How can this be allowed?

[BadAmbassador]

This is my very first AIBU!

I’m afraid I’m turning into THAT neighbour - help 🤣

I live in a quiet residential street, houses with families, houses on my side are quite close to the road ie not far back at the end of a long drive.

11.15 this evening, really loud engine/mechanical noise started up outside my house, across the street. The kind of noise that would wake you up if you were asleep.

Looking outside - there’s a big van with the side door open, engine running, interior bright light on, man inside doing something to a tyre on a very noisy piece of equipment.

Evidently he’s repairing someone’s car tyre in situ (as posed to them taking it to a garage), so an emergency call out service for people who don’t have a spare tyre.

I went outside to see what was happening because it was so loud. Gave man in van a very hard stare which he ignored for quite a while 🤣 He carried on another 10 mins or so, eventually seemed to realise I was still there and turned off the noisy machine - he’d left it going while he was fiddling with the tyre. Engine still running of course. So 15 minutes of very loud, intrusive noise - like having roadworks outside your house at night when you’re in bed.

Is that acceptable? It’s not a busy high street with loads of traffic noise, it’s not a main road or a motorway. I know you can’t help where you break down but surely there are bye laws about loud noise after 11pm and this is just really inconsiderate?

it wasn’t a lone woman driver being helped btw it was a man. He stood and had a loud chat with the mechanic in the middle of the road before driving off - cheers for that, now know exactly where the mechanic is based 🤣

Is it me? Why is it me? 😭

I saw curtains twitching but I was the only one who went out - if he hadn’t finished the job when he did I would have gone over to say something. And I’m small, shy and non confrontational but this was Very Annoying!

However I HAVE reached the age/life stage of not giving a fuck 🤣

I dunno, what’s normal behaviour any more? One person’s convenience for a street full of people having a broken night’s sleep? Woken babies?

Storm in a tea-cup? Shut up and put up? Angry mob with pitch forks?

Help me Mumsnet! 🤣

Well what did you expect him to do, sit there until morning? You can't drive on a flat. Sometimes cars break down and vehicle recovery/emergency repair is noisy.

It was a one off. Going outside was OTT.

mine either.

It's a one off, for 15 minutes, really not the end of the world.
Going outside and staring without saying anything is quite rude though.

I'm pretty sure the taxi would be cheaper than a call out charge for the tyre service - unless he was driving to another city or something. But then yes, he's still have to go back and get the car the next day so more inconvenient or extra cost eventually.

Possibly. I think when you're aware that you're making a very loud noise late at night outside people's houses you're probably used to people looking at you. As I said it was dark and I wasn't even on the same side of the street. And he was no doubt handsomely rewarded for his time and trouble.

Maybe. Like I said though, at first I needed to see where the noise was coming from and what was happening - I had to go outside to do this as there was a van outside my house partially blocking the view. I'm happy with my actions though. The AIBU was more about the getting annoyed and clearly I am BU to get annoyed. I'm allowed to take an interest in something that is disturbing the whole street.

This is a good point. I was surprised this that was an acceptable thing now but going by the replies, most people would not bat an eyelid at the noise or even want to find out what it was, so I am unusually fussy and definitely unreasonable.

As I said, I would not have had a go, I'm not a have a go kind of person. I would have asked politely how long it was going to take. Now that I've seen how it's done and how long it takes, I won't need to ask if it ever happens again.

I'm very grateful for your concern., thank you. I hope you have also enjoyed telling me off! All is well.

Can't believe you're complaining about it OP. It was an emergency. Yabu.

It's not initially 'acceptable' to most of us at that time of night - and you wouldn't be the only one to wonder what on earth was going on at the beginning. But these things happen and a one of repair thing was very understandable. Most new cars don't have spare tyres any more and you can't drive on flat tyres without risk of causing more damage to the whole wheel.

During the day, when we had a flat, our breakdown service man, put a spare wheel and tyre on our car - then followed my husband in his van while he drove to the nearest tyre replacement place and then took his spare wheel and tyre back to his van before he left. At that time at night, not possible to do and from what you said it wasn't even a neighbour, but someone who had being visiting a neighbour?

So annoying, absolutely, YANBU for that part at all - but you were being unreasonable to make such a fuss about it, once you realised what was going on.

