Advice on what to do about a neighbour blocking my garden gate

JGB1955

There's nothing to suggest you have access rights...just park a big wheel barrow outside the gate....

Curlyben

All you can do is ask that they don't block your gate.
There really is little legal recourse otherwise.

cymruchris

You could put a polite notice like this on your gate (not one of the bright red warning style ones) - but if you're also parking in front of the gate - then others will see you ignore it and will ignore it too..

adonis

Get yourself a new jacket to wear when you squeeze past the car.

Nutellover

JGB1955 said:

There's nothing to suggest you have access rights...just park a big wheel barrow outside the gate....

See this is where I was needing advice. As another poster pointed out blocking the gate is blocking access to the property which is if nothing else against the highway code, but I don't know if this is only for primary access i.e. the front door, or if it also includes garden gates, garages etc.

cymruchris

Nutellover said:

JGB1955 said:

There's nothing to suggest you have access rights...just park a big wheel barrow outside the gate....

See this is where I was needing advice. As another poster pointed out blocking the gate is blocking access to the property which is if nothing else against the highway code, but I don't know if this is only for primary access i.e. the front door, or if it also includes garden gates, garages etc.

The thing is - if it is against the Highway Code - and someone else will be a better expert than me on that point - and you’re advocating the neighbour shouldn’t park there - neither should you - if you’re going from a legal perspective - what applies to one applies to all - so be careful if that’s the route you go down. I’d start with a polite notice - and a few weeks of increased activity through the gate to show its being used frequently. 

Nutellover

Surely you can block you own access though, if I park there it's not blocked because I'm the only one who needs access and can get access by moving the car, if someone else parks there and then goes out for the day I'm stuffed? But I see what you're saying and the rules obviously don't go in to every possible scenario.

unforeseen

It's only advised in the highway code, there is no law against it. 

Undervalued

unforeseen said:

It's only advised in the highway code, there is no law against it. 

Quite!

OP having seen your photograph, so now appreciating it is not a vehicle access with a dropped kerb, I also think there is little you can do beyond asking the neighbour nicely. 

Think about this....

Suppose you installed a row of pedestrian gates all along your garden wall. Would you then expect nobody to park in front of any of them? Presumably not!

You could ask your council about whether they would paint an access protection marker across the gate. I have occasionally seen these in front of pedestrian gates. However, on their own unless there are local bylaws they have little legal standing. Before spending the money you would want to be certain the council felt they could then ticket an offending vehicle and that they would actually "police" it.

baza52

Nutellover said:

Surely you can block you own access though, if I park there it's not blocked because I'm the only one who needs access and can get access by moving the car, if someone else parks there and then goes out for the day I'm stuffed? But I see what you're saying and the rules obviously don't go in to every possible scenario.

so is this more about you wanting to claim this space for your own parking?