AIBU to involve the landlord over neighbours monopolising communal parking and antisocial behaviour?

[ByRoseSnake]

I'm so fed up to be one of those MNers who starts yet another thread about neighbour parking issues, but this one has really fired me up this evening - after a string of other events in recent months, too.

I moved into a lovely, rented 1-person apartment in a converted Victorian building a few years ago. It houses 3 other apartments, 2 other single people (who I get on very well with), and the downstairs basement flat who are a family and very much keep to themselves.

When I first moved in, we were all super friendly and accommodating with each other. We were bringing each other food, chatting etc.

The sticking point was our private communal driveway for parking cars. For context, it's an out of date unmarked/courtyard sort of layout which can snugly fit 4 medium sized cars. It is resident-only, as confirmed by landlord and signs placed. We had a neighbourly meeting one day 18 months ago to negotiate how we can park safely and courteously for all 4 residents to have space getting in and out. I was very happy. Especially because the rest of the streets nearby are terraced, with really tight parallel parking that is competed for (no council permits on our street).

All seemed well, but in the past year there has been a complete breakdown of their behaviour. First of all, they started allowing their friends to come and park for gatherings and parties if they noticed my car was out for the day/evening. I put up with it for a while, but did mention it to the wife. I. had to park 3 streets away.

Then they bought a new car, which was a huge SUV model - I just want to add, I have no biased views at all about what cars people drive, or how they wish to spend their money, although the first thing that stood out was 1) she had said they were struggling with money as she is just a care assistant, and her husband has just moved to the country, 2) they started parking it right in the middle of the driveway and only moving it for their own friends to drive in alongside, effectively blocking 'my' spot and also, on three occasions, completely blocking in my other two neighbours before work (one is a primary care worker in youth care who works over weekends).

The next one was that they scratched my car reversing in to the drive way 2 months ago. I was in the car when it happened, saw it all. The wife was very apologetic and we took photos etc. but when I asked to exchange insurance details, she got really edgy and said she doesn't want to lose her no-claims benefit etc... but also they don't have much money at the moment, so maybe we could find a deal?? My shackles went up completely. She said she'd "speak to her husband".

Anyway, I have all the photo evidence, but finally found a reasonable quote at a garage to fix it, sent her invoice, documents etc, to agree that the work was agreed and done.

This evening (Sunday), they pull up in a brand new Land Rover Defender - more enormous than their last car - and sent a message to all the residents that they now have 2 cars and we need to readjust the parking arrangements to fit in their "brand new cars" ?!?! I was lost for words - it feels so dominating.

They have blocked me out of the communal rental parking space once again, and now they are celebrating with a loud party friends downstairs (their kitchen is directly below my bedroom - it's Sunday evening). I simply want a peaceful place to rest my head before work tomorrow and have somewhere safe to park 😱

I don't know how to continue approaching them. It is obvious that I get nowhere talking to them directly, nor do my other neighbours. The wife scurries away saying she'll talk to her husband, and it appears he just makes things more difficult. Her husband is also a piece of shit, IMO. She said that he doesn't speak English and has only recently moved here, but his attitude is appalling - I have tried to many times to make friendly and/or practical conversation and he looks through me as though I don't exist.

They've also been appalling with their refuse collection for the past 6 months. They just dump out open bags of food waste and baby nappies next to the communal bin area. During the heatwave, we had rats, maggots and all sorts.

Who do I turn to? Would the landlord care? Would the Council care? I think the idea of talking 1-1 is kind of exhausted at this point.

Other than the parking situation and borderline antisocial behaviour from downstairs, I bloody love living here otherwise!

Just wanted to add, I can already foresee that some posters may think running to the landlord for advice is like calling "teacher, teacher!" (not trying to suggest my landlord can resolve my adult problems for me, but curious where the line is drawn?)

It's a private driveway for residents, but because there are no specific apartment-designated spots, it does lay open the possibility of it becoming a resident free-for-all?

If its private rental then the council wont really care.

I would see if the other two reasonable neighbours would join you in asking your landlord to agree to marked parking, one bay per household seems reasonable.

Also, when they hit/marked your car you should have just gone straight through your insurance, I would still do this.

Don't even bother engaging with them, make it the landlord problem.

You're renting an apartment with a space and make it clear you expect to be able to use that space.

Ring the landlord every time they meet an unauthorised guest stay or make it impossible for other residents to use their space.

