Dropped kerbs and council responsibility

ed110220

In my experience it is very rare to find someone parking in front of a driveway even if it doesn't have a dropped kerb. For example the closest street who town for me without residents only parking has just one driveway without a dropped kerb (with a little wooden ramp in the gutter). Even if the whole street is parked up I've never seen anyone park there. I wouldn't park in front of it.

Worth a try arguing that the council should drop the kerb free of charge to you as you believe the driveway is original but I doubt it will fly. They'll probably argue that however it came to be that you don't have a dropped kerb, you bought the house without a dropped kerb and therefore whether it once had one or should have one is irrelevant.

DollyDee_2

This sounds similar to my Mom & Dad's council house which was built in 1953. It wasn't a driveway, not that many people had cars then, it was the front garden with a path to the back door/rear garden. Mom & Dad paid the council to drop the kerb.

System

Davesnave wrote: »

Well they can, but if they create an obstruction, preventing you leaving your home by car, then the police should prosecute.

Whether they will is another matter.

This remains my wife's only motoring offence.

It is only an obstruction if it prevents somebody getting their vehicle off the drive, not preventing somebody driving on to the drive.

System

ed110220 wrote: »

In my experience it is very rare to find someone parking in front of a driveway even if it doesn't have a dropped kerb. For example the closest street who town for me without residents only parking has just one driveway without a dropped kerb (with a little wooden ramp in the gutter). Even if the whole street is parked up I've never seen anyone park there. I wouldn't park in front of it.

Worth a try arguing that the council should drop the kerb free of charge to you as you believe the driveway is original but I doubt it will fly. They'll probably argue that however it came to be that you don't have a dropped kerb, you bought the house without a dropped kerb and therefore whether it once had one or should have one is irrelevant.

The lack of dropped kerb can be explained by a previous tenant having/putting a fence across it as they didn't use it and then the road and kerb was redone by the council. If they see the drive as obviously unused (because of a fence and not gates) then they won't bother with a dropped kerb

Davesnave

!!!!!! wrote: »

It is only an obstruction if it prevents somebody getting their vehicle off the drive, not preventing somebody driving on to the drive.

Errr....yes....that's what I said.

System

Davesnave wrote: »

Errr....yes....that's what I said.

I was just clarifying that the act of parking across a drive in itself is not obstruction as there are other factors that must be considered

Shimmyhill

There is no right to having a dropped curb because it used to be a council house, the Council merely built the house in the same way Bovis do and the Highways agency would have needed to be paid to have it done then or now - either by the developer at the time of building it or the owner wishing now to make an improvement.

Double_V

jowie wrote: »

That's just their assessment costs.

Then you have to get an approved contractor to carry out the work. I was quoted £1500.

Oh sorry, I didn't know.

That is too much though.