Private parking space

spaceritual94

I live in a housing association flat on an estate. There are 150 flats, roughly half belong to the housing association and the rest were sold privately. Each flat has one numbered parking space so everyone knows exactly which space is allocated to them. I don't own a car but friends and family often visit and use my parking bay. The problem is other people use it without permission. I often find cars parked there and have no idea who they belong to. If they had the decency to knock and ask if they can use it i would say ok, but when they just park there it annoys me. We have security gates but they are not foolproof, sometimes drivers can follow a resident in or get in via the tradesmens button, although i think it is more likely that other residents are doing it. My question is what are my legal rights? Can i have them towed away or clamped and if so who covers the cost?

littleredhen

i would check with your housing association but this often happens when people realise that you don't have a car - not sure what you can do about it though unless there is something specifically in the terms of your contract

lizzielondon

this is the same set up as where i live. The carpark used to have surprise visits from clampers and cars had to display permits because we are right by a tube station people would drive so far in and hop on the tube. That problem eventually went away so the permit/clamping scheme is no longer running.

one of my neighbours once tried to get a randomer's car towed and was told it wasn't possible but not sure how hard she tried.

Some people here put up notices on the wall behind the space saying not to park there. It is annoying and i symphasise with you but not sure you can actually do much..

McKneff

No you cant just have it towed away, a 7 day notice of removal has to be put on any car first. Its a civil matter so police would do nothing.

Best you can do is either catch the driver and tell him politely that
a. You had visitiors today and they had to go elswhere to park and not to park
there again.

b. Tell him that you are expecting visitors, they visit on a regular bais and
not to park there again.

c. Leave a polite note combining a and b.

Good luck

clockworks_2

I had this problem at my flats. The moment i moved in i put up a sign politley asking people not to park there. Only had one problem in 6 months when the neighbour parked there.

I was the first to put a sign up and since then out of 18 spaces about 10 others have put up signs. So you may kick start others into doing it.

pinkshoes

Just leave the car a polite note saying that it's a private parking space that is often used, so if they wish to park in it occasionally, could they please seek permission beforehand from <your name> in flat X.

Fire_Fox

One of my previous employers had problems with people parking in the emergency access areas so could not safely clamp. They purchased a job lot of A4 sized notices with sticky backing which they stuck to the windscreen of offending vehicles. Cue much mirth as we watched from our office windows as the steaming mad driver spent ages scraping the notice off. I would note you must be careful that the adhesive chosen does not damage the car, and you probably ought to begin with a simple note under the windscreen wiper, moving onto sticky notices for repeat offenders.

spaceritual94

Thanks everyone. Unfortunately my row of parking bays is not near any walls or anything solid enough to attach a notice. I have put a note on a car parked there tonight saying if it is still there tomorrow i will move it myself. I have tried leaving very polite notes before but i think i need to take a firmer approach.

martindow

spaceritual94 wrote: »

Thanks everyone. Unfortunately my row of parking bays is not near any walls or anything solid enough to attach a notice. I have put a note on a car parked there tonight saying if it is still there tomorrow i will move it myself. I have tried leaving very polite notes before but i think i need to take a firmer approach.

I can understand your frustration but it is probably best not to threaten actions which you cannot actually carry out (unless you can carry a car).

Can you put up a folding metal post? These can be locked in position and would stop this. Otherwise I would go along with the sticky notice idea - no damage but enough to discourage.

getmore4less

spaceritual94 wrote: »

Thanks everyone. Unfortunately my row of parking bays is not near any walls or anything solid enough to attach a notice. I have put a note on a car parked there tonight saying if it is still there tomorrow i will move it myself. I have tried leaving very polite notes before but i think i need to take a firmer approach.

How are the bays marked?
Improved marking might help can you paint the space(check the Terms of your lease)

plenty of examples of road paint stencils if you look on-line


if you need to move the vehicle a couple of these would come in handy

http://www.mandp.co.uk/productinfo/570796/Workshop/Garage-Accessories/Big-Red-Jacks/Hydraulic-Positioning-Jack

Bonny1

Go buy a cheap third hand car, and leave it parked on your space..

problem solved forever...