Neighbour (1 Viewer)

[gordoncbrown]

The neighbour opposite me is a mechanic and does a few jobs on the side. He often has two or three cars parked outside his house on the road , although there is space on his drive for at least 3. It makes it akward for us to get our cars in and out of the driveway at times. Looking where the cars are parked just now I would struggle to get the MH out but possibly could if I shuffled back and forth and mounted the pavement. We have asked him to park with a bit more consideration on several occasions. :Angry: I know what he is doing is not illegal as the cars are taxed etc but it is a nuisance. One of our other neighbours struggles to get his work van on his drive because of the cars as well.
Any suggestions?

 

[paulmold]

You could report him to the local planning office. If he is running a business he needs to apply for 'change of use'.

 

[scotjimland]

I thought it was illegal to do major repair/servicing work on a vehicle on the public highway..

Same question asked here... with some advice...

Car Repairs On Public Highway

Is there any legislation about fixing/repairing cars (as a business) on a normal urban residential road (London)? We've a local who is running a car repair service and sometimes has up to six cars parked in the road waiting repair.

http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/How-it-Works/Question196473.html

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[Road Runner]

Not a nice thing to do but has he registered his house as a business for rates. water, electric and so on........

If you have the nerve might be a good idea to have a word with him pointing out he is walking on a fine line........


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added:- sorry Jim not seen your posting

 

[gordoncbrown]

I thought it was illegal to do major repair/servicing work on a vehicle on the public highway..

Same question asked here... with some advice...


http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/How-it-Works/Question196473.html

Unfortunately he takes them on to his drive to do the work. Thanks for the reply though

 

[MHVirgins]

Hi Gordon!
I think I would have a little word in his ear about this, should he be doing these repairs outside his home? But the bottom line is he shouldn't be making it awkward for your to get your mh out and into your driveway.
Some neighbours can be really thoughtless, and so maybe just needs pointing out to him. When we lived in Largs, our neighbour used to park his big white van right outside our lounge window, we eventually had a word in his ear and he moved it, saying that he'd always parked it there before we bought the house:Angry: Sometimes men don't think about these things.
Perhaps if he doesn't move the vehicles, then the next step I would do is to contact your local council and get their views on it. But I appreciate it's easier to sort it out amicably with him.
Thank goodness we don't have any neighbours:Angry:
Good luck with it:thumb:

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[pappajohn]

i can think of a few suggestions ....none of which are legal unfortunately.

one suggestion which is legal though.....take photo's or, better still, video's of him moving cars on and off his drive and the cars when parked on the road (you would need to photo him parking the cars), then visit your local council/highways offices with the evidence of INCONSIDERATE PARKING AND OBSTRUCTING THE HIGHWAY.

this option may backfire though, and the council could impose a no parking (double yellow line) zone.

 

[MHVirgins]

Could you get the other neighbour who's also having trouble parking and the two of you approach him together, "the more the merrier" to complain I'd say and point out that he's causing you both aggro!!:Angry:
Try appealing to his better nature, if he has one that is?
Do you have a Rottie?

 

[bryandh]

You could report him to the local planning office. If he is running a business he needs to apply for 'change of use'.

Oooooh nasty..... sure to help with neighbourly relations.

Take the guy down the pub and explain the problem and ask if he can help resolve it, if he declines....... report him to the council, as above

Regards, Bryan

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[K9Brian]

Whenever it's difficult to get your vehicle out I'd go and ask him to move his car as you need to get out. If he refuses then explain that any damage to his vehicle is down to his refusal to move. Mind you I have a Landrover with a big rear towbar.

 

[jhorsf]

The best way is to ask him round for a drink or something similar and do things in a friendly manner if you fall out he will probably go out of his way to be blocking your drive.Try to keep things friendly as reporting him will bring its own problems,it all really depends on how approachable he is,far better to talk in a friendly manner if he is not a 2

 

[Minxy]

One thing that no-one seems to have mentioned is the fact that he's doing the jobs 'on the side' and is therefore not declaring them and paying his NI, tax etc as he should be ... it would also mean, as far as I'm aware, that any injury/damage etc that may be caused to others/property due to his doing this work at home, would not be covered by any insurance.

I would think the 'tax' issue might be a good one to point out to him though, as it will 'hit his pocket' if he's shopped to the tax men ...

However, as you've already tried to resolve this amicably I suspect you'll have to either put up with it, or do something more 'official' - he's not allowed to cause a nuisance to his neighbours so a call to the council to get it checked out and remind him of his neighbourly obligations might be the answer.

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[johnp10]

No one has the right to park a motor vehicle on the highway, even outside your own house.
Many believe they have this right, but not so.
It commits the offence of obstruction, which carries a fine but is not endorseable.
Generally it's unpoliceable due to the number of vehicles involved nationally.
As long as vehicles are not parked in a dangerous position (different offence, larger fine and an endorsement)
Obstruction as an offence is not just about the highway. It extends to restricting access to and egress from premises, business or private.
If this guy is causing difficulties in either using the highway or gaining access from premises it's a matter for plod.
Give him the gipsys, then talk to plod if he ignores you.
Play the access for emergency services vehicles, stressing that a fire engine is a big bit of kit, and an ambulance is probably wider than the neighbour's van.
Dont go to the council, you will be writing letters for ever.

