Neighbours using our driveway as a thoroughfare

[Notathoroughfare]

Our neighbour’s house has a front entrance on one street and a rear entrance on our street, which means their drive is directly adjacent to ours and he has a gate at the top of his to access his garden. It’s not a shared driveway. For some reason, they never use their front door and always use the rear as an entrance/exit for them and any guests.

Because his car is massive, it takes up the whole width of his drive, which means anyone entering or leaving their gate has to walk on our driveway and it’s really starting to piss me off. They drag their bins down our drive every week, use our drive to get in and out of their car and if our car isn’t parked on our drive, they will literally just walk straight across.

We did previously ask them not to do this as they were having work done and their workmen kept using our drive to get in and out of NDN’s garden as well as leaving stuff on it and sitting on it to have their lunch. He apologised and it stopped, but increasingly, anyone who visits them will walk up our drive to get to theirs.

We can’t put a fence up because it would mean their driveway was unusable - there’s a wall on the other side of it and their drive is literally only wide enough for their car. This would also be a pretty nuclear option and we don’t want to fall out with them as if we need to do any work to the side of our house, we need to use his sideway.

I really just want to discourage them and their guests using our drive as an extension of theirs. It sounds petty but it’s several times a day and they’ve even been known to go up the middle of our drive and squeeze between the front of our car and our window to get to the gate if our bins are in the way.

There’s no room for planters down the edge of the drive so the only thing I could really think of was creating a small bin store at the top of our drive which is right by their gate. We’re on civil terms with them but not particularly friendly and I’d rather not risk a row because I’m fairly sure he would think we were being unreasonable!

If anyone has any suggestions for deterrents I’d be interested to hear them. We can’t put gates or fences on our drive as there isn’t space. Land mines also not an option.

Here's my artistic impression OP, does it look like this?

@Notathoroughfare

Hmm. I’ve tried to post a diagram but it’s not working. I’ll try again in a bit.

It’s basically an L shape with the horizontal part of the L being their drive and the vertical part is their house and garden. Our drive is next to theirs.

It doesn’t hugely negatively impact our lives but a lot of things which are aggravating on a relatively trivial level become more so when they continue. Sure, it might not bother some people and all good to you but it bothers us which is why I’m looking at solutions.

If I can’t come up with anything suitable then I’ll raise it again with him, but I was looking initially for a visual deterrent to try and discourage them. 🙂

The biggest issue for you might be if anyone injures themselves on your driveway and sues you. Tell them you had an insurance assessor out and they pointed that out to you and you can no longer facilitate access from your driveway into their property ...bloody insurance companies etc

@saltandpepper234

YANBU. We have a semi detached garage and parking space outside. The garages sit in front of a row of houses and ours is the side closest to the house. My NDN walks in between our car and garage door to access his own garage rather than walking around the cars and it drives me MAD. Accidentally shut the garage door on his head once because I just press the button when I’m in the house without looking…but he shouldn’t have been walking there 🤷🏼‍♀️

OP I’m not sure what you can do apart from some kind of physical boundary. What about raised planters? They feel less antagonistic than a fence?

Just the once ?!?

You could put a small fence up for a short stretch where they cut through next to your house. Something like this. www.ebay.co.uk/itm/392933617560 That way you have a barrier to deter them squeezing past but hopefully doesn't make their drive completely unusable. They can't get upset that you are trying to add an attractive feature to your property without having to show themselves as wanting to ignore your request not to cut across your drive.

@saltandpepper234

YANBU. We have a semi detached garage and parking space outside. The garages sit in front of a row of houses and ours is the side closest to the house. My NDN walks in between our car and garage door to access his own garage rather than walking around the cars and it drives me MAD. Accidentally shut the garage door on his head once because I just press the button when I’m in the house without looking…but he shouldn’t have been walking there 🤷🏼‍♀️

OP I’m not sure what you can do apart from some kind of physical boundary. What about raised planters? They feel less antagonistic than a fence?

My neighbour does this, they all do this. It's annoying but it's a long way around otherwise. Hate shared driveways even thought it's my driveway

Oh and they leave their bins on the edge of my driveway too I shove them back their side as I'm obviously very PA

@Trilley

I suppose you could try putting up a "Please do not trespass onto our land" or similar, which would at least remind both the neighbours and their visitors.

But probably you need a conversation where you say that you really don't want to make their drive unusable by putting up a fence or wall but if this isn't sorted out you may have no choice. Obviously it's worth discussing constructive alternatives like them using their front drive like everyone else, and not parking their car there.

this^^ not the trespass sign but the look we don't want to put up a fence but we would if this doesn't stop. Its not your responsibility to keep their drive usable.

