Driveway/Parking Dispute
Discussion
Hi there,
Just after a bit of advice really ;
My girlfriend and I purchased a new build end-terraced house the year before last.
There is a double garage built onto the end-side of our house with a shared driveway for access to the garages. One garage belongs to my next door neighboour, and the other (closest to our house) belongs to my girlfriend and I.
Some other houses on our estate back onto our driveway, and have rights of access to use the driveway as an entrance to their back gardens.
There is a clause in our deeds which states that we are not allowed to use the driveway for parking our cars, and it is only an access way to our garages etc. The ony places we are permitted to park are our garages and the designated parking spaces in front of our houces.
Although it is nearly the size of a double driveway and can (only just) fit two cars side by side, having somone parked in the drive makes getting my car out of the garage extremely difficult reversing out onto the road. (I am sandwiched between an exterior wall of a house and a car).
Just before we moved in our neighbour was advised of the contents of the property deeds and stopped parking there.
However she just has started parking there again, almost obstructing a path for me to reverse my car out of my garage. This is despite there being more than at least two of the designated spaces in front of the houses being free at the time. She doesn't park in her garage because she has lots of furniture etc stored in there. Obviously I'm rather concerned because I take a lot of pride in my car, and do not want to risk damaging it against a house wall or parked car!
Obviously I would like to try the diplomatic approach, however the fact that she is already aware of the deeds indicates that maybe this will go unheeded.
What are my options in this scenario?
Cheers
Jon
Just after a bit of advice really ;
My girlfriend and I purchased a new build end-terraced house the year before last.
There is a double garage built onto the end-side of our house with a shared driveway for access to the garages. One garage belongs to my next door neighboour, and the other (closest to our house) belongs to my girlfriend and I.
Some other houses on our estate back onto our driveway, and have rights of access to use the driveway as an entrance to their back gardens.
There is a clause in our deeds which states that we are not allowed to use the driveway for parking our cars, and it is only an access way to our garages etc. The ony places we are permitted to park are our garages and the designated parking spaces in front of our houces.
Although it is nearly the size of a double driveway and can (only just) fit two cars side by side, having somone parked in the drive makes getting my car out of the garage extremely difficult reversing out onto the road. (I am sandwiched between an exterior wall of a house and a car).
Just before we moved in our neighbour was advised of the contents of the property deeds and stopped parking there.
However she just has started parking there again, almost obstructing a path for me to reverse my car out of my garage. This is despite there being more than at least two of the designated spaces in front of the houses being free at the time. She doesn't park in her garage because she has lots of furniture etc stored in there. Obviously I'm rather concerned because I take a lot of pride in my car, and do not want to risk damaging it against a house wall or parked car!
Obviously I would like to try the diplomatic approach, however the fact that she is already aware of the deeds indicates that maybe this will go unheeded.
What are my options in this scenario?
Cheers
Jon
Avoid an ugly dispute over parking at all costs. I have recently dealt with one that has been rumbling for over 2 years and has had all concerned in court over various allegations of harassment and public order offences. It is still not resolved but all of them have to now behave subject to ASBO legislation being used on them as the next step. This is a housing estate that is walled off with electric gates, property worth between 400K and 500K ad Mercs and BMWs the cause of the distress over lack of space to park that escalated to allegations of damage and hostility.
If there is a chance you can discuss this over a glass of wine sensibly, I would suggest that is the best way to deal with it.
Appealing to her better nature will probably pay dividends, threatening her with the rules of the deeds will not!
If there is a chance you can discuss this over a glass of wine sensibly, I would suggest that is the best way to deal with it.
Appealing to her better nature will probably pay dividends, threatening her with the rules of the deeds will not!
Scraggles said:
have to agree, as when u come to sell up and move, u will have to list the details of any disputes with neighbours
she might not realise there is a problem, you also might forget and leave your car in front of hers by the same margin one day and block her in....
That is assuming I can get my car out of the garage in the first place lol. I only really use my car for leisure for evenings and weekends etc. Sometimes I don't get my car out more than once or twice a week. she might not realise there is a problem, you also might forget and leave your car in front of hers by the same margin one day and block her in....
Chat to her first over coffee und cakes. After all - I not think she want the hastle of repair - even if claiming off your insurance.. but the little matter of the deeds clause over parking might be of interest to insurers who like to reduce costs to them - but hike up your premium 
She may be able to claim off your insurance should you hit this car .. but you would let her insurers know her parking was illegal per the deeds = she may not gets away without some loading herself - as this would add to the potential risk factor - especially if she led insurers to believe her car in lock-up garage
It might actually be one angle in course of discussion on this - lever to get her to park car out of prang danger.
She may be able to claim off your insurance should you hit this car .. but you would let her insurers know her parking was illegal per the deeds = she may not gets away without some loading herself - as this would add to the potential risk factor - especially if she led insurers to believe her car in lock-up garage It might actually be one angle in course of discussion on this
- lever to get her to park car out of prang danger. jon247 said:
Hi there,
Just before we moved in our neighbour was advised of the contents of the property deeds and stopped parking there.
Jon
Who advised her of the contents of her deeds? It would appear that this has been an ongoing problem with her.Just before we moved in our neighbour was advised of the contents of the property deeds and stopped parking there.
