Football 'trespass' clarification

TBagpuss

footballs may be a non issue, but verbal abuse, and deliberate attacks such as kicking the ball *at* your house rather than it occasionally hitting your house while they are playing is different.

I had a very short lived problem when my neighbour's kids decided it would be funny to throw stuff into my garden. The first few times I assumed it was accidental and either gave them back on request or just dropped them back over the wall.

When it became obvious that they were trying to wind me up I told them I would get their stuff back when i had a minute to spare. And then I didn't answer the door to any further knocks. In most cases I would drop it back over their fence just before I went to bed, so they had it back in the morning, but it was a lot less fun for them when they realised that they were not getting a rise out of me and they were not getting heir stuff back for the rest of the day. They got bored and stopped.

In your case, I'd suggest speaking to her just once. Next time she comes round, give her the ball but tell her that in future you do not want her, or her childnre, coming to your door, and that anything which comes into our garden will be put back over the fence to their garden / outside the door at the next convenient opportunity.


Then stop opening the door. If she does start banging, contact the police. Log it every time, they may get to the point when they can warn her about harassment. Make clear to them that you have expressly told her that she should not come to your door and that in cases where she/her kids pout stuff into your garden you have told her that it will be made available to them at the earliest convenient opportunity.

Do the same with the council. use the words harassment and anti-social behaviour and make clear that you want them to address her actions on that basis.

grandma247

Our windows and door were covered in marks from footballs kicked at them. The pcso took pictures . He could not believe how bad it was. we also had eggs thrown, windows banged on day and night,sometimes past midnight, our door was opened even when a policeman was inside taking a statement and lots of other things happened too. It took 4 years for the police to get the action they wanted because the child protection people kept blocking it. These started out at about age 13 and police still call on the ringleader to this day to warn him to behave when he is out on a weekend as he is an adult now. This kind of thing has a horrible affect on your health. Parents do not care and if my kids had done this kind of thing they would not have sat down for a week. There is no excuse for this behaviour at all. Lazy parenting or no parenting at all is what happens around here. When the police asked the kids where the mum was they said she was in the pub or at aunties.
There were twenty families on different streets affected by this group of kids.

Mortgage_Mark_2

You have two choices;

1. When it comes into your garden, pick it up and hoof it back over their garden, into the opposite side neighbour's garden;
2. Lob it over the next fence and say it cleared your garden altogether.

Job done.

(Although I prefer the "Oh it appears that your ball landed on my garden shears" more)

bmunky7

Since the main problem seems to be the balls being kicked at your house, can't you just tell them that if the ball comes into your garden as a result of them kicking it against your house you will only return it at the end of the day, or next day.

If it comes into your garden as a genuine mistake they will get the ball back as soon as you realise and have a chance.

Then its up to them to take the risk of continuing to kick it at your house and perhaps not get it back for a long time, or play elsewhere.

hop3y

aileth wrote: »

Okay, what we've decided so far. We need to make a war room for this sort of stuff

We are going to give the ball back one more time with a firm warning that we will withhold any more trespassing balls for an hour.

Our fence is high enough to put burglar paint on the top, and the only reason you'd be touching it anyway is if you were being naughty, there is no chance anyone will come in contact with it unless they are attempting to trespass.

Going to rig a doorbell switch as suggested, and fingers crossed it will send her into a rage and she will go to the fence to climb it to trespass and get some nice black hands instead.

Rig the doorbell so (like Home Alone) she gets a shock every time she rings it!:rotfl:

jc808

if shes verbally abusive, i wouldnt answer the door

balls in her court, forgive the pun

onamissionEU

On a high fence simply adhere carpet grippers to the top on the INSIDE of the fence. This would cut the hands of anyone trying to climb over and as they would be on the inside they would only affect anyone trying to climb over ie trespass. Simple & effective.
Agree with "throwing the ball a garden further" also! Then just stop answering the door.

jjlandlord

Nobbie1967 wrote: »

I think 'theft' is the intention to permanently deprive, so holding the ball for a period is not against the law.

It's not theft but it's still against the law. This is called 'wrongful interference with goods' and specifically 'trespass to goods', I believe.

If that was legal, it would lead to a complete mess!
You could take and use anything you wanted as long as it was clear that you would be bringing it back.

jayss

Let the dog fetch the balls and puncture them.

Strapped

I feel your pain as our next door neighbours have a small child who spends most of the day in the garden kicking a football against their house - which is annoying enough! I've never said anything, because it's their house/child (and they're slightly scary) but if it was constantly thudding against my wall, sorry, it would be a punctured football every time it came over.