Insane parking behaviour - intentionally blocked in

[sadkittymum]

I was coming back to my car last night after a shift at work (I’m a vet). The branch I was at does not have a car park, so I was parked on the road next to the practice. I’ve been parking on this road for over a year with no issues, but it is busy as it is also next to a school. I parked my car in front of someone’s house, however no part of my car was over the dropped kerb, and I was in no way restricting access onto their drive. I was behind another car.

Upon my return, the owner of the house that I was in front of had moved their car so it was directly behind mine (the bumper was, and I am not at all exaggerating, 5cm from the back of my car). She had specifically moved her car (leaving her own drive clear of a car, and now parking her car to block her own drive), to do this. This left me completely blocked in as there was also a car in front of me.

Not knowing what to do, I went to knock on the door and I could see that the woman had gone upstairs and was not responding to me at the door. I even knocked on neighbours doors to try to get some help! After about 15 minutes of this, another member of the house arrived home in his car, so I approached him and said the car blocking me needed to be moved. It was also preventing him from getting on his own drive! The woman came out, and said nothing at all other than ‘I’m only moving this to allow him on the drive’.

I really really regret not saying anything but I just was so glad to get in my car and drive away from there. I’m only 25 and very non confrontational and this was a middle aged couple! Surely it cannot be legal to do this - what if I had had an emergency and I was stuck? I was parked on a public road not obstructing them!

Pretty sure I am not being unreasonable, but is this something that people do???

That actually happened to my mum a few years ago. I had met her at a garden centre and she bought several bags of compost and some plants, which we put into my car. When we got back to her house, I parked on her drive so that I could unload the compost and plants, and she parked so that her car was fully on her crossover and didn’t stop the neighbour with the adjoining drive from accessing her driveway. It took us about 20 minutes to unload and then get her other shopping indoors. Just as we had taken the last things indoors, we saw that the local parking enforcement people had turned up and were in the process of issuing a penalty notice. We assumed that the busy body neighbour on the other side of my mum had called them, and although my mum pointed out that she was parked on her own crossover, they insisted she was still committing an offence. There was no chance at all that the parking enforcement team were just passing by - my mum lived in a cul de sac of 20 houses, off another cul de sac in a fairly quiet part of her town.

I’m not sure you can ever win against idiots like this. I’d just park elsewhere.

Spanish parking rules apply. Use your car to gently shove theirs backwards or forwards till you have enough room to get out.

its illegal to be blocked from entering the Highway.

but I don’t know if this covers it I would of done a 10000 point turn.

Sadly this is true!

You pay your road tax and you were legally parked. This woman is a prat. YANBU. Don’t be bullied by someone like this.

From their point of view, their behaviour will have worked - it’s unlikely you will park there again. Some people are arseholes.

I don’t think so. Parking enforcement officers would have to try to find out who a car belonged to before ticketing it. And it would turn the space in front of the dropped kerb into your private parking space with official enforcement, which is not the intention.

People are crazy and entitled about parking. You see it on threads here all the time.

You can prevent access to a drive way but you cant block access if a car is on the drive already. Its to do with emergency situations really.

Unfortunately, a lot of people in the UK incorrectly assume they own the road in front of their house. My advice would be not to park in front of that specific ladies house again if you prefer a quiet life. But you did nothing wrong.

I hate people that bully in this way. I’d be deliberately parking there every single time now, but that’s because I’m compelled to correct batshit people like this.

Or I’d cheerfully give her the finger as I got in my car and just drive straight into hers, but that would be full menopausal rage unlocked, which I don’t recommend. 😆

Please don't use that ageist misogynistic slur.

We really don't need misogynist name calling.

They are unfit to hold a licence, or at least allege this by recording the car registration and reporting it to the DVLA.

I agree with @PrincessofWells about the name calling. In any case the majority of unfit drivers are probably men.

I would've kept banging on the door. Get another friend to park next to you and leave your car there all night. But im petty like that

You're wrong. Don't make me quote the Traffic Management Act 2004 Section 86 it's too early. ☕️

You must have left yourself literally no room at the front too though, so it was no one thing that blocked you in.

Yeah, but they don't turn up to those either so you may as well have a go.

And it's a record of their behavior.

I went and read it. Thanks for the reference.

And yep it’s fine to park across a dropped kerb in front of a non-shared driveway with the permission of the occupier but not if you paid them. Good to know.

It's never too early for s86(3) though.

This is why I have a shit, large car. I just reverse nudging them until I can get out. I refuse to be bullied like this.

I don't understand. How can you do that if they're right in your car's arse and they've got the handbrake on? Does that work?

People are complete wankers. My finger would have been on her doorbell for half an hour.