Caravan on the road..

gabyjane

Hmm i'm very lost now reading all that!! illegal or not? lights or no lights? attatched or not? facing which direction our road has traffic coming from both ways as such?
The neighbour whos caravan it is was on my doorstep this morning talking to dh when i got home as she had heard about the moans last night! she said she was perfectly allowed ot leave it there and was going to do so in no uncertain terms! she was pretty bolshy and kept saying 'i want the minutes of the meeting printed up from last night' i saod no as was not my job to do such things as yet and the caravan issue is not my prob the polices at the end of the day. i said tbh the issue wasn't with me as it isn't opposite my drive BUT if it was i would not be happy. They have a parking space which they should use imo but it is a narrowish entrance and they are to lazy to try and put it in so leave it on the rd instead. I again said it was up to the police to sort out tbh.
Hmm guess we could wait for them to go out in the 4x4 and report them if the attatched case is true?!

Silk

gabyjane wrote: »

Hmm i'm very lost now reading all that!! illegal or not? lights or no lights? attatched or not? facing which direction our road has traffic coming from both ways as such?

Hmm guess we could wait for them to go out in the 4x4 and report them if the attatched case is true?!

Hi Gaby,
I'm not sure why you are lost ?
I shall try to explain.
It's not illegal to park a caravan on the road unless it causes an obstruction.
If it is parked it has to have the rear relectors facing the oncoming traffic, so we drive on the left so the van has to be parked on the left with the rear facing you. Not the end with the hitch on cos thats the front of the van.
The lights are a grey area if you have street lighting because it could be argued that the van is "Lit" by the street lamps and reflectors reflecting the light.
It is probable that the owner, if reported for a light issue and feels inclined he might just fit solar powered hazard lights ??? No doubt causing even more disturbance to the neighbours with hazards going all night ???

Which is the attached case your taking about ?

It strikes me the best bet is to get in touch with the council and see if it something they want to get involved with

gabyjane

Hi Silk thanks for the reply..
Ok it is not causing an obstruction
If you drive up our road obviously being on the left the caravan is on the opposite side, the first bit you see is the tow bar not the rear of it, there is no parking on the laft as that is our house/s and our drives etc..if she parked on this side she would deff obstruct!
It is now undr a street light..that dh got sorted to put on grr!! but we did need them on (its a newsish rd)
The attatched case i meant about the tow bar having to be attached..sorry didnt explain very well! it is now hooked up though so dont think that holds any water now!
Dh has emailed thier housing people and asked the rules on numbers of vehicles..when we moved in there were clauses of types of vehicles etc so im assuming they have the same..we are SO though so not sure..will wait and see.
Thanks for the reply.

Batchy

Silk wrote: »

Hi Gaby,
I'm not sure why you are lost ?
I shall try to explain.
It's not illegal to park a caravan on the road unless it causes an obstruction.
If it is parked it has to have the rear relectors facing the oncoming traffic, so we drive on the left so the van has to be parked on the left with the rear facing you. Not the end with the hitch on cos thats the front of the van.
The lights are a grey area if you have street lighting because it could be argued that the van is "Lit" by the street lamps and reflectors reflecting the light.
It is probable that the owner, if reported for a light issue and feels inclined he might just fit solar powered hazard lights ??? No doubt causing even more disturbance to the neighbours with hazards going all night ???

Which is the attached case your taking about ?

It strikes me the best bet is to get in touch with the council and see if it something they want to get involved with

Hi Silk, don't agree with you! see below and source http://www.roadsidelawyer.co.uk/questions/parking-and-living-in-a-caravan-in-the-street

Parking and living i n a caravan in the street

by Murdo Maguire — last modified 2007-03-11 10:28


My neighbour intends to live in a caravan whilst parked on the road outside his house. Is this legal?
The street is not a caravan park and your local authority will almost certainly act if he chooses to live in it.

Parking caravans on the street can cause a number of problems, for example they may:

• block the street illegally
• be a safety hazard to pedestrians, particularly children
• prevent or limit access for other vehicles
• block windows and shut out daylight
• be an eyesore
• be dangerous, for example if they are unstable or have gas cylinders attached

If a caravan is illegally parked or is causing a problem, Council officers will investigate to find the owner and see why it is parked on the street. The owner will be asked to remove the caravan and will then be sent a notice requiring it to be moved within 14 days (a copy will be attached to the caravan)
If the caravan is still there after 14 days, the Police will be informed and they will arrange for the caravan to be removed to a storage compound. The owner will only be able to get the caravan back if they pay the costs of removal and storage
Caravan owners should be responsible:

• Think of your neighbours before you get a caravan. If you do not have suitable parking at home then arrange to store the caravan at a storage compound - see yellow pages or the local newspapers for details
• Remember that parking the caravan on the driveway at the front of your house may still cause problems to the neighbours and, in some cases is not allowed under the title deeds for the house - check with your solicitor if you are unsure
• If you need to park the caravan in the street to load or unload, limit this to one day and always park outside your own house. Tell your neighbours what you are doing and how long the caravan will be there
• Do not carry out repairs or maintenance on the street
• Make sure that the caravan is stable and that any hazards are removed and that gas bottles are isolated whilst it is parked on the street
• Do not allow people to live in the caravan or run electricity cables across the street
• Never pour dirty water onto the street or into the road gullies - these gullies may go to the nearest beck and cause water pollution

