‘Neighbour demanded I move car off the street for baffling reason’

Maintaining harmony with your neighbours at times leads to befuddling requests.

Cultivating good relations isn’t about making lifelong pals but encouraging a convivial atmosphere where you don’t have to walk on eggshells, both inside your home and when stepping out to the shops.

Respect among residents often necessitates accepting their requests, be it dialling down your music, scheduling DIY sessions for sociable hours, or preventing pets from turning someone else’s flowerbed into a playground.

Most individuals willingly comply to foster neighbourly tranquillity. Yet, a woman was left scratching her head when she was asked to reposition her car from the roadside by a neighbour who provided an oddly peculiar rationale for her request.

On Reddit, she shared how she had recently settled into a “corner house” in a fresh neighbourhood. She faced tight parking in front of her residence, but conveniently, the side road didn’t infringe on anyone else’s property, providing a practical parking spot.

However, she was left in utter dismay when her neighbour demanded she relocate her car, accusing her of “blocking their driveway” – despite the fact that her parking spot was along the side of her own home and that the complaining neighbour’s driveway was, bewilderingly, across the street.

Her narration of the incident revealed: “There’s not a lot of parking on the road in front of my house, but have the whole side/street area to park. Decided to park there. Well. The neighbour doesn’t like that and demands that I move my car at that moment because I am blocking their driveway … across the street.

“Mind you, their family and everyone else in the neighbourhood are parked there. I completely forgot about it that night. The next day, I was walking by, and I saw they possibly called a tow company to say it was abandoned because my tyre and the road were marked with chalk. How do I deal with this crazy?”

Commentators on the woman’s post recommended that she install a camera on her vehicle for her peace of mind, given her suspicions about her neighbours potentially calling a tow service.

They also suggested she contact the authorities to impart an understanding of the “concept of a public street” to her stubbornly “entitled” neighbour.

Parking across someone’s driveway in the UK is not an offence unless there are specific restrictions or signs prohibiting it. Even if a vehicle partially obstructs a dropped kerb, it’s considered a driving offence, potentially resulting in a penalty of up to three points and a fine of up to £100.

However, parking near a dropped kerb isn’t illegal, even if it limits access to a driveway. According to Confused.com, police are unlikely to intervene in situations where parking over a dropped kerb prevents you from entering your driveway.

But if it stops you from leaving, they may treat it as an anti-social behaviour offence.

The Crime and Disorder Act (1998) defines anti-social behaviour as: “Acting in a manner that caused or was likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress to one or more persons not of the same household as the defendant.”