Douchebag parking - actions?

[hughtrimble]

Blimey that's a lot of suggestions! Thank you all.

 

[hughtrimble]

Park behind and block them in until they finally find you and you can tell them to stop being a ****?

You should all block the car in, Police Interceptors TPAC styleeeee.

This. Make sure to answer the door with a beer in hand "sorry mate, had too many, you'll have to come back tomorrow"

Block the car in?

Don't block the car in. There are a lot of unpredictable crazies out there, and they tend to park like that.

Just block them in and wait for the door knock.

I have certainly considered blocking too, but then I'd be blocking another neighbour's drive. Plus as Scuzi notes, I have a feeling (judging by how inconsiderate they are) that this person might be an absolute bell and thus damage to my car may ensue.

I do very much like the idea of answering the door to them and being in an unfit state to move it though...

 

[Resident]

Schrader valve removal tool.

1/4 turn anticlockwise, just enough to break the seal on 3 wheels (not 4, apparently becomes criminal damage if all four)

Tyres will deflate slowly. They'll inflate them again and they'll go down again but there will be no visible punctures and most tyre places fail to test the valves....

 

[hughtrimble]

Take the spot the night before for a couple of weekends

The thing is this isn't a spot that they're in. There is almost always a free proper space next to the car they've blocked in, but they clearly see themselves/their car as too good to park in it.

 

[Brun]

Excavate a Mercedes-sized pit and cover it with plywood and gravel.

 

[hughtrimble]

Only happens on a Sunday? Priest touring the parish? I'd hang about and give them a sermon on parking.

Actually this is a good call. There is a very busy church down the road where everything gets congested because they seem to think it's OK to park on pavements, on corners and generally wherever they like. The strange thing though is that we're far enough away that this one is driving past many more open spaces just to park here. Perhaps they're trying to avoid the rest of the congregation.

 

[5abr3]

If you know someone with access to go-jacks and the people who park where the Nissan is are amenable you could just slide the merc in to where the Nissan is (leaving it facing the way it is now); fairly sure that would stop them coming back, once they figure how to get their car out of the gap

 

[hughtrimble]

If you can't get a hold of the driver in person, leave a firm but polite note on their windscreen asking them to park more considerately. If it happens again afterwards, leave a less polite note on the windscreen, but instead of putting it under the wiper, stick it on with lots of Pritt Stick.

Polite note first time, but I'd be wanting to find out who they were visiting as it's easier to talk to a neighbour than a visitor tbh.

Start with polite note, then poop in letter box air intake?

You could leave a note, but I doubt the person who parks like this take any notice of it.
The car is taxed and has a current MOT, so I doubt the police will be interested in helping.

Start with a note then if that doesn't work. Take a power drill to their tyres.

Gradual escalation each week.

Polite note.
Cone on roof.
Bread on bonet for pigeons, as suggested above.

Try leaving a note if it's a regular thing?

Either a note or just go straight to the police next time as suggested.

Have previously left a note and found it tossed into a bush (they don't seem the sort to take their rubbish away with them regardless).

I'll do so again and be somewhat more blunt about the safety aspects of what they're doing.

 

[hughtrimble]

It may be on a private estate, but IIRC it is/was considered a minor offence to block access to the Queen's Kings Highway, and the police could/would used to be able to contact the registered keepers of vehicles that were parked blocking people's drives, so that may be something to look into (obviously the non emergency number). They probably don't do that anymore, but going back I remember my father ringing the local station as some pillock had parked blocking his shared drive preventing 5 houses from being able to pull their cars out including two that did early shifts, apparently the police managed to find a contact for the registered keeper as at about 4:30am someone did move it about 20 meters to an open spot on the road.

From memory and some of the past threads the old go to was something along the lines of slip the local rugby club members a few pints to assist in moving it, or put it on wheel trolleys and move it so the owner has a real problem getting it out.

AFAIK, but take with a pinch of salt, if they're obstructing you from accessing the public highway then it's a police issue.

