It seems you cannot win, even when you park right at the back of the carpark.

[BackToBasics]

Today i took my dd swimming. I drove into the carpark and there were no spaces near the swimming centre, the front and the middle of the carpark was pretty full so i decided to park right at the back where there were loads of spaces, i don't mind walking.

I parked in a bay with an empty space next to me, then there was the bushes next to that space. Perfect for me as i needed the room to get dd out, i am heavily pregnant too so lifting her out is easier for me if i can open her door wide.

An hour later i get back to the car to find some plank has parked right next to me. There were still loads of spaces empty but they decided to park next to me!

So i flipped in their wing mirror so i could open dds door a bit wider and the woman who owned the car appeared and shouted at me.

"You've broken my wing mirror!" she shouted.

I explained to her that it wasn't broken, it flips back into position and that i needed to flip it down to get my door open wider to put dd in.

Then i asked her why she had parked right next to me when there were loads of empty spaces and she said "I can park where i bloody like, there are p&t spaces over there, why don't you use one?"

I said "because they are all full and i choose to park here so i would have plenty of room."

Then she just gave me a filthy look and got in her car.

So if you fight the good fight for a p&t space it's the wrong thing to do and if you choose to park at the back then that's wrong too. You just cannot win!

sorry I'm with the woman, she can park where she likes

She was horrid to you though

I would never park next to another car if there were loads of spaces available, especially that close.

What a horrible woman. Yes she can park where she likes but a little common sense wouldn't have gone a miss.

If i came back to my car and saw a heavily pregnant woman struggling to get her wriggly toddler in the car because i had parked too close, i would appologise to her and offer to help. Some people really do live in their own selfish little world!

I do notice people go like sheep when it comes to parking. It's like they think their car will get lonely unless it's parked right next to the only other car in a car park. Weird.

Next time park in the middle of 2 spaces.

maybe she was lonely

She sounds like an arse.

People do this to me in empty waiting rooms, choosing the chair right next to me. Maybe it's my pheramones but it freaks me out...

She was wrong to park next to you like that but touching her car without asking her was probably unwise.

YANBU - I hate it when people do that.

I parked a few weeks ago right at the far end of a completely empty car park, having arrived very early after work for an evening class.

To my amazement the next car to arrive came and parked right next to me - out of the whole entire car park! And parked so badly that I couldn't open my door fully and had to squeeze out (am also very pregnant).

It drives me insane. And I also seem to attract people to sit right next to me in empty train carriages, waiting rooms etc. .

But you made your point to her well, by the looks of it. She attempted to justify her actions with that last bastion of the inarticulate "I can do what I like, so there" so you have the moral victory, I reckon.

If she hadn't flipped the mirror she might have damaged it getting into her car, she was helping the old bat (or young one)

Yes, but you know how precious some people are about their cars.

People do this to me all the time. It drives me absolutely mad. Unfortunately it also seems to be the people who insist on squeezing in next to you who also like to fling open their door with gay abandon and dent your car.

What do you think would happen if you then moved? Car joins you at empty car park, get back in your car and shift it to the next row. Person comes into empty waiting room and sits in next seat-get up and move into one on other side of room, train carriage-move to other side.....

In fact, I am going to start doing such things, just to see the reaction!

hecate - yes - how about a mumsnet concerted experiment?

I do move . Not the car, but definitely on trains!

Gawd I hate this. Why park next to someone if there's other empty spaces not adjacent to anybody? I look for empty spaces either side as it cuts down on unnecessary dents and scratches from people who unnecessarily park right next to you then carelessly throw their door open wide (the two behaviours tend to go hand in hand IMO!!!)

It's the same mentality as people who sit right next to you on trains... in cafes... on buses... despite their being plenty of other seats to choose from!!! Why do people do that?!! And those same people often produce smelly food/hog the armrest/listen to music through inadequate earphones so you can hear every beat of their preferred rubbish... rant rant... Does anyone on here do any of the above, if so, can I ask why!?!?

The OP was not unreasonable - no damage was caused to the other car (in fact some was probably avoided, she was being responsible).

I would have loved to move, although what do you do with a 2 year old while you move the car?

YABU - how was she supposed to know you were pregnant and needed more space than normal?

X similar posts with lots of others!! Glad I'm not alone!!

Well i wouldn't normally make such a fuss about getting my dd in the car but i just could not get my big tummy in the small gap so needed to open the door wider. Never realised it would be so hard lifting dd when pregnant too!

SalBySea - a good point however, other woman was all too quick to shout (wrongly) about broken wing mirrors - sounds like a selfish arsy sort who wouldn't have done anything different if she had known OP was pg.

"how was she supposed to know you were pregnant and needed more space than normal?"

Your right there but she did know when she came back to her car that i was pregnant and needed space but still continued to shout at me.