1. The street is not a caravan park
2. Any parking, other than loading or unloading or because you are waiting for repairs following a breakdown is against the law
3. Caravans may not be covered by insurance when parked on streets
4. It against the law to park on the street at night without warning lights and you should always ensure that you park the caravan with the reflectors facing on-coming traffic

Silk

Batchy wrote: »

Hi Silk, don't agree with you! see below and source

Don't understand what you are saying Batchy ?
I explained all before, its not illegal to park a caravan on the street providing it does not cause an obstruction and is not occupied etc.
I also explained that the council may have local by laws against it and to contact the council.
So what do you not agree with ?

Batchy

Silk wrote: »

Don't understand what you are saying Batchy ?
I explained all before, its not illegal to park a caravan on the street providing it does not cause an obstruction and is not occupied etc.
I also explained that the council may have local by laws against it and to contact the council.
So what do you not agree with ?

Cause you said this

Hi Gaby,
I'm not sure why you are lost ?
I shall try to explain.
It's not illegal to park a caravan on the road unless it causes an obstruction.

AS, Any parking, other than loading or unloading or because you are waiting for repairs following a breakdown is against the law

also as stated by me and slated by you in a previous post it IS a danger for children, etc, etc, etc.

Also Caravans should be insured when parked on the street. One way or the other. So if you dont have the additional cover on motor policy or the house policy ... then you do still need insurance for a caravan parked on the road.

Also obstruction could be the fact on one car can pass at a time etc, rather than ... can a car fit through or is it blocking someones drive.

please see previous post and read it so you do not mislead anyone else into thinking it is ok to park a caravan on the road, unless you can prove otherwise.

the onus is on the owner of the caravan to prove WHY they are doing it, if it is reasonable? and Justify it! or MOVE IT ultimately.

Gordon861

Well Batchy that quote isn't exactly great, it looks like a typical lawyer why use a short answer when I can string it out further.

It starts with a question "My neighbour intends to live in a caravan whilst parked on the road outside his house. Is this legal?"
The correct answer is "No this is not legal, you may not live in a caravan on the public highway". Now wasn't that simpler.
All the res is just fluff to fill the page.

Of course if it is doing something else that is illegal the council/police will take action. The things you bolded "be a safety hazard to pedestrians, particularly children", "be an eyesore", "be dangerous, for example if they are unstable or have gas cylinders attached" are no different to a car being parked on the road (except the gas one).

The owner doesn't have to prove why they park on the street as it is not illegal to do so, they just need to make sue that whilst they do so they don't break any laws. But obviously it is always a good idea to let your neighbours know what you are doing as it normally keeps people friendly.

Silk

Batchy wrote: »

Cause you said this

Hi Gaby,
I'm not sure why you are lost ?
I shall try to explain.
It's not illegal to park a caravan on the road unless it causes an obstruction.

AS, Any parking, other than loading or unloading or because you are waiting for repairs following a breakdown is against the law

also as stated by me and slated by you in a previous post it IS a danger for children, etc, etc, etc.

Please show me where I said it's a danger to children :rotfl:
Should we put a stop to children going on hol's to caravan parks because they are dangerous places :eek:
Please show the law which states it's illegal to park on the road as has been shown as far as the Police are concerned on their website it isn't.

Also Caravans should be insured when parked on the street. One way or the other. So if you dont have the additional cover on motor policy or the house policy ... then you do still need insurance for a caravan parked on the road.

First of all you have no idea whatsoever if the caravan is insured or not, have you asked the owner the state of his insurance ?
Even so it is not a legal requirement to have insurance on the caravan if you think otherwise please show the law which says so

Also obstruction could be the fact on one car can pass at a time etc, rather than ... can a car fit through or is it blocking someones drive.

If it was a case of having to have more than one car pass at a time half the countries cars would have to be towed away on some of the narrow streets we have :rotfl:

please see previous post and read it so you do not mislead anyone else into thinking it is ok to park a caravan on the road, unless you can prove otherwise.

Please show me the law which says it's not other than a council one if it exists as a local by law

the onus is on the owner of the caravan to prove WHY they are doing it, if it is reasonable? and Justify it! or MOVE IT ultimately.

Justify it to who exactly ?

Whilst I agree that I would not like a caravan parked on my road the question was is it legal and with certain proviso's it is I'm afraid.
We have a next door neighbour who is a gardener and has the ugliest tatty transit van which is parked up when he's not out working but theres nothing that can be done about it providing it's legal

Batchy

Super, next time my neighbour annoys me... ill park a carvan near their house..

can pick them up for 100 notes... keep it a couple of years... then sell it for a 100 notes later on!! :-)

Thanks for clearing that up for me!

Silk

Batchy wrote: »

Super, next time my neighbour annoys me... ill park a carvan near their house..

can pick them up for 100 notes... keep it a couple of years... then sell it for a 100 notes later on!! :-)

Thanks for clearing that up for me!

Our pleasure Batchy,
But don't forget to check with your local council first, otherwise they might tow it away and charge the cost to you