Ignorant builders

Cuchulain · 21 May 2009 at 13:03

I'm on holiday this week and was heading out with the wife and son, walked out of the front door to stick the essentials in the boot and there's a JCB up on our drive about an inch from the boot blocking the whole drive to the extent that you couldn't even walk out of the drive. There's building work going on next door (bought up by the local housing executive) and they were using the shovel on the front of the JCB as a makeshift skip. After about half an hour of trying to find somebody to shift it so we could get out I found the foreman.

Foreman: "Do you want your car out?"
Me: "Yes please, I've been trying to find someone for half an hour and it would have been nice to have been asked if we needed access before you parked up on our land"
Foreman: "I've not got time to knock on every ******* door and it's not on your land"
Me: "It's parked on our drive, look!"
Foreman: "That's a shared drive, if you want the car out you should have ******* asked us"
Me: "It's not a shared drive, we removed 7 foot of our garden and concreted it, it's our drive, private property and we shouldn't have to come to you for access it should be the other way round"
Foreman: "We've a ******* job to do, your car is in the way"
Me: "Look, I'm not standing here listening to you eff and blind at me, I'll speak to the housing executive and get them to sort it out"
Foreman: "You ******* ring them then!"

(This is literally word for word, as tempting as it was to be cheeky and swear at them I held it in)

So, I'm still in the house trying to get out, waiting on the housing executive to ring me back, is there anyone else I can ring to force them to get off my land and give me access back?

Cuchulain · 21 May 2009 at 13:30

If it wasn't a JCB, a friend of mine who lives at the back of the house owns a tractor and offered to tow it away somewhere inconvenient. I was having a quick read around and it appears that if the police attend they can issue a 60 quid endorseable ticket for willful obstruction or something. I'll give it another half an hour, if it's not gone I'll ring them.

Cuchulain · 21 May 2009 at 13:32

Le_Petit_Lapin said:
Good luck with getting the good old PSNI to turn up in any sort of hurry for an argument over the placement of a JCB!

Can you maybe try asking one of the builders on site to move it for you?

We can't get out of the house on foot or by car because of the way it's placed, the only way out is to climb over a 5 foot wall, very tricky and dangerous with a 17 month old child.

Cuchulain · 21 May 2009 at 14:15

malc30 said:
Be aware though that you are stopping Builders from earning there daily so expect trouble.

I'm not worried about trouble from the builders, plenty of people nearby who can deal with them if necessary.

I went to speak to one of our friends over the road who's next door neighbour is also having the same work done, apparently the builders cut her water off (our friend, not her neighbour who's actually getting the work done) with no warning for 3 days, they then started cursing at the feller from the waterboard who came to fix their **** up when he asked them how they'd managed it.

Anyhow, the JCB is gone now, car is out on the road preventing them getting anywhere near our drive, I'll just have to not use the drive until they've finished their work in 2 months time.

Cuchulain · 21 May 2009 at 14:24

Welshy said:
Even though it is currently all sorted, I would still complain to the company management itself, at least get the foreman disciplined for his ignorance.

Housing Executive already have that in hand.

Cuchulain · 21 May 2009 at 18:42

Gerard said:
Threaten that you'll send fox over to him to complain about the quality of plastics and ride quality in his jcb.

Do you reckon he was ever allowed him to test drive one?

Cuchulain · 21 May 2009 at 20:46

dowie said:
I think his reply was fair enough, it wasn't like he was swearing at the guy & he had every right to be angry.

Take pics, maybe go back out and record a conversation with the guy if you need to speak to him again - and complain like **** to the housing association and other relevant bodies.

If you needed to go anywhere in a hurry and couldn't get your car out I'd have been tempted to just get a taxi and then bill them/take them to the small claims court too.

Not only that, I've just been out to get something out of the car and there's a massive crack/subsidence running the whole width of my driveway and the footpath running along the front of the house. I'll be doing far more now than just complaining to the Housing Assc.