Jon
If it is in her deeds that she should not park there then it may be slightly different from a simple 'nuisance' dispute. Have a word with a solicitor.
count duckula said:
Go and chat with her and say you are not the best at keeping your temper since you got back from Iraq where you saw you best mate get his limbs blown off, and you've come very close to setting fire to her car with her dog in it, and could she not park out the front as you both do not want the hassle of insurance claims and you being up in court for GBH again.
Malc
Malc
Edited by Vesuvius 996 on Thursday 28th February 10:11
I would speak to her informally along the lines of the fact that it is very difficult to get out of the access way and a couple of times you have come within a centimetre of pranging her car!
I would then mention as a way of explanation that in does say in your deeds that the drive is not for parking only for access for just this reason.
The reason you are speaking to her now is that you would 'feel awful' if you damaged her car and that would create an awful situation as you don't know what the insurance would say either as cars are not really supposed to be parked there...
That should sort it. Nicely.
I would then mention as a way of explanation that in does say in your deeds that the drive is not for parking only for access for just this reason.
The reason you are speaking to her now is that you would 'feel awful' if you damaged her car and that would create an awful situation as you don't know what the insurance would say either as cars are not really supposed to be parked there...
That should sort it. Nicely.
Our last house was laid out exactly the same way, and we had the same problem.
I was keen to avoid disbute ( apart from the parking, they were good neighbers and have since become good friends ). Instead of trying to drive through a narrow gap, I just took to knocking on the door and asking her to move her car so I could get mine out the garage. A couple of times I waited until quite late evening, then knocked on the door and said "by the way, I am leaving at 05:00 in the morning, unless you want to be woken up then, would you mind leaving your car else where over night". Eventualy they got the message.
I was keen to avoid disbute ( apart from the parking, they were good neighbers and have since become good friends ). Instead of trying to drive through a narrow gap, I just took to knocking on the door and asking her to move her car so I could get mine out the garage. A couple of times I waited until quite late evening, then knocked on the door and said "by the way, I am leaving at 05:00 in the morning, unless you want to be woken up then, would you mind leaving your car else where over night". Eventualy they got the message.
BIG DUNC said:
Our last house was laid out exactly the same way, and we had the same problem.
I was keen to avoid disbute ( apart from the parking, they were good neighbers and have since become good friends ). Instead of trying to drive through a narrow gap, I just took to knocking on the door and asking her to move her car so I could get mine out the garage. A couple of times I waited until quite late evening, then knocked on the door and said "by the way, I am leaving at 05:00 in the morning, unless you want to be woken up then, would you mind leaving your car else where over night". Eventualy they got the message.
I was keen to avoid disbute ( apart from the parking, they were good neighbers and have since become good friends ). Instead of trying to drive through a narrow gap, I just took to knocking on the door and asking her to move her car so I could get mine out the garage. A couple of times I waited until quite late evening, then knocked on the door and said "by the way, I am leaving at 05:00 in the morning, unless you want to be woken up then, would you mind leaving your car else where over night". Eventualy they got the message.
This seems to be the best idea, be nice and polite: and inconvenience them by being thoughtful. Sorted.
Goddamn new builds man. I swear to god some of the ones we looked at before Christmas were shoe-horned in next to each other.
Imagine designing a housing estate whereby people aren't allowed to park on their own too-narrow driveway cos of houses squeezed in backing onto the drive ffs. Just think - a couple of feet wider and there would be no problem with access OR parking on the drive.
I know there is a policy to get more houses into a given area but ffs, there has to be a line drawn somewhere.
/rant over
p.s. Oh, good luck to the OP in his situation, as has been said, a quick chat over the fence/a cup of tea should suffice. Nothing worse than neighbourly disputes!
Imagine designing a housing estate whereby people aren't allowed to park on their own too-narrow driveway cos of houses squeezed in backing onto the drive ffs. Just think - a couple of feet wider and there would be no problem with access OR parking on the drive.
I know there is a policy to get more houses into a given area but ffs, there has to be a line drawn somewhere.
/rant over
p.s. Oh, good luck to the OP in his situation, as has been said, a quick chat over the fence/a cup of tea should suffice. Nothing worse than neighbourly disputes!
Justy one further question on this,
Is it possible for someone to get their deeds changedso that they are in fact allowed to park on the shared driveway?
We have had a little more trouble from her (fortunatley she's stopped again for now), and she mentioned that she could change the deeds in her favour if she wanted.
Would this be possible, and as we'd be directly affected, would we be consulted at all during this process.?
Is it possible for someone to get their deeds changedso that they are in fact allowed to park on the shared driveway?
We have had a little more trouble from her (fortunatley she's stopped again for now), and she mentioned that she could change the deeds in her favour if she wanted.
Would this be possible, and as we'd be directly affected, would we be consulted at all during this process.?
Edited by jon247 on Thursday 27th March 20:09
hornetrider said:
Imagine designing a housing estate whereby people aren't allowed to park on their own too-narrow driveway cos of houses squeezed in backing onto the drive ffs.
Imagine that being an aspect of government policy to reduce the number of cars and thereby save the world.Having attended an Inquiry into the refusal of planning permission for a development nearby, I noticed particularly the repeated statement that one parking space per flat was what the government advised. These were 2/3 bedroom flats in an upmarket area where even the au pair has a car and buses are as rare as rocking-horse manure.
Streaky
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