Shared driveway - my driveway is their turning circle

[IglesiasPiggletheSecond]

New neighbours are complaining that we are parking on our driveway which is making it difficult for them to manoeuvre their car. This wasn’t an issue with our previous neighbours but with a shared drive something was bound to crop up at some point!

My boundary is edged in red with the cross hatched area being my driveway. The cross hatched section isn’t on the land registry so not sure where this was first filed? There is an ordnance survey reference on the document?

The overall cross hatched area is a shared drive between 3 houses. We’re not supposed to block it etc. The house at the top (not in the picture) has a driveway that matches my neighbour’s.

I have contacted my solicitor to get the cross hatching removed from my driveway so there is no issue when I sell the property but am waiting to hear.

Does anyone know if I will be able to get this resolved in my favour? Should it be possible to update this?

In reality I am happy for my neighbour to reverse their car into my drive so they can drive out but they are requesting I don’t park there at all. This is my land!!

They are not reasonable people before anyone asks, for example, my daughter has an EHCP and is picked up for school at 8 am every morning by taxi, they have complained that the taxi wakes them up. They both work a 9-5 job and often leave at 7:30 so aren’t even there to hear the car arrive!

A good starting point would be to get copies of your and your neighbours' deeds which should outline access rights etc.

That's an annoying layout.

My driveway to the right of my house was hatched. I asked my solicitors to unhatch it as it wasn't needed as a turn around. The builders agreed and unhatched it. This was all negotiated prior to buying the house.

Looking at your pic, there's no need for your area to be hatched as people could reverse down the drive. You could leave it free if you can also park in the unhatched area.

Good luck!

It doesnt matter though, if it needs to be or not - what matters is that currently OP cannot park there, and if they want to, they need to get it changed with agreement from whoever currently has right of access and legally

If the neighbours have a right of way over the hatched area you are not entitled to restrict that right by blocking the hatched area whether by parking on it or by any other means.

Such a right will be recorded at the Land Registry in the title register which you can order for £3.

If the right exists you will not be able to change it. You bought your house subject to a pre-existing right in favour of whoever is the owner of your neighbours house and the benefit and burden of the right is continued each time each house is sold.

I'd try to keep on the right side of the neighbour and hope they are willing to accommodate your parking.

Are you sure it's a drive? I share a 'drive' with my neighbours. Looks like a drive. Gets used as a drive. But the deeds state it isn't a drive, its 'shared access'. Luckily we get along with neighbours and both use it.

What did your solicitor say? Have they admitted their mistake ?

This. You appear to own a hatched area not a drive.

I'm so annoyed they lied to you. I'm sorry. What a scummy thing to do.

@rightioly I'm so annoyed they lied to you. I'm sorry. What a scummy thing to do.

It's quite possible the old sellers thought it was their parking. It may have been what they were sold and there may never have been an issue before

I think everyone previously just got on and realised a shared drive is a shared inconvenience at times. Our new neighbours are not that way inclined (see my original post and the special needs taxi complaint) so we will need to quantify the loss in value of our property and try to seek some redress. The solicitor has acknowledged my email and said they’d dig out the file. To be continued….

The area you’re calling your drive is not your drive. It’s a shared area that you aren’t allowed to block by parking on it. Your solicitor should have picked this up, I’d definitely be seeking compensation from either seller or solicitor.