I seem to recall when there was talk of scam parking companies for airport users parking their cars on other peoples driveways, it was made very clear that you could not block the car in with another one as the owner of the house would get in **** for it.

I know around our way the PCSOs/community police or whoever they are have given us an email address or two to contact them, maybe see if there's something similar and ping them an email.

That is my understanding, and IIRC it doesn't matter if the blockage is on private land as long as that land has "public access", as the Road Traffic act for some things applies to privately owned land if there is nothing stopping people from using it.

Hence the reason you can be done for driving without insurance/licence if you're in say a Tesco car park, and some interesting case law regarding farmland as basically a famers field is private and you don't need a driving licence/insurance etc if it's gated, but the moment you allow the public general access for say a car boot or other event it become "public" for the duration - one of the defining cases involved a farmers son who was driving something at one end of a field were a car boot was being held.

Besides that, I've had success in having the police/pcso inform the owner that obstructing access to the public highway is a criminal offence (car was blocked in). Though it was a fairly small village and they probably enjoyed having something to do. Not sure you'd have much success in an overwhelmed police force (which is probably all of them these days).

Either a note or just go straight to the police next time as suggested.

Mate of mine thought his car had been stolen from outside his house. He was even more furious when he found out what had actually happened. Due to congestion in the road he had parked partially blocking his neighbour's drive, assuming the neighbour would knock on his door if he needed it moved. Instead the neighbour called the police and the car was promptly towed away. He had to go and pick it up and pay a charge as well.

I will look into this further, thank you all - I had assumed the police couldn't get involved, but shall find out and will use the non emergency number next time it happens (which may well be tomorrow).

They are clearly a grade A berk.

 

[Raymond Lin]

If you have already left note and they continue to do it then it's police time, just get it towed. Some people don't learn from reading, they need actual experiences happen to them.

 

[hughtrimble]

The car is taxed and has a current MOT, so I doubt the police will be interested in helping.
Are there any signs indicating that it is private parking in that area?

Thank you for checking that. And yes there are signs, but no enforcement on Sundays. They're not even in a bay though, so the driver doesn't care that they aren't a resident, and also doesn't care that they're not even in a bay.

 

[hughtrimble]

Loaf of bread, break up into pieces, sprinkle liberally over the car....hilarity ensues. Repeat every Sunday until douchebag gets the message.

Bread or bird seed.

Rub some avocado all over the windscreen.

These are lovely, wildlife-friendly and biodegradable approaches

 

[RobPot]

Have previously left a note and found it tossed into a bush (they don't seem the sort to take their rubbish away with them regardless).

Araldite/superglue the note to the windscreen.

 

[Azza]

Buy the cheapest car you can find.

Ask your neighbour with the Nissan if they can park somewhere else on Saturday evening.

On Sunday if they park in the bay then stick the cheap car right in front as they do.

 

[shifty_uk]

All giddy at the prospect of an update today

 

[ShiWarrior]

how long has been going on for ?
if a few weekends already, i would have contacted the police already !

I'm surprised your neighbour hasn't done so already, its his car that's blocked in, i assume he doesn't need to use it at the weekends then ? on the off chance he NEEDS it, and cant get it out then what ?

contact the police 101

you could park there before he returns again next time?

 

[Stu999]

you could park there before he returns again next time?

That’s a good idea, be there first and find out who this pillock is.

 

[Nigel Kingdon]

Don't clamp, it's illegal. Even for police + council. Reasoning being that you are making the problem worse.
Get couple of wheel dollies, which are useful to have lying around anyway, jack up the rear and slide under rear tyres. Motor can then be pushed around by hand. There's probably some double yellows somewhere near by.

 

[BDEE]

Frantically pressing refresh waiting to see what happens today

 

[5abr3]

Don't clamp, it's illegal. Even for police + council. Reasoning being that you are making the problem worse.
Get couple of wheel dollies, which are useful to have lying around anyway, jack up the rear and slide under rear tyres. Motor can then be pushed around by hand. There's probably some double yellows somewhere near by.

Slightly more evil than my similar suggestion (go-jacks and wheel dollies are basically the same thing)