Parking when there are dogs around

[TheQuirkyMaker]

I was in our local park yesterday, talking to another dog owner, when an SUV swept in right beside us, halted, and reversed into a parking space. As it reversed, I slapped it on the roof. The driver jumped out, angry, and I think was ready to give me a slap. I said the car park was empty (it was, it serves about 200 cars) and he had no need to park next to us and potentially hit a dog. He said he was parking near the skate park for his children, and our dogs should be on a lead (they weren't). They are elderly, obedient little dogs, and don't need to be on a leash but they are little and could be hit by a car.
I told him to "F--- Off" and felt okay at the time but couldn't sleep last night for worrying who was in the right.
Was I the unreasonable one?

😂😂😂

he didn’t need to park in that particular space, but there’s no reason he shouldn’t other than your sense of entitlement - you could’ve stood around chatting somewhere other than the car park, but didn’t.

This is genuinely the most unreasonable AIBU I have ever seen on this site!

It looks like no one agrees with us but I don’t think you are being unreasonable at all.

Yes he had a right to park in any space but why does some twat always want to be up your arsehole in a near empty car park. Plus he should be mindful of dogs and children and be extra careful, and should have been aware the dogs were there by using his eyes.

I’d say OP must be your best friend and you’re both living in dreamland. Those cyclists haven’t banged on your car for no good reason. Hope that helps. You’ve put them at risk as you’re close enough to them that they can touch your car to tell you such.

No, he wasn't the cunt.

You chose not to put your dog on a lead in a car park which is completely irresponsible (I have a dog I love, he's never off his lead in a car park because I don't want him to get run over).

And you chose to bang on a cars roof without caring/considering that you might scare the children inside them swore at their dad? One of mine would have been really shaken up by this.

I'm sorry your dog is old and you don't feel like they have long left. Losing a dog is awful. But that doesn't give you the right to treat people like this. Especially when their 'crime' is choosing a perfectly valid parking spot.

Reminds me of Peep Show when Jeremy reversed over Mummy, then burned it and ate the drumstick. You wouldn't want that to happen, so YABU.

It's a car park. Clue is in the name so he is entitled to park in any of the empty spaces. Yes some car parks have spaces that are more popular with less walking distance especially with small children. Also you say he wasn't looking but if his car had cameras and he was looking at a screen then yes it would appear that he wasn't looking. Would you let your dogs wander unsupervised in a supermarket car park even if it wasn't busy. Don't think so. Your dogs and your responsibility to keep them safe that ls have them on a lead.
I parked my car in a supermarket car park on Saturday. I used the area which had very little cars as I needed one of the smaller trolleys and spotted one in the trolley park. When I returned a car had parked beside mine despite numerous other spaces. I was a bit annoyed as I wanted to put my shopping in the front passenger footwell and had less room to open my door but I got over it and most certainly if they had been in the car thumping their roof and telling them to fuck off would not have even entered my head.

Perhaps he didn't want to walk his children across a car park where your unfettered dogs were running around unchecked.

He parked in a legitimate parking space in a public car park. People and cars are the priority, not your wretched animals.

If you think they are unsafe around parking cars, keep them on leads, or put them in your car.

You are being massively unreasonable.

I agree with this. I can imagine this guy swooping in but people will do that in car parks and that's why you have to be careful in them. I remember escorting my kids through and in them when they were wee. They are dangerous places. Unfortunately the onus is on you to recognise that for the safety of your dogs. Slapping his car and telling him to fuck off is all very good but it won't stop this happening elsewhere or again. Better to simply put your dogs in your car or on a lead, just like I used to hang on to the kids.

Dog people are entitled twunts.

You are extremely unreasonable, he can park where he likes. Get your dog off the car park?

The car owner does sound like a bit of a dick if he chose to park so close to people that they could touch his car, when he had plenty of room to park a bit further away.

But your dogs should be on a lead and close to you. And you shouldn't have banged on his car. I understand why you did it though - I've had a go at someone about their driving before. Thankfully she just apologized!

So the dogs were wandering! I thought they were under control

yes you are BU, he can park whenever he likes in a car park and your dogs should be on a lead when around cars 🤦🏻‍♀️

Oh dear, this is a rage baity post for a Monday morning!
Of course you are unreasonable.
You can’t dictate where someone parks in a public car park and your dog should rightly be on a lead in a public space. As for slapping someone’s vehicle and swearing at them (in front of kids no doubt) well that is just undignified, antisocial, bad behaviour.

OP not being unreasonable at all! The driver of the SUV was clearly not regarding others' safety. Dogs/pedestrians/children, it doesn't matter. The OP felt as though they or theirs were in danger and reacted in such a way to try to minimise the likelihood of harm befalling them. There was no malice in the action of hitting the car. There was no possibility of damage to the car. The SUV driver sounds like they started off aggressive and escalated for absolutely no reason. I'm not surprised the OP reciprocated in a verbal fashion.

I'm a huge lover of dogs (well, my own dogs and other well-behaved or well-controlled dogs, that is). I also dislike people parking next to me when there are plenty of other places to park. But YABU. You can't go slapping the top of someone's car and not expect anger or fear which shows itself as anger. You are responsible for your dog's safety. Take control of that by using a lead in car parks instead of hoping the rest of the world behaves as you think they should.

He had no reason to apologise to OP. He did nothing wrong.

OP on the other hand was standing around in a car park with her uncontrolled dogs running around while she abused a legitimate car park user in front of his children.

Despite only knowing OP's side of the story (almost) everyone on here knows who should have apologised and it wasn't the man.

Please explain exactly how you think he was not regarding others safety and what he should have done instead? I am a company car driver and regularly reminded that parking next to other cars reduces the risk of accident, injury and theft. So parking near other cars isn’t the correct answer.

If OP had slapped my car in that manner, she would have got a slap back.

You were out of line, OP. The minute you saw the car coming towards you, you should have put your dog on a lead.

That said, people who park right next to others when the rest of the car part is empty are fucking weird.

Please walk me through how the SUV driver "started off aggressive"? He was in his car, reversing into a space.

Incidentally if you genuinely think you're about to get hit by a car you run, you don't hang around so you can bang on the roof. The OP absolutely did not act to minimise the likelihood of harm; she acted to show her displeasure.

He didn't need to park there but you equally didn't need to be standing chatting in a car park and you didn't need to have your dog standing in a car park potentially in harms way.

Really disgraceful to swear at someone in front of their young children, even if they did something wrong. But they genuinely didn't do anything wrong. They just made a choice that you disagreed with.

Having an elderly dog is no excuse. It happens to most of our dogs, if we're lucky enough to have them that long.

Not only were you unreasonable your behaviour was shocking.

You were in a car park….where cars park….and a car did just that.
If you are worried about your dog getting run over, don’t have it off a lead where cars are?
It’s irrelevant how many empty spaces there were.
Part of you must see you’re the problem here.
This cannot be real.

The OP thought they were in danger due to the driving of the SUV (we've access to the same information). Read the original post again and pretend your not a company driver. Pretend you're a pedestrian in a carpark with a large vehicle driving, quickly, towards you, especially when the rest of the carpark is full.

I think your comprehension skills are seriously lacking.