If no response, see K9's post.

 

[bigfoot]

I had a problem, some years ago in one of my other houses,we shared a drive and this fellow worked at Vauxhalls,but did repairs on his days off. The pain was he worked shifts and sometimes he was working at 2 in the morning. I was about to tackle him when I returned from my holidays. When I returned it was very quiet after a few days he spoke to me and said he had had a fire and had to call the fire brigade,they found cellulose paint and welding gas!! He was spoken to,it could have been worse-I'll leave that to your imagination.

 

[Gooney]

Years ago I had a neighbour that complained about just about everything (his missus had a lot to do with it), my good neigbour on the other side was painting the outside of his house one Saturday afternoon with his portable radio in the garden, we heard neigbour A's wife shouting at her husband to do something about the terrible din outside. About an hour later a patrol car arrived at neighbour B's house, an officer walked into the back garden and indicated they had received a nuisance call about excessive noise but in his opinion there was nothing to report in about, my neighbour knew who was responsible and went round to neighbour A's and told him in no uncertain manner that all around were pee'd off with this guy's attitude and if he didn't watch it the tax man might just be made aware of 'Kerbside engineering' habits (yes, he did loads of foreigners) I,ve never seen such a change in a man, it was remarkable, he even started to stand up to his missus!!

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[Tkly]

My answer to the double parking on our cul-du-sac was to knock people up no matter what time I had to go out even if I could squeeze through. When Jan was working for a nursing agentcy it could be anytime, and picking her up in the morning was always very early.
It did not stop the double parking but now they nearly always leave enough room for me to get out. Persistance pays.
I have found that the police round here have the attitude "They have to park somewhere" and in this case are as useful as a chocolate fireguard.

 

[Hayleylulu]

Give him the yosser headbutt

 

[gordoncbrown]

Update. We decided to approach him once more. We decided that Caroline would speak to him and see if that would do any good. He was nice as anything. Explaining that he would not park as to cause any inconvenience to others. He is aware that in the past he has parked cars inconsiderately and caused issues. The car causing the issue at the moment was nothing to do with him he said. As. It was nothing to do with him...........we checked the other neighbours but no one knew anything about it. Has it been dumped? We called the plod to let them check if it was stolen or dumped. They looked into it and got back to us. They informed us the owner had been on holiday and had left it with someone to get some work done on it. Mmmmmmm someone's been telling porkies. I can see only one option now. If he was going to be decent about it he just had to move it , not lie about it and then get caught out.:Angry:
Thanks to everyone for their advice and help

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[Jaws]

Guys ..

I really do appreciate how bloody annoying this is and do fully sympathise ( glad it is not me .. )

But.....................................................................

Only a couple of weeks ago someone was having the opposite issue with a neighbour, in that the neighbour complained about a motorhome parked on the members drive way blocking light etc..

Some of the advice given was in direct contravention to that given in this thread

Either it is legal to park a car, taxed and tested, on a road ( matters not who owns the car ) or you cannot..

For the offence of obstruction to have taken place you must show your access has been blocked or obstructed.

There is no offence of 'being a bit inconvenienced and it is a nuisance' !

And I just know that this is not what the OP wanted to hear and it proly will not win me a popularity prize but it is to the point ..... Sorry

 

[gordoncbrown]

Guys ..

I really do appreciate how bloody annoying this is and do fully sympathise ( glad it is not me .. )

But.....................................................................

Only a couple of weeks ago someone was having the opposite issue with a neighbour, in that the neighbour complained about a motorhome parked on the members drive way blocking light etc..

Some of the advice given was in direct contravention to that given in this thread

Either it is legal to park a car, taxed and tested, on a road ( matters not who owns the car ) or you cannot..

For the offence of obstruction to have taken place you must show your access has been blocked or obstructed.

There is no offence of 'being a bit inconvenienced and it is a nuisance' !

And I just know that this is not what the OP wanted to hear and it proly will not win me a popularity prize but it is to the point ..... Sorry

Totally realise that taxed insured etc parking is allowed, etc. it is a case of being considerate to others. He has a big enough drive for a couple of cars. There is quite a bit of room out there and it is causing inconvenience. Legally I could park one car on one side of his drive and the MH on the other. He would still be able to get in and out of his drive, just, but why should my parking cause someone else hassle. A little bit of thought for others goes a long way. Totally realise that if he has visitors etc they can park wherever but they are gone after a day or so. Having cars there for a week or do that don't move and are in your way is a different matter. I have a lot of sympathy for the folks who have the issue that you mentioned. Bear in mind he has just lied to us about one of the cars. What does that tell you about him?

