How to stop people parking on my drive?

moneyistooshorttomention

Lockable chaingate fence. Job done.

It shouldn't be necessary and you will be the one paying to keep other people from trespassing. But...since its obviously "needs must" then that's what you do.

It doesn't cost that much and takes hours to put in place.

I'll admit to never ceasing to be surprised that strangers think its just fine and dandy to park on someone else's land - but that does seem to be the case - ie that you have to pay out a bill to make them stop doing so and the only consolation is that you are obviously more intelligent/less antisocial than those strangers that think its okay to do this (ie "polish the badge on your lapel" and think "I know better than they do" etc etc).

These people are blimmin' annoying I know...

beedeedee

Is it a tarmac drive, so that it could conceivably be mistaken for the public road? I know it could be a bit of unwanted expense, but I'd be tempted to dig up a few squares and add some paving slabs or gravel, so that it becomes obvious to all that it IS a private drive and not a parking or turning space.

audigex

Although some people will park on a private driveway or ignore "residents only" signs etc, most people won't if they're aware. The fact it's tarmac and presumably doesn't look much like a driveway is your issue.

Put up a low wall (even just 3-4 bricks high) around the spaces so they're clearly delineated, and add some gravel or slabs etc to make it look more like a driveway. Then put a gate across the entrance. Even if you don't actually close the gate, it's now far more obvious that this isn't just a bit of annex to the main road.

eddddy

Loopy28 wrote: »

...
I have been out and told them to 'beat it' in of course a polite way but it seems a constant problem. I clearly need to make it obvious that it is a driveway because most people wouldn't just go and park on someone's driveway.
...

Hi Loopy

An interesting mixture of replies.

Do you think the people in question are 'parking anarchists' who are knowingly parking on a private drive? Or just people who don't realise it's a private drive, and are polite and apologetic when you tell them?

If it's the latter, some people near me just put out a 'No Parking' cone (or some other object to indicate that drivers shouldn't park there) and it seems to do the job. The cones don't seem to get stolen either.

Google Shopping suggests that you can buy a 'No Parking' cone for about £6 upwards.

bris

http://www.theworkplacedepot.co.uk/hinged-padlock-parking-post?gclid=CjwKEAjw1KGqBRC55bru-sa7zCcSJAAxsBf5ofERPz1WWtm7DJoea-BDL5UR1HOGegAv66hlF8_TKxoCp07w_wcB#vat

jjlandlord

The best way would be to put up a sign, and to install a chain.

princeofpounds wrote: »

Don't waste time with trespass; if you have suffered immaterial loss or damage it's a dead end.

This is an action in tort and there is no need to prove a loss to get awarded damages.
As long as trespass is proving then damages will be awarded, though they may not be very high. However, let's not forget that quite often legal costs can end up being higher than damages and make the overall 'penalty' sting.

Such action would be a good way to go after a repeat offender, as that should deter him from trying again.

stator

The cheapest effective solution would be to pay someone to paint PRIVATE in white paint across the entrance to the drive.
If you want to stop people who would knowingly park on private property without permission then you would need a physical barrier, but it doesn't sound necessary in your situation

rach_k

If it's just that people don't realise, why not start with a cheap tub of plants either in the middle of the second space or a couple at the corners to make it look 'owned'? Cheap, easy and quick, doesn't look bad like chain link can and easy to move if you have visitors.

seven-day-weekend

Why not just put a physical barrier, like a chain with a padlock, across it? Cheap and easy.

Loopy28

Thanks for all your replies, lots of useful suggestions :-)

To answer the questions, firstly some people are not aware that it is a drive and are surprised when I tell them. Others know and don't care e.g. my neighbour had a gas engineer at her house who she owned up had parked on my drive (I was at work) and when she told him it wasn't public parking, she said he just responded that he wouldn't be very long and seemed to not care.

My house is a corner plot so around the side is a garden that joins to a path that gives access my side gate into the back garden. On the other side of this path are the two parking spaces. They are side by side and are tarmac so don't really look like a drive. I remember when we viewed the property before buying it several years ago and we were wondering if it was the driveway or public parking.

The sign is an idea but I agree could be ignored. I think the suggestions to make it look more like a driveway and part of my property are a good idea although not sure how effective that will be either. Fortunately noone parks there in the evening as the residents all know it is our parking, a friend of a teenager across the road did try his luck parking there a few times until I told him off and there has never been an issue in the evening since.