@saltandpepper234

YANBU. We have a semi detached garage and parking space outside. The garages sit in front of a row of houses and ours is the side closest to the house. My NDN walks in between our car and garage door to access his own garage rather than walking around the cars and it drives me MAD. Accidentally shut the garage door on his head once because I just press the button when I’m in the house without looking…but he shouldn’t have been walking there 🤷🏼‍♀️

OP I’m not sure what you can do apart from some kind of physical boundary. What about raised planters? They feel less antagonistic than a fence?

best deterrent EVER

Accidentally shut the garage door on his head once because I just press the button when I’m in the house without looking…but he shouldn’t have been walking there 🤷🏼‍♀️ brilliant!! I would have sat for hours with the garage remote control, waiting for the very moment cf walked on my property.
Look, we are all a bit territorial. I shouted at a random man who had jumped over my fence to piss in my wood today. Apparently he wasn't doing any harm

Diagram.

There is no space whatsoever between the drives. Both drives are gravel/paving.They can’t get their car through their gate because it’s too big (minibus type of vehicle) and their house is a terrace directly on the pavement at the front with double yellows on the road so they can’t park there.

If you have a normal sized car you should be able to add a fence right at the edge of your drive so doesn’t go over theirs at all but is right on the edge so they can’t use yours. That shouldn’t affect their usage (unless their car is so big they need your space too which is not on!mI mean if they aren’t shared drives then technically there is an invisible wall between them and people should treat it as such.

Visitors obviously won’t wear the driveway out but what happens if a visitor trips, slips or falls on your property? Who is liable?

You need a fence. It'll mean they need to take the wall down, but that's their problem.

@tcjotm

If you have a normal sized car you should be able to add a fence right at the edge of your drive so doesn’t go over theirs at all but is right on the edge so they can’t use yours. That shouldn’t affect their usage (unless their car is so big they need your space too which is not on!mI mean if they aren’t shared drives then technically there is an invisible wall between them and people should treat it as such.

That’s exactly the issue. Their car is so big that they need to use our drive to get in and out of it. I’m less bothered about that, it’s the constant traipsing up and down our drive by their visitors which irritates me, especially when they walk between our cars up the middle of the drive then squeeze between the car and our front window to get to NDN’s gate.

On Saturday, we came back to find three big boxes and their bins on our drive so we couldn’t even get onto it. I got out to go and find out what was going on and NDN came rushing out to move them saying he was having a sort out and had stopped for lunch (leaving it all in our way!). Again, he did say sorry, but it’s the fact they just seem to see our property as an extension of theirs.

We normally have two cars parked on our drive. I do sometimes park closer to the boundary to try and discourage them but that generally leads to them taking the middle of the drive route which is even more annoying!

Oh my goodness OP, are you me? Next door neighbour uses our drive, their builders have been using it as their own personal drive (just telling deliveries to park on our drive to drop off / pick up, walking mud up and down it, even the bloody building inspector parked his car on it blocking me in even though the public road opposite was perfectly clear!) Their drive is too small to park their car and then get out (even though they have a massive lawned area the other side of their drive so could make it bigger if they wanted too. They just don't want to, why would they when they can use mine?!)

I'm going to put plants down the boundary when the spring comes. Luckily we have a wide drive so it can take it!

I would put a fence up. You would be perfectly within your rights. It sounds as though you would still have room to park your cars without any issue. Your cars are going to get damaged at some point wither by them opening a car door into yours, scratching it whilst wheeling bins past, or one of their visitors scratching them whilst squeezing past.

None of this would bother me, apart from workmen using the drive for their equipment (which I assume isn't a regular thing?). Them stepping out of their car and literally walking on your drive is not harming you in any way. There is no way to stop them other than to erect a physical barrier.

I think you are going to have to speak to them

Ask them to get visitors to use the front door.

Why can’t they park their car at the side of your house, so pull further up the driveway

Otherwise I would be fencing, as long as I can get my car on I wouldn’t car about his

We lived on the corner of a street and everyone used our drive way to walk to the next street instead of using the pavement. I put a fence and gate up.

Problem solved.

Not your problem if their car is too big for their drive, they’re really taking the piss because they think you’re too soft.
Put a fence up. They can figure out what to do about their car and getting on and off their property and where to put their bins out.

I’d put up a fence plus a gate on my driveway. But I’d tell them first. Do you have a child or dog? Tell them it’s to keep the dog / child safe.

Tell them you’re putting up a fence on your property. If they bleat that that will make their driveway unusable, don’t let them put that problem on to you, it’s a them-problem, ‘aw, I’m sure you’ll figure something out’. Why are we putting up a fence? ‘Because we want to :)’

Some pots on the edge. And sprinklers.

Do NDN own the wall on the other side of their drive? If so I'd put up a face in the middle and if they want more access they can knock down the wall to give them greater access.

This would annoy me too. Occasional use is one thing, but all the time takes the piss. And especially if it involves deliveries which could damage your drive or people squeezing past your car. My car getting scratched would be my main concern.

Ultimately, if you want to out a fence just inside your boundary, it isn't your problem if it renders their drive impossible to use with the vehicle they choose to own. But I fully understand why you don't want to do this.

I think you need to have a chat which tells then you're considering it given how much they are taking liberties, despite you asking them not to. Therefore in order to maintain good relations and not go down that route, please stop.

We can’t put a fence up because it would mean their driveway was unusable

You absolutely CAN. And I would tell them that I WOULD if they keep abusing your drive.

It's their problem, not yours.