Parking Permits

wizzywig27

Hi all

I was hoping for some advice (good or bad) on a dispute with the local authority.

We live in a residential permit area so have to pay for a parking permit at £25 per year. In our street there is a business van which is huge. It has a big metal cage on the back and is very unsightly. He often parks in front of our window, blocking all light that comes in. We have net curtains that cover half the window and one day last week I was sat in the front room and noticed him on top of his van, and he could see right in (imagine if I was naked). The van is also too wide for the bay, he takes up two spaces. On one occasion my partner pulled him behind him and he told her to move so he could unload his van.

The local authority state they cannot issue a permit if:

A!vehicle is overweight (up to 1,525 kg!unladen weight or!3,500kg gross weight)

Having complained they have said the vehicle weighs 3500kg gross. I asked them if this includes the cage and his answer was ‘I can advise you that the weight applies to the vehicle itself, and a trailer can be affixed to the van if required, the same way in that a car can also have a trailer attached whilst parked in a permit holders only parking bay’ – I have advised this is not a trailer.

I was wondering if there are any laws on this. Some answers he has come up with are:

‘As!has been previously stated in an earlier email the width of any vehicle may be taken into consideration, but this is for the distance from the kerb to the edge of the parking bay; consideration will not be given to any vehicle!which is not!wholly parked within a parking bay for the length of the vehicle.! If!the front or rear of a vehicle is projecting from the!parking bay it will receive a Penalty Charge Notice’

‘With regard to how a vehicle parks if it has parked parallel to the kerb without leaving an excess amount of space between the vehicle and the kerb, but still cannot fit completely within the parking bay, then a Penalty Charge Notice might not be issued as this would be down to the discretion of the enforcement officer, however if a vehicle is parked wide of the kerb and could clearly fit within the bay but has simply chosen not to, then an officer would usually issue a charge’

I clarify my reasons for I have complained:

· The vehicle weight is 3500kg – this is on the very limit you issue passes on and does not include the cage he has fitted which measures roughly 10ft high by roughly 8 feet wide and 2/3 of the vehicle in length. I understand that a car can add a trailer but this is a permanent addition to the vehicle.
· The vehicle is too wide to fit in the bays and is dangerous for passing vehicles
· The vehicle takes up more than one space – I was advised that properties can apply for more than one permit if they have more than one vehicle, but this is ONE vehicle not two
· This appears to be a vehicle for business use, yet he has a residential permit. The vehicle is for business use yet has a residents permit?!
· Not only does he take up two spaces, leaves space at the rear of he vehicle to load and unload, so in theory he is taking up two spaces
· He parks outside my front window, which means I have the site of a cage full of weeds and grass every time I look out of my front room window. It also stops what little light we have on an evening coming into the front room

My key concern is that the vehicle is on the very limit in which they issue permits. This does not take into consideration the cage he has had installed on the back of the van which would clearly take it overweight.

Thanks in advance

benham3160

If the vehicle is a 3.5T vehicle, the "cage" doesn't make any difference, remember the gross weight is essentially the permissible mass of the vehicle, providing the cage doesn't send the vehicle above 3.5T tonne.

For example a Transit could have a gross weight of 3.5T, but the actual vehicle itself empty might only weigh 1800kg, this means it can carry 1700kg extra weight.

If the vehicle is recorded as having a gross weight of 3.5T (and he's not over-loading it) that's just how it is, I'd imagine it can have a maximum train weight (with a trailer) of something around 8T, but that depends on the van, and many other variables.

Gross is essentially (for this purpose) the maximum weight the vehicle can legally weigh (without a trailer) it doesn't mean the vehicle itself weighs this amount, the greater the difference between the kerb-weight (empty) and gross, the more the vehicle can carry.

Regards,
Andy

neilmcl

wizzywig27 wrote: »

My key concern is that the vehicle is on the very limit in which they issue permits. This does not take into consideration the cage he has had installed on the back of the van which would clearly take it overweight.

Thanks in advance

Now be honest, your KEY concern is that he's parking in front of your house, parked anywhere else and I'd doubt you'd give a damn.

If he's complying with the council's T&Cs with regards to the parking permit then he can park where he likes in the alloted zone, as can you. Where does this guy live and why doesn't he park his van nearer to his own property?

wizzywig27

So, for arguments sake our Ford Focus weighs 1200kg (unladen) - and the LA states that maximum unladed is 1525kg why are they referring to the gross weight? Are they saying unladen can exceed 1525kg as long as gross does not exceed 3500kg?

cardinalbiggles

Moral of the story, if you don't want people parking in front of your house don't buy a house that has a road in front of it.

Very simple, what gives you the right to claim the road in front of your house as yours, its as much mine as anyone elses!

wizzywig27

neilmcl wrote: »

Now be honest, your KEY concern is that he's parking in front of your house, parked anywhere else and I'd doubt you'd give a damn.

If he's complying with the council's T&Cs with regards to the parking permit then he can park where he likes in the alloted zone, as can you. Where does this guy live and why doesn't he park his van nearer to his own property?

Of course but my KEY concern is not one to base a complaint! However that does not mean the other points stated are not valid!

He lives three doors down and it's a first come first served, so if outside his house is taken he will park wherever he can!

wizzywig27

cardinalbiggles wrote: »

Moral of the story, if you don't want people parking in front of your house don't buy a house that has a road in front of it.

Very simple, what gives you the right to claim the road in front of your house as yours, its as much mine as anyone elses!

I would love to live in this perfect world you speak of! :-)

benham3160

wizzywig27 wrote: »

So, for arguments sake our Ford Focus weighs 1200kg (unladen) - and the LA states that maximum unladed is 1525kg why are they referring to the gross weight? Are they saying unladen can exceed 1525kg as long as gross does not exceed 3500kg?

It might be a disparity between the regulations, it might be different for commercial vehicles (which are normally calculated on gross weight), have you checked this?

As said though, it sounds more like you don't want the person parking outside your house, rather than an actual concern for vehicle weights, if the guy is just trying to make a living, it maybe will be difficult to get him to park elsewhere unless there is somewhere more obvious to park.

3.5T sounds reasonable, it's the point where a van stops being a "van" and becomes an HGV according to the DVLA, as a guide the normal ambulances you see with boxes on the back (Merc Sprinters for example) normally have a 5.5T gross mass, so these are classed as a small HGV.

Regards,
Andy

Tilt

Doubt that you would get a vehicle 3.5t gross in a normal car parking bay anyway.

peter_the_piper

Depends on the type of bay.

benham3160

Depends on your perception of space-time.