Is going to be a war of who the landlord feels compelled to appease to make their life easier

Re the scratch- just report to your insurance company asap

They are required by law to provide their name, address and insurance company if they are involved in a Collision

If they dint then its a Police matter

Is your landlord their landlord?

even if they are not your neighbour landlord I’d still write requesting any advice to the parking, as surely it’s not a first come basis and a spot each? What do the deeds say?

noise can go to the council and they’ll ask you to keep a noise diary and then fob you of to environment department, who may make a vusit

Not sure if I’ve read this right but if there’s four parking spaces and four individual apartments, can you not have one space each?

If one apartment has a second or third car, they have to park elsewhere

That's correct, four contained apartments and it was always a mutual, recognised agreement to begin with. Seems like the democratic decision for us all?

No idea what's happened in the last 12-18 months. It just feels like a free-for-all and a huge dominant display of "we've now got two huge brand new SUV cars, so every other resident should just like it or lump it if one of us or our friends have blocked the entire driveway".

Yes, we all live under the same landlord/agency. Have spoken to the landlord loads of times. Lovely man, will sort things out in individual apartments quickly, but generally very slow/not interested in involving himself with anything external.

Yes, I'm also kicking myself for not being harsher re: the insurance. I suspect they weren't insured at all, and then I tried to be too forgiving/was just too busy with work etc to chase up properly

You already know you should just have given their details to the insurance company when they scratched your car.

I wouldn't be at all diffident about complaining to the landlord. In fact, I'd be jumping up and down complaining. Also, take photos every time they dump rubbish and park blocking everyone else. If you document every incidence of anti-social behaviour it will be useful if needed by landlord, local authority or police.

The ideal is that everyone complains and they get kicked out. Realistically you may end up having to move - life's too short to spend years living next to someone who makes your life miserable.

If your landlord isn't bothered about getting involved and is fairly easy going, I'd message him saying you and neighbours are having issues parking and that you'll put up numbers for a space each to stop landlord having to be contacted with complaints.

Added bonus - you get to choose which space you'd like.

Frame it as a neighbourly solution. And give as good as you get with rude neighbour - don't engage.

The risk from the landlords perspective is that you and the other two tenants will get fed up and leave.

Then the next and the next

Oh and get on to The Council/Environmental Health about the rubbish

I am team complain to landlord. You have tried to engage and be neighbourly but these neighbours don't want to engage
So you and the other sensible neighbours need to complain. All the time. Because it will only be through this that anything gets done. You have zero leverage. So you complain and ask for allocated parking bays. You complain if they don't use the bins properly because of environmental health issues. You complain if they make noise late.
I know it seems horrible but at this point is the only route

100% agree with previous posters. Report report report - to the point that you become the biggest PITA to your landlord he feels compelled to act just to shut you up! Also enviro health for the rubbish. I would even see if the cars are taxed and insured!

In response to their message to all residents about adjusting for their extra vehicle just simply reply that there is only room for one vehicle per flat. Ask the landlord to number each parking space and mark the entry way with no parking or whatever.

Does your rental agreement include a parking space?
If so, then yes, complain to the LL every time. Send photos. Get the other residents to do the same.
Ask that formal spaces be marked out and numbered and ask the LL to inform all residents of the arrangements.

Of course you should go to the lanlord.
No discussion.

Your landlord won't care - this isn't for them to police.

I'm afraid your only option is to move house.

This

I used to own a ground floor flat but the one above me was rented. No problems with tenant when I moved in, but a year later they moved out and a new young guy arrived. Nightmare once he moved his girlfriend in. Neither seemed to work, they'd be up all hours, loud music until 3am, friends coming round, throwing fag ends into my garden.

Completely unapproachable with their Pitbull dog. I discovered where their landlord lived (just 5 miles away) and hand delivered a detailed letter of the continual nuisance having had to sleep in my car that night a street away because the music was so loud I could hear it in my car on my drive at 2 am.

My last sentence in my letter said that every time the late night loud music happened again, I would either ring the landlord up or drive round and bang loudly on his door.

I followed through on this, ringing him just two days later at 2 am, and three days later at 3 am.

The next morning I had a knock at my door. Landlord and wife apologising to tell me tenant - who was his nephew! - would be leaving two days later.

Always, always, pester the landlord.

I disagree. If you rally the other tenants and all make a nuisance of yourselves, the landlord will listen. He will not want to risk all the good tenants moving out.

Who manages the building?

What does your actual tenancy say about a car parking space? If its not guaranteed in there then you might not get very far

You rent. The beauty of renting is that you can move relatively easily. I would just move. It will be far quicker than an eviction of the other tenants.

Sounds like the wife was happy to be peaceable. Then her husband has come over to join her and said fuck everyone else

I think, unfortunately, that's the case. And there's not much room for negotiation when one of the household is basically bulldozing through any neighbourly courtesy and decent relations
I hope she's OK at home. But that's def not my business at al