Vent: Tesco Van Parking Over Driveway

houseimprover

Really OP, Really?

Hope the pregnancy goes well but surely you see this is an over reaction?

pimento

Do you think the OP will be able to unclench her buttocks long enough to actually give birth?

apesxx

OP I think your being entirely unrealistic. Home shopping vans are on such a tight schedule that it won't be there any longer than it has to be, sometimes we have just 5 minutes from entering the postcode to find the house, park, do the delivery and set off again. I drive one of these type of vans and I'm sorry but yeah I will park over a driveway for a couple of minutes if I'm making a delivery to a house very close. most people that are unfortunate enough to come home at that exact moment are usually patient and understand that we can't really carry someone's shopping half a mile from where we might of actually managed to park. And some streets where there is no parking at all we have no option but to just stop and put the hazards on!
I'm pretty sure that if you was in a massive hurry and asked the driver then he probably would have been more than happy to move his van. The fact is that you didn't need to get out in the end and are making a massive mountain out of a molehill!

theonlywayisup

Tiddlywinks wrote: »

Look - the fact that the van was delivering meant that the driver wouldn't have been far away. He would have been within shouting distance if needed to move urgently.

NO!

Do NOT mention deliveries on this thread.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4858385

mountainofdebt

Arlandria606 wrote: »

Last night (8:15 ish) a Tesco van was delivering on my road. They parked over my driveway, covering the entire access to the drive, despite there being room to park two houses down without blocking anyone's drive.

Note: Before anyone starts off on the "why is this such a big deal, stop whining, just ask them to move if you need to get out" route: I'm pregnant and high-risk as I have a history of unexplained losses. I'm under strict instructions to go straight to the hospital at the tiniest sign that anything is wrong, even if it's just a gut feeling. Yes, I know that the Tesco drivers couldn't possibly know this, but that's my point: they have no idea whose driveway they're blocking and what inconvenience it might cause.

So. I took a photo of the van and sent it to Tesco via Facebook asking them to explain why the van was parking like this. As it's none of their business and not relevant to the complaint, I didn't mention my pregnancy. I expected a generic "we're very sorry, we expect better from our drivers, it is our policy not to do this and the drivers should know" kind of reply. Their actual reply was quite disinterested and only vaguely apologetic:

I'm sure they didn't take long as it looks as though they were about to make the delivery. If it is the case that they were blocking your whole drive, you can speak to the driver to adjust the van so that you are able to move your car out.

I can only apologise if any inconvenience was caused.

While waiting for a response from Tesco, I did some Googling and concluded that the parking was illegal since my car was visible on the driveway, meaning that the van was obstructing my car from accessing the road. I e-mailed my local parking gurus (as directed on my council website); they confirmed that my interpretation was correct, and that the local council would enforce the law in this way. They also advised that if it happened again I should call the council or police so that they can come out and issue a ticket.

With this confirmation, I responded to Tesco:

You don't sound particularly concerned with this situation. That's a shame, because you should be - this van is illegally parked.

I've confirmed this with my local council who have advised that, if it happens again, I should call the police.

As such you may wish instigate a review of the policies Tesco have in place regarding their van drivers' parking choices. Though somehow I suspect that "parking across someone's driveway access is fine, even if there's a perfectly good spot 10 feet behind you" isn't the current recommended course of action.

I do not expect this to happen again.

I've now had a further response:

I understand your concern and we will try not to park over anyone's driveway. We will always try and be of little inconvenience as possible to local residents.

The response that comes easily to mind is: "Oh, you'll TRY to not break the law? Fantastic. I'll TRY not to shoplift next time I'm in one of your stores." Of course, that's highly unprofessional and emotive, so I haven't sent a response to them.

Although I'm happy that if this should happen again (which I doubt it will, but you never know) there's something I can do to get the message to the drivers that it's not on, I'm angry that Tesco aren't taking this more seriously. It is, after all, illegal, and their "apologies" are pretty half-a*sed.

I know it's an extreme situation, but if I were to need to go to hospital, a van happened to be there, it delayed me, and something happened, I would never be able to stop wondering if that delay had been a factor. Frankly I've got enough "what-ifs" to worry about already - they come hand in hand with losses, even if everyone's done everything right. However, I don't want to point this out to Tesco - on the one hand, it's none of their business; on the other hand, they shouldn't need one individual's sob-story as incentive to follow the law.

I'm unsure if I want to take it any further at this point (though if it happens again I definitely will).

Thanks to anyone who read all this - I just needed to have a good vent!

Don't ask me why but I really felt the need to quote the OP.

OP, in all honesty how long was the van parked over your drive? was it longer than it would have reasonable taken you to decide that you needed to get to hospital, get your coat find your keys and lock up ?

whilst I can understand you're on tenderhooks I do think you are over reacting and using a sledgehammer to crack a nut

Personally if it was me I would have gone to the neighbour who had the delivery, explain that you need access to your drive because of your high risk pregnancy - and tbh I do think you need to give a little explanation, as otherwise you come across as being neurotic and jobsworthy - and I'm sure a little politeness goes along way.

bluebeary

im with ambrosia on this one, i would have at least expected the delivery driver to have called the ambulance or himself driven ambrosia to the hospital, also if she could have flashed her clubcard i think she would have been entitled to some points too !

mrcol1000

The OP has also posted on another board concerning an item she brought on Ebay and was outraged as the husband of the seller hand delivered it rather than spinning the roulette wheel that is using Royal Mail.

As someone who has worked in local government for many years, I can assure you the chance of the council coming out and putting a ticket on a vehicle blocking a private drive is slim. The time it would take for them to actually get there the driver would have probably not only moved on but finished his shift. Call the police and you would get an even worse response.

Had the OP gone into birth I am sure that the Tesco driver would have immediately moved his vehicle when requested.

I spent many years trying to help people with genuine problems in their neighbourhoods but it is amazing how some people can get very angry and obsessed about what really is pretty trivial. I used to be sent a weekly report from one person who sat in his house in silence writing down every time he could hear his neigbour's toilet flush. You had to really listen in his house but could just about hear it.

I really think the OP needs to think about whether this is really a big problem If it is and no-one is taking it as serious as her then maybe deal with it directly by next time politely asking the driver to park elsewhere and explaining why she needs to keep her drive clear.

People aren't always aware they are causing a problem. It is amazing how many people who play music loud or have a cigarette outside and chuck their butt in their neighbours garden just don't realise the problem they are causing for other people. Even though it should be obvious to anyone it quite often isn't. Sometimes just talking to people directly about a problem is more effective than getting the police and council involved.

theonlywayisup

If I had these issues I would move.

mgdavid

brilliant thread, thank you to the OP and all the replies. I am going to bed early tonight with a chuckle in my throat and an uplifting smile :-)

SlowCooker

Arlandria606 wrote: »

I sincerely hope that, if any of you ever need an ambulance, there's a huge fleet of Tesco vans illegally parked and blocking them from getting to you.

That's a horrible/ridiculous thing to say.

OP, I'm not trying to be mean, but I think that boredom is causing you all this anger over trivial issues.