I would have been annoyed, churnned to my self but accepted the situation, knowing it was a temporary thing, it wasnt going to last that long, once the repair was done the job would be finished and it was a one off.
Shit happens someti.es and as we do t live in isolation we have to put up with minor inconveniences from timto time.

Another time it could be you having aproblem and needing help.

Thanks for all your comments every one. Clearly it is allowed, it's what happens these days, it's normal and to be expected and I was unreasonable in the extreme.

For all those concerned about the mechanic - I was exaggerating about the 10 minutes staring - and I can reassure you that he was completely untroubled by me standing in the dark across the road looking at him. He was a big bloke who looked like he could manage himself quite well.

If it happens again I'll know what to expect. I had no idea what was going on - we've had late night road repairs nearby recently but this was much louder - there were flashing lights - was wondering at first if there was a burst water main or something.

I don't think I was unreasonable to want to go and see what was going on but I was completely unreasonable to question whether this should be allowed. I had never heard of it or seen it before, but now I know and understand why people need this. I know it doesn't take too long if it happens again.

I don't think it was a neighbour, a lot of people use this road to park. I'm very nice to my neighbours.

I'm just a quiet person who dislikes sudden unexplained loud noises late at night. I'm not a shouty aggressive person who likes to cause trouble or stop other people dealing with their emergencies.

AIBU has not disappointed - I have roundly had my arse handed to me 😆

I think I'm going to leave it there now and hide the thread.

@BadAmbassador it is entirely possible that the person concerned had rang for the emergency at 7-8pm and was not a priority, as not on a motorway and so service took 3-4 hours to reach them after initial request. If you have a breakdown and a flat tyre is a breakdown it can take anything from 1-6 hours for someone to reach you. Many people have a home start service so if your battery or tyre is flat they will come and get you going it's not just for breakdowns during travel it's a 24/7 service. It's roughly people seen in order though priority is given to breakdowns blocking traffic then people with someone vulnerable with them or alone.

Thank God im a women so it would have been acceptable for me to get a car repair 🤣

" I had never heard of it or seen it before"

Seriously? 🙄

This is a very good point! Thank you for pointing that out.

I think the key thing to remind yourself is that the world doesn’t revolve around you.

People have different situations going on, emergencies, problems to work around.

Your neighbours weren’t pulling up garden chairs on their drive, cracking open beers and starting a party, they were sorting an emergency with their car that could have been needed for many reasons. An important job interview, hospital appointment, trip etc.

Try and remember everyone out there is just trying to get by and live their lives.

I hope everyone's feeling better after putting me firmly in my place, clearly well deserved. I have taken everything on board. 🙂

Yes, seriously, I had never come across this before, that's why I said that.

Message received everyone, loud and clear! I have been put straight.

To the pp who said it's about my tolerance level - yes you're right. I'm very stressed at the moment, I hadn't really thought about that.
AND I don't have double glazing - just thought of this - so possibly why the noise disturbed me more than others.

Despite the impression I have made here, I am an thoughtful, considerate person in real life and I care about other people. I wrote what I felt was a partly light hearted, honest vent about something that bothered me. I have learned from it, I don't know what more I can do or say now. I don't think and never have thought that the world revolves around me. I am human and got annoyed. I am not annoyed now.

I did have a chuckle at 'bullshit 9-5 office jobs', thank you to that pp 😂

Tyres get damaged and replacing them is noisy. It wasn't that long ago cars came equipped with spare tyres and drivers knew how to put them on so they could then drive to the garage to have a new tyre fitted.

lol! You were NOT politely asking how long they’d be. You stared him down for 10 mins while he finished up

I know, I said that's what I would have said. Once again I can reassure you that he was supremely unbothered by a small middle aged woman looking at him from across the street in the dark.

I've made it clear I know I was BU. It's all ok.

A lot of cars don't have spare tyres any more. Neither of ours do.
And an emergency tyre repair may well have called mid afternoon and that's when they got to them.
As a one off I cannot imagine 15 minutes of noise being more than a minor irritation.

Overreaction. Noise is annoying, but sometimes unavoidable, and it was for a good reason, unlike someone playing loud music all night or shouting. I'd have looked, then gone back inside. If it was still going on an hour later, that would be something to complain about.