 

[jaygee]

Owning a garage I get a bit miffed at these 'mechanics' who do work on the side.
We have to comply with all sorts of rules & regulations regarding storage of materials etc... but one big concern is where does he dispose of his waste - oil, antifreeze, brake fluid, old rags etc.... We have to pay a lot of money each month to dispose of these whilst Joe Bloggs is most probably tipping it down the drain!!!!
We had a customer come to us with a problem - turned out Joe Bloggs had done a dangerous repair on her car in his driveway. She regretted going for cheap and when he told her to "bugger off" she shopped him to the council - he was renting the property so the landlord got into trouble as welll as him & he was evicted & chased by the benefits agency as he was signing on as well

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[Jaws]

Bear in mind he has just lied to us about one of the cars. What does that tell you about him?

Honest truth ?
tells me he was looking for a quiet life !

As I said, I know this is not a popularist reply I have posted but I am merely being devils advocate

 

[gordoncbrown]

Honest truth ?
tells me he was looking for a quiet life !

As I said, I know this is not a popularist reply I have posted but I am merely being devils advocate

Not really. The quiet life answer would have been to move the car in front of his own driveway. He has just told me he wants to play games. Let the fun begin.

 

[darklord]

My drive always had a landrover of some description on it,and i was always working on them. I used to keep the neighbours sweet, by offering advice/oil/antifreeze etc, but never repaired their cars for them. As far as blocking the road goes, I always looked on it, that people should be able to walk along the pavement unhindered..its for them not cars, and the emergency services should be able to get anything past a car in the road, i have always believed that was a basci requirement.

Its never wise to start a war with neighbours, so in this case, as long as you have a dedicated driveway that you legally have access to, i would just ask him to move everytime you need him to...failure to do so constitutes obstruction, and continual calls to the police may have THEM advising him of other legalities. A friend of mine years ago pissed a neighbour off, and got a visit over oxy acetelyne bottles he had stored in his garage.

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[MHVirgins]

Agree with Jaygee on this and also, if the offending neighbour had nothing to hide, then why did he lie about the car?
Gordon, I agree that it is only common courtesy to consider your neighbours and not make things difficult for anyone coming out and in of their driveways, but he is obviously suiting himself. He sounds like a complete "chancer" for want of a better word.
Regardless of whether they are taxed, insured etc is beside the point if he is causing a nuisance to anyone who is trying to get into their driveway.
I'm sure he'd be the first to come to you, if you parked your car and mh either side of his driveway. Assuming this is a residential area, we would check out whether he is permitted to work on cars outside his home, also, it's more than likely that he's taking money for the repairs. This is probably why he has lied to you in the first place, he's obviously trying to hide something.:Blush: Should he be doing this? Probably not.
Good luck with this one.

 

[jhorsf]

Be careful remember if he loses his job over doing jobs at home you will have him doing even more jobs at homeoh:

 

[MHVirgins]

Quoted text:-

Not really. The quiet life answer would have been to move the car in front of his own driveway. He has just told me he wants to play games. Let the fun begin.

Yes, I agree with your answer to this. It's quite obvious that he's trying to hide something that he shouldn't be doing, we would question whether he should be working on so many cars at his home and on a regular basis. It sounds to us as if he's sticking the two fingers up at you.:Blush:

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[Jaws]

Sorry ... but if it was MY business and someone was poking his nose in I would do the same

When I said quiet life I meant as opposed to simply telling you to go forth...

Sounds to me like he does not want other people to know what he is doing .. Can you blame him ?

Come on guys.. this really is a classic NIMBY thing..

All I can say is do not come crying if suddenly someone complains about your motorhome ( and NO it matters not if you have it on your own land or not.. Or perhaps you are an ex dale farm inhabitant ? LOL !! )

Live and let live ? Put up with a bit of a pain in the bum

Orrr..

You could go back to matey and say

oye.. plod says that motor IS something to do with you.. Any chance of moving it mate ?

Up front, open.. no hidden agenda,,, simple.. :thumb:

 

[gordoncbrown]

No hidden agenda on our part jaws. Not a case of nimby. We are happy for him to do what he wants on his drive and on the open road as long as it doesn't affect others. Once it impacts on others it is another matter. I'd like to see what you would do if this happened to you. Shuffling back and forth to get the car in the drive. No chance to get the MH out. I'm sure you would be saying " that's fine, I'll stay at home, just move them when you are ready" the car has been moved now as the local plod called the owners. They had left it with him when they went on holiday to do some work on it. Glad they weren't on a four week safari........

 

[Jaws]

So what would happen if you just say scuse mate, can you move this or that vehicle so we can get in and out easily ?

If he denies they are anything to do with him say ok, having checked with neighbours it is obvious said vehicle has been dumped and you have arranged to tow it away

Job done... he is either gonna have to come clean or explain to his customer where their car is..

Any chance of posting up a picture so we can see what the situation is ?

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