Van parking beside driveway

cruais

Looking for advice.

There is a guy who lives 2 doors down from me and is doing diy to his house for the past 3 or so years so likes the front of his house clear for different things

He drives a van for a living and randomly decides every now and then to park it beside my driveway, even tho there is plenty of space outside his own house.

The thing is I find it is dangerous as i cannot see down the road reversing out and he completely restricts my view. His van also slightly goes over into my driveway in length but i dont want to sound petty.

Have i rights to tell him not to park there?

Paulw

You can always request that he doesn't park there. But, if he is blocking your drive or making it unsafe, then you can report it to the council parking unit.

Wabbit Ears

Hes a neighbour, Just knock on the door and when he answers say the words 'Can you please not park your van outside my house as its making reversing out of my drive very difficult and dangerous'

Its called a conversation, neighbours have them.

ted1

cruais wrote: »

Looking for advice.

There is a guy who lives 2 doors down from me and is doing diy to his house for the past 3 or so years so likes the front of his house clear for different things

He drives a van for a living and randomly decides every now and then to park it beside my driveway, even tho there is plenty of space outside his own house.

The thing is I find it is dangerous as i cannot see down the road reversing out and he completely restricts my view. His van also slightly goes over into my driveway in length but i dont want to sound petty.

Have i rights to tell him not to park there?

You shouldn't reverse out , reverse in. It's much safer. And its policy in many work places fur such reasons

Wabbit Ears

Wabbit Ears wrote: »

Hes a neighbour, Just knock on the door and when he answers say the words 'Can you please not park your van outside my house as its making reversing out of my drive very difficult and dangerous'

Its called a conversation, neighbours have them.

'Some' neighbours are approachable, some not. Frankly if someone is so ignorant to park their van in front of someone elses house when there is space in front of their own, I would bet that they are not the type who will respond to any kind of polite or reasonable request.


OP, I have a similar issue (an old banger of a car parked constantly in front or opposite my drive) This guy leaves round the corner. I can only assume as his car is a piece of junk he prefers to keep it away from this house. He only uses it Monday to Friday for work commute then leaves it parked up for the entire weekend.

Now I have tried to talk to this guy, as have my other neigbbors. No joy. One of those ignoranr types who couldn't give a monkeys and doesn't interact with any of the neighbors so doesn't care if he annoys us.

Short answer, I'm afraid, is that he is entitled to park where he feels like it, as long as he is not blocking you in or up on the footpath. However as I have said to my annoying parker 'there is a difference between what is legal and what is common neighborly courtesy'

Hopefully, van driver might take this on board....but based on my experience, don't be surprised if he doesn't.

cruais

Wabbit Ears wrote: »

Its called a conversation, neighbours have them.

Thanks, but no need to be sarcastic with me.

Another poster mentioned about parking on the pathway and that he is. He parks two wheels on the path and two wheels on the road, but in honesty, so do other people as the road is very narrow.

One_Of_Shanks

I would try politely asking him to stop parking there if it was me but I understand that some people don't like confrontation etc so as an alternative could you try putting down a couple of large traffic cones there?
It would hopefully get the point across if you don't fancy talking to him about it and if there is lots of other space to park in, he's unlikely to bother moving them or asking you about them.

Worth a shot

Wabbit Ears

cruais wrote: »

Thanks, but no need to be sarcastic with me.

Another poster mentioned about parking on the pathway and that he is. He parks two wheels on the path and two wheels on the road, but in honesty, so do other people as the road is very narrow.

No sarcasm at all, Really, Go and talk with him. He may be confrontational, But chances are he'll be mortified that its upsetting you.

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

Wabbit Ears

Deleted User wrote: »

'Some' neighbours are approachable, some not. Frankly if someone is so ignorant to park their van in front of someone elses house when there is space in front of their own, I would bet that they are not the type who will respond to any kind of polite or reasonable request.

Thats no way to live life, what a depressing view of people you seem to have!!!
Most people do things because they are unaware that its upsetting others. You cant assume because someone is parking in a place you don't want them to park that they are ignorant and unapproachable.

Wabbit Ears

Wabbit Ears wrote: »

No sarcasm at all, Really, Go and talk with him. He may be confrontational, But chances are he'll be mortified that its upsetting you.

I highly doubt he will be 'mortified' or anything like it. he knows exactly what hes doing, and must have some inkling he is being a nuisance. He has a brass neck, more like.

cruais

Wabbit Ears wrote: »

No sarcasm at all, Really, Go and talk with him. He may be confrontational, But chances are he'll be mortified that its upsetting you.

Sorry, i took you up wrong.

Im keeping an eye out for him, as he is always in the front hammering and drilling at all hours of the night. (Thats a whole other issue).

