MONEY MORAL DILEMMA. Would you dent someone’s car if they blocked you in?

Aldahbra

I don't think it would be right to damage their car.

On the other hand I would weigh that up against the importance of my time. What if it were an interview or a non flexible work appointment that I was going to. Then I'd have to try wouldn't I?

I have a small car which would proably come off worst anyway.

If my appointment was non urgent or social I think reporting them to the authorities is the best course of action.

mtudor_2

No, I wouldn't bump someone else's car out of the way. There are better ways to handle the situation such as calling the police or the local council - I'm sure someone could do something.

On the other hand, if it were a real emergency I may well do as one of the other posters suggested and smash a window to release a handbrake (for which I would later offer to pay, though I would hope the other person would be decent enough to accept a share of the cost for their part in the situation).

BUT. And this is the point I really want to make. Whilst there are careless drivers and careless parkers on the roads, I think everyone needs to think twice before assuming the worst. I have been in situations in the past where I have needed to park in a carpark and the car I park next to is parked at an angle/close or outside of the white lines and this has forced my parking to be less than ideal also. The original offender then leaves making me look like the inconsiderate one. This is also true of people parking across bays etc.

I have previously had an obnoxious note placed on my window because I was forced to park on/slightly outside the white lines of a parking bay because of the parking of the person next to me (who later left). To be honest, it was so rude it almost ruined my day.

So, please think before you write nasty notes or respond in any other negative way to someone's apparent poor parking - it may not actually be their fault.

(Naturally it's different if someone clearly could have seen that they would block you in)

Sami_Bee

some of these replies have made me chuckle!
For me this would most likely happen when I have to go and sign on at jobcentre as its the only time I park in town not in a multistorey as its cheaper for the sort time it takes.
There are usually traffic wardens nearby so I'd prob try to find them to see if they could help but as I have a toddler I wouldn't be able to hang around for too long in which case i'd look at the time on the tickets to see which one arrived last and bump them (hopefully it would be the one behind as my back bumper is already a bit scratched!)

steveeeee

I'd lean on the horn for a few minutes to see if anyone came out to move one of the car's blocking me in. Failing that I would probably try and push one out of the way. Mine's an old car with black plastic bumpers and I'm not bothered about cosmetics, but I would push *not* ram. Tbh I doubt I'd be able to do much anyway as my car hardly weighs anything and has traction problems at the best of times. Maybe the sound of my tyres spinning would bring someone out quicker than the sound of my horn

a7man

Bumpers are called bumpers for a reason! Common practise in the USA, people in the UK are much more polite though.

Depends on the car and what car I'm in. Dont think I could damage a Lambo or Ferrari, they are too beautiful.

Arryhall

White lines on carparks. Interesting that that has been raised a time or two, because it is an offense according to the traffic wardens I work with, and if you park across white lines, thus not "in the parking bay" it'll cost you £60. And as CCTV covers the car parks, if you are forced to adopt such a position due to other inconsiderate parkers, then the CCTV can be used to challenge the ticket and get it cancelled. Course, if YOU are the instigator of a "I have a Mercades so will use 2 bays to prevent anyone parking near me" it'll cost. And I'll park so my wing mirror blocks your wing mirror in. Gits.

As for calling the police to a parking incident, that's LAUGHABLE! Since parking became a council matter rather than a police matter, the police response is to tell you to call the council. Who aren't open after 5. Who also can't do anything other than issue a ticket. Which means you are still stuck there till whenever the cars move. Personally, I drive a knackered old Peugeot because in my experience, other people have no compunction of ramming your car with shopping trolleys, kids actually run over the cars, wing mirrors regularly disappear, and deliberate childish scratches are universal. It's just not worth the bother of getting a decent car for insensitive gits and ferrel kids to knacker it up for you. So Ram away, I say!

Amusingly, I was once blocked in at work, by 2 police cars! One was parked half in a disabled bay, the other half his car blocking mine in completely. I called the police to be told that they can park anywhere they like whilst "gathering evidence", or in this case, gathering a cup of tea and a portion of chips. So I "moved" it out of the way for them. I checked the CCTV of the building (coz I control it!) and they returned to the car 5 hours after the call i made. Hence my lack of compunction to ram 'em.

Another time, I was parked in the driveway around the back of the building. Dropped curb, gates, signage etc. The police Camera van parked completely over the gate, thus blocking me in completely. It is a big van, and I was facing uphill so couldn't move it. I called the police (again) to be told (again) that they can park wherever they like for as long as they like, but they might get someone to move it eventually. Took them 2 hours to do so. And they are based IN THE BUILDING WHERE I WORK! It's a 40 second walk away!
*rant mode off*

nhs1984

I have problems parking sometimes because of inconsiderate idiots who think they own the street.
I havr to park my car outside my house to stop the idiots in the house oppisite me from parking in front of my drive. Our driver are oppisite eachothers, and they think it is funny to park in front of their drive so blocking acess to mine.If they do that when my car is parked legally outside my house they block the street off. If their car is parked in front of their drive when I come home from work I park my car in front of my house legally and block the street off.But the thing is they are that stupid the do not get the message. Any suggestions, it is a residential street.

Ashabumbleb

I believe, as wrong as it may be, I would bump them out of the way a little bit. It's their own fault for not leaving me any room.....so yes, the deserve it for having no courtesy whatsoever for other road users, and if their car gets damaged slightly, then so be it!! Mind you, I say that, I probably be too scared.

I used to park in a street (at the middle of a dead end), and always get blocked in, but at least the people blocking me in had the decency to put their house number in the window so one could knock and they'd happily move.


I was informed over the summer that British people are way over protective of their cars, and in the likes of France they park without handbrakes on (hopefully not on a steep hill) so that people can push the cars very slightly to manoeuvre into a space. Although I have a vision of one of those desktop swinging cradle things where is starts some sort of chain reaction.....I don't really know.

Ashabumbleb

Oh, and another thing......one i really don't understand. Is why people park right in the middle of a space big enough to fit to cars, so nobody else can get in. that one really annoys me. When you can see a gap almost big enough, and notice that if they had moved forwards/backwards just a little, there would be plenty of space for another car to fit in nicely and still have plenty of space to be able to get out!!

Grrrrrrrrrrrr............

mymatebob

nhs1984 wrote: »

I have problems parking sometimes because of inconsiderate idiots who think they own the street.
I havr to park my car outside my house to stop the idiots in the house oppisite me from parking in front of my drive. Our driver are oppisite eachothers, and they think it is funny to park in front of their drive so blocking acess to mine.If they do that when my car is parked legally outside my house they block the street off. If their car is parked in front of their drive when I come home from work I park my car in front of my house legally and block the street off.But the thing is they are that stupid the do not get the message. Any suggestions, it is a residential street.

I am a bit confused by this.
Are you saying you knowingly block the street with your car?
If their car is parked legally in front of their house/drive and by parking opposite you would block the street then it is you who are committing an offence.

And as a previous poster said bumping of cars is de rigueur in Paris if you want to park