-list?ProviderId=

But whoever is responsible for maintaining the road, it's obvious that you have a right of way and your access shouldn't be impeded. Sometimes the local Fire Brigade can be helpful at persuading neighbours not to do anything that would block their access in case of an emergency....

I'd go round with a printed off copy of the deeds (to leave with him) and have a chat.

I'd treat him the way he's treating you - very matter of fact and unapologetic.

You can dress it up as

How useful and informative it is for both of you to know who owns what piece of land so that confusion can now be avoided. Bins stay on his own land. Full.Stop.