Ill nab him then

corglass

ted1 wrote: »

You shouldn't reverse out , reverse in. It's much safer. And its policy in many work places fur such reasons

It's also against the rules of the road to reverse out of your drive onto the road

ted1

Patww79 wrote: »

Irrelevant if he's partially blocking the drive in this case though. Not the issue at all, the van driver is in the wrong.

It's not irrelevant , the op said it's dangerous reversing out ( and potentially illegal depending on the road )
Studies have shown that reversing in is much safer

kravmaga

cruais wrote: »

Looking for advice.

There is a guy who lives 2 doors down from me and is doing diy to his house for the past 3 or so years so likes the front of his house clear for different things

He drives a van for a living and randomly decides every now and then to park it beside my driveway, even tho there is plenty of space outside his own house.

The thing is I find it is dangerous as i cannot see down the road reversing out and he completely restricts my view. His van also slightly goes over into my driveway in length but i dont want to sound petty.

Have i rights to tell him not to park there?

Id start parking outside his driveway, see how he likes it??

Wabbit Ears

Wabbit Ears wrote: »

Thats no way to live life, what a depressing view of people you seem to have!!!
Most people do things because they are unaware that its upsetting others. You cant assume because someone is parking in a place you don't want them to park that they are ignorant and unapproachable.

Ok, well then think about it this way. Why would he not park his van in front of his own house? Why would he choose to park in front of someone elses? It doesn't take Einstien to figure out that most people a. like to have the space outside their own house for a visitor and b. might not want to look out at a van all day.

If you think he is just doing this randomly then you are being incredibly naïve...

Sarn

corglass wrote: »

It's also against the rules of the road to reverse out of your drive onto the road

On a side note, the rules of the road states that you must not reverse from a minor road onto a major road as it is unsafe to do so. It is not illegal to reverse out of your driveway once you use due care as your driveway is not classed as a minor road.

Flippyfloppy

Maybe you should park there for a while, let him find somewhere else.

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

Mrs OBumble

Sarn wrote: »

On a side note, the rules of the road states that you must not reverse from a minor road onto a major road as it is unsafe to do so. It is not illegal to reverse out of your driveway once you use due care as your driveway is not classed as a minor road.

That's not what my driving instructor told me.


Either ways, it sounds like the neighbour needs to take a little care with placement.

Parking in from of someone else's house is OK.

Parking over their driveway or making the road dangerous for them is not. Start by talking to them, in a friendly positive way, from a road safety point of view. Only if that doesn't work, escalate to the council from the road safety point of view.

ChrisM

I have seen some people put medium/large stones down to stop vehicles parking up on the verge. I'd guess the wheelbase is longer on the van compared to a Ford Mondeo for example, so maybe place the stones in such a way that a car will fit but not a van?

MarkR

ChrisM wrote: »

I have seen some people put medium/large stones down to stop vehicles parking up on the verge. I'd guess the wheelbase is longer on the van compared to a Ford Mondeo for example, so maybe place the stones in such a way that a car will fit but not a van?

Not a good idea. You don't own the area outside your house, so you've no right to erect obstacles.

Cuddlesworth

Park your car on the road, if talking to him doesn't work. And as others have said, stop reversing out of your driveway. Learn to reverse park, its far safer.

Murt10

Is it not illegal to park a commercial vehicle overnight in a residential area?

Korat

Dealing with the problem by talking with the neighbour is always the first and best option. Although if that doesn't work...

I saw an episode of 'Neighbours from Hell' where something similar was going on. The affected neighbour got an old bicycle and secured it in the spot where the other guy kept parking. He had some kind of bracket fitted to the kerb which he locked the bike to so it couldn't be moved without damaging something.

Not sure I'd go down that route myself but it would provide the rest of the neighbours with some amusement.

handlemaster

Park your car at the front the way hé does. He will get the message

ted1

Murt10 wrote: »

Is it not illegal to park a commercial vehicle overnight in a residential area?

No it's not

Murt10

Murt10 wrote: »

Is it not illegal to park a commercial vehicle overnight in a residential area?

How on earth could it be illegal to park a commercial vehicle in a residential area, it would be an insane rule. Where do people get these ideas?

Cuddlesworth

Louisa Curved Arm wrote: »

How on earth could it be illegal to park a commercial vehicle in a residential area, it would be an insane rule. Where do people get these ideas?

A lot of private estates have this rule, for the reasons the OP posted.

cruais

Thanks for all of the advice.

I always try to park where he parks as my husband has a car so it will save us moving cars around depending on who needs to move first in the mornings.

He just takes the opportunity to park there when my car isnt parked. He doesnt have a drive way although he has a corner house with a massive front garden. So much so, there is enough to put an extension on the house and a driveway.

With regard to reversing into the driveway. I 90% do, however, when he parks the van there and with my neighbours car opposite parked on the road also, my only option is to drive into the driveway.

