Unless otherwise specified, the car park spaces outside your house and on your street are open to all motorists. Roads controlled by resident parking permits or a bay reserved for disabled drivers are a couple of exceptions.
New research shows that 60 percent of motorists think they have a legal right to park in the spot outside their house. However, this isn’t the case. While you might have an understanding with your neighbours, there’s nothing to stop them or anyone else from parking outside your house.
Hannah Parsons, a solicitor at DAS Law, said: “A homeowner has no special legal right to park directly outside their property. All road users have the same right to park anywhere on the public highway as long as they do not contravene parking restrictions.”
‘Not something we can help you with’
A quarter of drivers revealed they would be happy to ‘steal’ a parking spot outside somebody else’s home. Drivers over the age of 55 are the group most likely to do just that.
In Edinburgh and London, one in seven motorists admitted to leaving an angry note on a car’s windscreen for parking outside their property. Meanwhile, one in eight drivers in Nottingham have actually confronted a stranger for what they deem anti-social parking.
Although you’re not permitted to park in front of an entrance to a property, it’s not actually an offence to park on somebody else’s driveway. Here, the line between criminal and civil law is blurred.
A statement on the Metropolitan Police website advised: ‘If someone parks their vehicle on your driveway without your permission, this is a civil dispute and not something we can help you with.’
As Hannah Parsons explains, it’s not a criminal offence. “If a vehicle is parked on your driveway without your permission, they are trespassing. As trespass is a civil and not criminal offence, the police will not always get involved. At most, they may send an officer to try and determine the owner of the vehicle and ask them to move it.”
‘Best to have a polite discussion’
Once the car is on a driveway, it’s technically on private property – where the local council has no jurisdiction. A council will remove an abandoned car from private or public property, but if the vehicle is taxed, insured and has a valid MOT they’re unlikely to touch it.
The research was conducted by Uswitch. Florence Codjoe, a car insurance expert at the firm, said: “Whilst it’s really frustrating to find a vehicle parked outside your home for weeks or months, it’s the decision of your local council as to whether it’s removed. If the vehicle is damaged, causing an obstruction, uninsured and without road tax, it’s likely the council will remove it.
“However, if you know the owner of the vehicle, it’s probably best to have a polite discussion with them before contacting local authorities, as they may not realise how much distress their vehicle is causing you.”
Read more:
Where is it illegal to park your car?