Purple house has two parking spaces but uses our yard instead of second one - so intrusive! Help!

[concernedrepurplehouse]

here is a diagram. The white Lanes are a private back roads leading to the highways. There is a set of gates then a yard for orange and yellow house.
I’m yellow house and also own the freehold of orange house subject to long leases. As some you know that brings in no money and is a heck of a lot of responsibility and hassle. You really have to keep on it. Orange leaseholders have allocated parking spaces on the yard which come with a right of access to orange house.

purple house has one car parking space which it can only access by driving through yellow/orange’s yard. I’ve labelled it 1 in red pen. Nothing in writing/nothing on the deeds. This is ok.

purple house has a second space at the back and fully documented legal rights to pass through light blue house’s yard to other private lane to highway. But it’s a garage that opens out to light blue’s yard from where it can exit.

purple’s newish owners moved in at the start of the pandemic with four little children and - no surprise - 2 medium size cars. We bent over backwards to accommodate them.

the trouble is that purple accommodates its second car in our yard too whilst using its garage for storage/hobbies :(. If an orange leaseholder is away (think second homes), purple breezily parks there. The degree of brazenness varies. Sometimes purple puts second car elsewhere at front on highway. Then it starts to come to yard and unload/drop off kids turn round and return to highway. Then that turns into parking for hours or overnight with purple people going to and fro with their hobby stuff/children stuff. Then purple’s elderly dad starts using it too. Then purple’s tradesmen ( I don’t mean deliveries).

I want to relax in my small private small orange house garden. Unfortunately it’s right next to a preferred purple-invaded space so I have to squeeze past purple family. Purple are responsible for a good 3/4 of the deterioration of the yard’s ageing surface. As freeholder I’ll have to resurface it. I’ll have to claim contributions from orange leaseholders. In the past one stroppy orange leaseholder has resisted paying on the grounds that freeholder was allowing predecessor purple people too much access/parking and causing him problems. He got really angry. He is still a leaseholder but doesn’t live here.

help! I chose yellow for my house before I remembered it’s the colour of cowardice......

Have you got legal advice with your home insurance?

What have you said in your letter?

Have you refused them access or just insisting they not park beyond purple boundary?

Worst parking diagram EVER. Made me smile. Also, well done on progress so far OP, nice work.

:)
We confirmed their permission re space 1 and that nothing beyond that is permissible. We pointed out that space 2 is available for car 2.

The old dad was parked in our yard within an hour. But yesterday car 2 parked outside very-dark-blue house instead of our yard (on the other side from me), space 1 being occupied, and they walked to and fro across the yard several times fetching stuff. Pretty odd and I cant see very-dark-blue putting up with this for long. So - inconvenient for them, annoying for us and very dark blue.

.... overall we are glad to have made progress and there is nothing in our letter that I would be sorry to see shown to other neighbours or friends or colleagues

So have you now given them permission to park in space one? Your OP said they didn't have permission to park there and so didn't contribute to costs.

Sori, not that they didn't have permission to park there, but they didn't have permission to drive to space one.

I think you’ve been a bit too easy with confirming permission for space 1. According to your OP, there is nothing in their deeds, so they have no right over this space? By allowing them to park there, they could establish a right of way and they are damaging your tarmac….
I would have said no parking there at all, get it over with once and for all.

Agree with this. They should be parking where they have permission to park , anything else is not your problem to resolve. You will end up paying for their wear and tear to your property.

Please consider getting some sort of barrier system installed so that Yellow (you) and Orange (your leaseholders) can access the laneway and not Purple. Give Orange a fob so that they can access the lane.

Purple has an access route in their deeds and it doesn't involve your land. It's up to Blue (light or dark) to discuss this with Purple as you will no longer be accommodating their access, their wear and tear on your land.

Be the landlord and owner that Orange needs you to be.

Purple is not your issue to resolve. That's up to Blue to do.

thanks guys.

I think that if they now stick to the letter of what we have said we will be back to situation we had with purple predecessor. I feel that's the honourable thing to do.

I hope they will. If not, you'll be the first to know!

An update to say that purples have complied till today when purple dad turned up whilst I was gardening and parked bold as brass. He began the conversation saying “It’s all right, I’m moving the car” (after getting out of the car to go to purple house). I said “that is not a facility we can offer”. He then explained he had some food to drop off so I repeated my line. He explained again and I repeated my line and said he could use the front door. He then left and did so.

I am unimpressed that the purples are allowing (encouraging?) an ageing parent to be in this position.

OP time to follow @ivykaty44 suggestion.

... he also explained he couldn’t use front door as “I don’t know if they’re in”.

I guess it’s a case of them getting used to it.
awful to have these sudden confrontations when I’m peacefully gardening

Gosh I want to be free from them, not racing to answer their bell!

Does Purple have a legal right to park in Space 1 and use your yard to access it? If not then just put a stop to it completely.

no (we spent £1k taking advice from a specialist solicitor and it came back surprisingly clear after checking all angles).

I wish to honour a promise I made purple predecessor (it has been handed down through family) as she was my friend.

I think honouring that promise is creating a problem. I’d put a stop to them parking there. They’ve brought it on themselves.

They have indeed. But life is messy.

In all fairness, Purple Predecessor is not who is living there now. That is Purple Current. You have to plan (as you are the freeholder) for both Purple Current and Purple Future occupants.

You have to sort this out now for now and for the future residents.

Get a barrier installed. Give Yellow and Orange a fob that can raise the barrier and don't give one to Purple.

No risk of misinterpreting that - they have taken liberties and you're putting a stop to it.

Job done!

Hmmm, this is making me think

“You have to plan (as you are the freeholder) for both Purple Current and Purple Future occupants”

it has been hard to let go of the old relationships .... but a future without the car going across would be a better future

Being kind is a good thing, but they are now taking advantage.

You are setting up a future of hassle by continuing the same kindness you gave your friend. Presumably she didn’t abuse your kindness? Current purples are…..
Get a barrier for your house and don’t allow assess to purple house. They won’t like it but you have to think of the future

Looking back, it’s incredibly telling how much hassle (for us and our predecessors) has come from the arrangement.
the state of the yard alone is a massive issue. They don’t contribute - it will be expensive to restore, etc.

If they never access your yard, you’ll never really set eyes on them will you, as they’ll be using blue lane. So no awkward future interactions at all - even if they are mightily pissed off with you.

I think given you have received clear advice to that effect you should simply fence off the yard denying them any access. I mean, who on earth tolerates neighbours trespass? It will devalue your home.