Regardless of driving in or reversing in, when i leave my drive way i cannot see down the road with the size of this van. It creates a total blindspot.

Mrs OBumble

Louisa Curved Arm wrote: »

How on earth could it be illegal to park a commercial vehicle in a residential area, it would be an insane rule. Where do people get these ideas?

Mrs Buckét is alive and well.

Some social housing leases have a clause saying no commercial vehicles can be parked at the property or on the estate.

Makes for interesting neighbourhood discussions about what constitutes a commercial vehicle. One example is small cars with company writing. Technically they are commercial vehicles. Most people don't mind them - until there are complaints about certain other larger vehicles, which often are 100% for private use but look "commercial".

Local solutions, starting with discussions between neighbours, almost always work best. Council solutions are the next step.

ted1

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Mrs Buckét is alive and well.

Some social housing leases have a clause saying no commercial vehicles can be parked at the property or on the estate.

Makes for interesting neighbourhood discussions about what constitutes a commercial vehicle. One example is small cars with company writing. Technically they are commercial vehicles. Most people don't mind them - until there are complaints about certain other larger vehicles, which often are 100% for private use but look "commercial".

Local solutions, starting with discussions between neighbours, almost always work best. Council solutions are the next step.

I guess it depends on who it's taxed. It's either commercial or not.
3 tonne limits work best. It gets rid of the big vehicles.

A land cruiser is much bigger than caddy vans. I suspect it's more to do with snobbery

the_syco

Deleted User wrote: »

'Some' neighbours are approachable, some not. Frankly if someone is so ignorant to park their van in front of someone elses house when there is space in front of their own, I would bet that they are not the type who will respond to any kind of polite or reasonable request.

The neighbour is parking on a free space that is not being used by anyone, and is not blocking the OP form getting out.

Patww79 wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

You missed a bit;

cruais wrote: »

park it beside my driveway

ChrisM wrote: »

I have seen some people put medium/large stones down to stop vehicles parking up on the verge. I'd guess the wheelbase is longer on the van compared to a Ford Mondeo for example, so maybe place the stones in such a way that a car will fit but not a van?

If he gets proof the OP put them there, the OP would be liable for damages.

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

the_syco

Patww79 wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

Yeah, my bad

OP; if he's parking out front, you don't have any right to tell him to move, as it's not your property, but if he's blocking your exit, you can tell him to move.

Cuddlesworth

Cuddlesworth wrote: »

A lot of private estates have this rule, for the reasons the OP posted.

I don't think I've ever been in an estate in my life that didn't have a few vans or commercial jeeps. It's an idiotic rule for people who rely on their commercially taxed vehicle to get around.

Fair enough if it's a ban on trucks, small lorrys et. (Which I suspect is what these rules are actually against that people speak off) but trying to stop someone parking a transit or landcruiser in an estate is beyond stupid even more so by the fact both vehicles are available as private seated vehicle which take up the same amount of space.

seamusk84

Park in that spot yourself for a few weeks. That would get the message across, especially as you would be leaving your driveway clear.

It's a bit of an escalation but if he is doing this he is most likely a jerk anyway.

the_syco

Until the user talks to the van guy (or gives a fair reason why not), the OP is making a mountain out of a molehill, IMO.

RainyDay

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Some social housing leases have a clause saying no commercial vehicles can be parked at the property or on the estate.

Social housing? Don't think so - they have these rules in some managed estates, where there is a management company in charge, and not the council. But not in social housing, where you will have plenty of blue-collar workers and tradesmen with vans.

cruais

I managed to catch my neighbour while he was working on the front of his house.

I broached the subject very nicely with a smile on my face and told him how it is creating a blind spot for me getting out of the driveway.

His answer to me was that he needed the space outside his house to carry out work and that he was entitled to park there.

I then informed him that he was technically parked over my driveway in which he didnt believe until i showed him and I told him then to please move it.

Its moved to outside his house. He wasnt impressed mumbling something in his native language which i didnt understand. Anyway, hopefully he will take the hint and stop parking there

Mrs OBumble

RainyDay wrote: »

Social housing? Don't think so - they have these rules in some managed estates, where there is a management company in charge, and not the council. But not in social housing, where you will have plenty of blue-collar workers and tradesmen with vans.

I've seen the leases. (Remember, not all social housing is council-run.)

And yes, it is a problem for trades-workers and others who have similar work vehicles.

RainyDay

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

I've seen the leases. (Remember, not all social housing is council-run.)

And yes, it is a problem for trades-workers and others who have similar work vehicles.

Are you talking about social housing units within a managed development, like this in the Beacon in Dublin?

http://www.dlrcoco.ie/aboutus/councildepartments/corporateservices/communicationsoffice/pressreleases/2011/july2011/34newsocialhousingunitsinsandyford/