Driveway Blocked
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Armchair Expert

Original Poster:

3,102 posts

103 months

Saturday 20th March 2021
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Got up this morning to find the driveway blocked, ran round my neighbours who told me it had been there most of the night, non of them own the car so rang the police.

Well we can only help if the car is of interest to us, the operator then tells me their computer is out of action and they can't tell if they have an interest in the car, ring back in the morning!

A few years ago I traded in my jinxed Carlton, About six months later a couple of police officers turn up telling me the car is causing morning gridlock because of where I left it...

Weeks later I find out someone had bought it the day previously from the dealer and took it out for a drink, on the way home got arrested for DUI and the police officers had dumped the car in the middle of a busy junction.


Ussrcossack

1,096 posts

71 months

Saturday 20th March 2021
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I remember in my teens a car dumped on my parents drive, we had quite a long drive.

So decided best action was breAk in release hand break and push said car into street.

We were just about to release the hand break when the owner came back.

He been told to park in the drive opposite the house he was visiting, he chose the wrong drive.

Me and my dad made up a story of a bit of commotion and we'd chased the thieves off.

Thought that was the end of it.

Few days later guy returns with some beers

mgtony

4,211 posts

219 months

Saturday 20th March 2021
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Did you ring the council to remove it?

tedblog

1,442 posts

109 months

Saturday 20th March 2021
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If it's on your property its a civil matter, police or council not interested.

Pistonheader101

2,206 posts

136 months

Saturday 20th March 2021
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Tow it into the middle of the road

donkmeister

12,837 posts

129 months

Saturday 20th March 2021
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Push/pull/bounce/drag it out of the way depending on what you have access to and how fit you're feeling biggrin

If you damage it in the process then you know nothing about it. I wouldn't deliberately damage someone's property in that situation but if they've parked like an obvious dick, you genuinely need it out of the way (note) and you've been reasonable in trying to track down the owner then I wouldn't feel bad about a broken passenger window or parking pawl.

Note: I mean that you have somewhere to be and can't squeeze round it, not just that it's annoying they've parked like a knob.

mgtony

4,211 posts

219 months

Saturday 20th March 2021
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^^^I know someone did that. He put a trolley jack under the rear axle jacked it up and started pulling the car. The jack slipped off and the jack and landed on the boot floor, when he looked in through the tailgate you could see the floor bent up like a pyramid! drunk

Armchair Expert

Original Poster:

3,102 posts

103 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
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mgtony said:
Did you ring the council to remove it?
Yesa they directed me to the police.

Armchair Expert

Original Poster:

3,102 posts

103 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
quotequote all
donkmeister said:
Push/pull/bounce/drag it out of the way depending on what you have access to and how fit you're feeling biggrin

If you damage it in the process then you know nothing about it. I wouldn't deliberately damage someone's property in that situation but if they've parked like an obvious dick, you genuinely need it out of the way (note) and you've been reasonable in trying to track down the owner then I wouldn't feel bad about a broken passenger window or parking pawl.

Note: I mean that you have somewhere to be and can't squeeze round it, not just that it's annoying they've parked like a knob.
I could squeeze past it when there was no car parked on the edge of the drive but as soon as someone parked there I was stuck

The car disappeared about 5pm, I was thinking about jacking it up and moving it actually,

What surprised e was there is no back up to the police computer????

Cider Andy

1,889 posts

254 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
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Eight years ago, in one of the London boroughs, I unintentionally (and genuinely unknowingly) blocked someone's driveway late at night. Even later that night the owner of the driveway returned and couldn't park his car. He called the Police, who told him they had no powers to remove my van as it was blocking him OUT. But they also told him in they would have had powers to remove my vehicle if I'd been blocking him IN, if that helps.

Insert Coin

1,965 posts

72 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
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People are selfish pricks and getting worse.

Last summer I came out of my front door to find a woman trying to squeeze her car onto about 2ft of legal parking space and 8ft of yellow lines, right outside my driveway with gates and 4 cars on the drive.

When she got out and I pointed out to her that she was actually 75% blocking my drive she looked at me and said ‘where else am I supposed to park?’ Suddenly it was my issue she couldn’t find a space?! At that point my patience had worn thin and I told her to move it, which she reluctantly did whilst huffing about it being ‘so busy down here.’

I also said to her that there’s a really easy solution to finding a parking spot, get here at 8:00am and not 11:00 expecting to find a spot on a hot day after everyone has been cooped up like chickens for two months.

If I hadn’t been out walking my dog and spotted her I genuinely think she would have left her st-box there for the day.

Rozzers

3,052 posts

104 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
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Do you have a dropped kerb? Are yo7 in the car now, engine running, with somewhere to go?

The above does warrant action, but the response is likely to be so slow that the driver will have moved on, or in some regions, you have sold your house.

HantsRat

2,409 posts

137 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
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Was the car on the highway and parked against a dropped kerb?

vonhosen

40,597 posts

246 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
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Cider Andy said:
Eight years ago, in one of the London boroughs, I unintentionally (and genuinely unknowingly) blocked someone's driveway late at night. Even later that night the owner of the driveway returned and couldn't park his car. He called the Police, who told him they had no powers to remove my van as it was blocking him OUT. But they also told him in they would have had powers to remove my vehicle if I'd been blocking him IN, if that helps.
Because you stopping him getting on to the road was an obstruction of the highway, whilst you stopping him getting onto his land was not.
If you were parked across a dropped kerb at all that would have been a separate council PCN matter (depending where in the country you were).

vikingaero

13,229 posts

198 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
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The easiest way to move a car if you have 3 PH sized mates is to bounce it away. It takes a little while to get the motion to do so, but once it's bouncing it's moving fast. Helps if you put it in an awkward position on the road so the Police HAVE to take interest in it. biggrin

Smokehead

7,703 posts

257 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
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Drag it into the middle of the road with a Landrover or similar. Deny everything.

Cider Andy

1,889 posts

254 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
quotequote all
vonhosen said:
Because you stopping him getting on to the road was an obstruction of the highway, whilst you stopping him getting onto his land was not.
If you were parked across a dropped kerb at all that would have been a separate council PCN matter (depending where in the country you were).
That makes sense. I didn't know what the reasoning behind it was.

It was in Purley, whichever London borough that's in. The guy challenged me early in the morning as I went to work. When I got back to the B&B I was staying in that evening, I came armed with an apology, a bottle of wine and a box of chocolates for the bloke and his missus. No animosity. Job done.

whatmoretyres

93 posts

234 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
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If it makes you feel any better, the police parked on my drive , in front of my double garage with both cars in, for two hours to visit a house at the end of the street that has parking outside

The mind boggles when even the police think this is okay - not obviously an emergency as no lights/siren)

ED209

6,018 posts

273 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
quotequote all
whatmoretyres said:
If it makes you feel any better, the police parked on my drive , in front of my double garage with both cars in, for two hours to visit a house at the end of the street that has parking outside

The mind boggles when even the police think this is okay - not obviously an emergency as no lights/siren)
Ever heard of a silent approach?

anonymous-user

83 months

Sunday 21st March 2021
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ED209 said:
whatmoretyres said:
If it makes you feel any better, the police parked on my drive , in front of my double garage with both cars in, for two hours to visit a house at the end of the street that has parking outside

The mind boggles when even the police think this is okay - not obviously an emergency as no lights/siren)
Ever heard of a silent approach?
Does that give them the right to do what they did?