It's our drive!!

I’ve had this problem for years and even posted a pic on GN about it. Now the house with the main culprits is for sale and advertised with parking for at least 6 cars! It hasn’t, only if you count my additional spaces. I’ve spoken to the EA, but if and when the house is sold, I’ll probably have a friendly word with the new occupants, although the solicitor should show the boundary lines and discuss the covenants.
The other neighbours always ask if they can pop a vehicle there and I’ve no objections, as long as they ask, so I know where a stranger car belongs.

I have gates which I leave open. A neighbour started to park just inside the gates. I was fuming so closed the gates and locked the car in. The neighbour was forced to ring my bell and ask to be let out. There was some feeble excuse, someone was in her space etc. But really they could have asked.

A disabled friend who needs her car to be accessible, now has neighbours with several cars who often park across her drive. When she rang their bell to explain, the woman said "just ring our bell when you want to get out and we'll move the car!!"
The audacity of some people.

Just good manners, and common sense, to ask before parking on someone else’s private land.
I would have a quiet word with my neighbour if it happened here.
I’d need to have a long think before I started the conversation so I was absolutely clear about whether it is ok for him to park if he asks first or whether I really don’t want anyone blocking me in at all.

Oh, why do people do these things?

Of course people shouldn’t be parking on your private drive unless they have been given permission to do so. I assumed on first reading your post that he had come to ask you if ok, but I now realise your doorbell probably just picked him up after doing it.

Although you shouldn’t have to, I too might consider parking in a certain way yourself which didn’t allow others to park also, but you really shouldn’t have to resort to such methods.

Awkward I know, but think you should approach neighbour and say that you don’t want your drive being used by her visitors.

But I would dread doing it personally!

You have my sympathy Kitty.
I once, not long ago opened my front door to find a very large van on my drive. So large it was backed up almost to the door of my house. As I had no idea who had parked there I went inside to write a note for the windscreen. On coming outside the driver appeared. I asked him why he was using my drive and was told to F off. He then drove away.

'He looked put out when we asked him to move' He's on someone else's drive fgs! This is the stuff of MN I'd be inclined to get one of those moveable posts with chain in between. It's hard when you don't want to create a bad atmosphere with neighbours, but he is so in the wrong and you shouldn't have to justify all the personal reasons why you may need to have clear access in and out of your own drive. Entitled or thick? Maybe both.

We came back from holiday one year and I spotted oil marks on the drive. I said to DH ‘Someone has been here’. Later on chatting to our neighbour she told me it was our friend who had parked his works lorry 😳knowing we were away and if she had not have seen him do it she would have rung the police. I thought he was very cheeky.

This is so cheeky and you could argue they are trespassing on your property. I suppose if they had asked it might have been different but to just assume it’s OK beggars belief!

This happened to someone we know. Someone parked on his drive while they collected a child from a school around the corner. When the house owner challenged him, he said 'I think you're being unreasonable.

kittylester

That is the worry isn't it. He did it once before and looked put out when we asked him to move as we were, actually, going out. I wouldn't like to fall out with him or, especially, our neighbour.

We didn't need to go out but DD1 is undergoing chemo therapy and has not been well and DS1 is disabled so either could need us.

And, the road was available!

In that case I’d have taken a firmer approach than I suggested upthread.

I’m no expert on neighbourly relationships because until recently I’ve never had any but ‘least said, soonest mended’ doesn’t always work and some people are deliberately obtuse to suit their own ends.

Good Luck!!

Can you not park your car at an angle so as to prevent anyone entering your drive or put down a few large cones behind your car.

I think your neighbours brother had a blooming cheek! That’s your property and I would have been more than peeved. Your neighbour should have asked you BEFORE her brother arrived and asked if it was ok.

Jaxjacky

Hindsight being brilliant of course I’d have gone straight round last night, as it is, I’d have a quiet word.

Yep, with hindsight we should, but we honestly thought it best not to intrude as on the Ring Camera he was looking agitated.

That is the worry isn't it. He did it once before and looked put out when we asked him to move as we were, actually, going out. I wouldn't like to fall out with him or, especially, our neighbour.

We didn't need to go out but DD1 is undergoing chemo therapy and has not been well and DS1 is disabled so either could need us.

And, the road was available!

Hindsight being brilliant of course I’d have gone straight round last night, as it is, I’d have a quiet word.

They definitely should have asked as a courtesy, otherwise it's taking liberties and just rude! Over on MN such actions are known as 'Cheeky F******y'

We used to live in a close that was very near to a railway station (I refuse to use the term 'train station') and it was the unofficial free carpark for the station. People parked in front of drives, on double yellows, and even double parked in the turning circle.
I had a certain amount of sympathy as parking has been a great problem for years. I often ended up parked two or three streets down.

When my drive was blocked by a camper van and I couldn't get out one morning I rang the police. It turned out the van belonged to my neighbours' son who had gone on holiday for two weeks, taking the keys with him. The police arranged to have it towed away. Meanwhile I had gone to work on the train and bus, then a fifteen minute walk.

When I got home from work my neighbours obviously thought I had behaved unreasonably and they were waiting to pounce. They didn't beat me up but yelled at me in the street until I ran into the house and slammed the door. Needless to say that was the last time we spoke.

Bloody cheek. I would not have felt awkward, I would have gone round and asked him to move it. If he refused I would have blocked him in.
I have no time for entitled, rude and ignorant people. They are just pi.. takers.

There have been some wonderful threads on Mumsnet about people who found a random car on their drive and could not identify who it belonged to. So they have parked their own vehicle in such as way as to block in the interloper. Then later when someone knocks they dont open the door. Or open it and say "sorry Ive just had a few glasses of wine so I cant move mine til tomorrow." Love a good parking thread.

Love it!

It’s a tricky one. If he does it again I would nab him and have a word!

Talking to the neighbours might embarrass them and he’s the one who is taking liberties, not them.

We used to have this problem when my mother was alive. She didn’t drive but her bungalow had parking spaces for two cars so the neighbours just helped themselves. It used to make her hopping mad! 😂

Damn cheek!

I definitely would have felt put out. It is extremely rude to park on your drive without asking. I would say something to your neighbour in a polite way that this was not acceptable behaviour.

Very same thing happened to me - my neighbour’s son parked his car on my drive because her drive was being power washed or something like that - she did ring me and say that her son did knock on my door, but there was no answer. I was probably having a lie-in. I didn’t mind because it’s not as if there’s a queue of visitors, waiting to get on my drive. 😂

Happens to us all the time - but people we don't even know usually. Plus our drive is used as a turning point despite the fact there is a turning circle ten yards away. People have to pass the turning circle to get to our drive!

I get peeved too. When I've complained I've been told to 'get over myself, it's just a drive' but you can bet your bottom dollar id the same people had strangers driving or wandering on their drive they'd be livid.