Hi. I have a varient twist on the old 'someone's dumped a car in my driveway' problem
I live in a shared house. 5 rooms 5 tenents 3 cars 2 parking spaces.
one of the cars is effectively a 'dumped' car and is not used by the tenent. It just sits decaying in one of the parking spaces - preventing use of this space by an active driver who either has to park outside the premises or keep shuffling with the other person to get lawn space.
The tenent has been offered money for the car, but refuses to sell. The tenent shows no sign of mending the vehicle (which convieniently has it's brakes locked) and it still has a flat tyre from monhs ago.
At what point are we alowed to dismantle either the car or the tenent?
ALL suggestions welcomed.
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Anything in the tenancy agreement? Why not get the landlord involved? Perhaps the tenant could be given notice to quit for some sort of unreasonable behavious?
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Four people could probably "move" a car without too much difficulty. Hide it around the corner? If it's untaxed, it might get removed fairly quickly. Not that I would ever advocate such a course of action... ;-)
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Or at least move it into the lawn space?
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Tell the council it's abandonned and a danger cos it might be vandalised/set on fire etc...
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It's on private property, the council won't be interested.
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Before the advent of car alarms we had problems at work of a car being parked at the entrance to private garage - access was tricky. Despite notes on windows nothing happened - he/she still parked there.
A bit of packing case tape lifted the lock, release handbrake and pushed it on to the double yellow line round the corner. After 2/3 tickets the problem went away.
Technically it was braeking into a car but it worked.
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It's on private property the council won't be interested.
Break the windows, move it onto the road, set fire to it.
Problem solved.
:)
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Ring the scrappy and ask them to take it away.
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Have you checked (not sure if you can though) or advised the DVLA? It should be SORN'd if it is not on the public highway - unless your neighbour still pays tax for it?
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I think that behaviour like this is so inconsiderate, the only way of dealing with it is to recourse to direct action. Beware, however, of the potential consequences of a tit-for-tat neighbourly war that could escalate to murder as was seen in South London a few weeks back in a row over a parking bay.
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Take the rear plate off it, stick it over the plate of a matching make/model/colour car one night, and hope they run a few speed cameras before they realise it's not their plate.
Edit - don't try this at home, but it's fun imagining the consequences.
Edited by oldnotbold on 07/02/2008 at 13:25
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Lol, I'd love to try some of these responses. 'tis a shame the brakes are locked.
Taking up one of the suggestions, I've noticed the car hasn't been taxed for about a year now, at least that's what the disc in the window suggests.
can i now make a useful move without communicating with the donkey owner?
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I don't think the tax route is the way to go:
tinyurl.com/227m9y
"If you see a vehicle on the public road (car parks, driveways or housing association parking spaces don?t apply) with an out of date tax disc, you can report it online, by telephone or by post."
This vehicle is not on a public road, hence the DVLA appear not to care, even though technically it should be SORN'd.
Indeed, look at this another way. As a fellow resident, aren't they entitled to use the space? Does the lease actually say cars parked in the spaces must be roadworthy and actually in use?
Probably not, in which there is nothing you can do. I know it's anti-social and selfish in principle, but in practice are they doing anything wrong?
Put it another way, if the obstructing car was well looked after, taxed and insured but never actually moved it would be just as annoying to you but would you have such grounds for complaint?
Who's to say which residents are entitled to use the spaces and how they might use them? Only the landlord IMO, and if they don't care, then you're out of options. Sorry.
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A car which is never moved is no longer a car, but a painted shed. If it were roadworthy, and used, it would from time to time free up the space, thus taking turns in using the facility. Hogging it with a wreck is not on.
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From what has been said I can't see that the owner of the car has done anything illegal, inconvenient to others in the house, perhaps, but not illegal, its a parking space for a car and he's parked his car in it - the fact that its not moved is irrelevant! - if there are two spaces and he's got one then unless there is something in the tenancy agreement I can't see what you can do....
As has been suggested before perhaps the rest of you should get together and have a quiet word with the landlord and go from there?
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" From what has been said I can't see that the owner of the car has done anything illegal,"
If it's not SORNed, then he's broken the law, regardless of where it's parked.
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The OP knows the registration check if it's SORNed if so nothing for the law to worry ablout you need to go back to the landlord to see if he can do anything.
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" From what has been said I can't see that the owner of the car has done anything illegal " If it's not SORNed then he's broken the law regardless of where it's parked.
I think you missed my post above, the DVLA aren't interested whether its SORN'd or not unless its on a public road, which this car isn't...
Try reading the link I posted, the DVLA (in this case) could not care less either way, the Police even less I suspect...
I agree with the OP in that this wreck is placed anti-socially, but there is nothing that can be done unless the landlord intervenes...
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DVLA will care enough if it's not SORNed to clamp it if they are round that way and to fine him, wont get the car moved though. Despite what the website says I know of one near me which was clamped in a private car park for no tax when they were doing a purge about 3 months ago.
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My experience is that they only act when you re-tax the vehicle.
My ex-missus forgot to put my SORN notice in at the post office, I didn't bother checking up and didn't realise that they sent you an acknowledgement; next spring I went to tax the bike and the post office clerk commented that it hadn't been SORN'ed.
Tried arguing the toss with the bailiffs or whoever they use to collect the "fine" but no luck, it cost me £80.>:(
As normal it's law-abiding people who get stung by these measures not the scumbags who drive around in dodgy cars without licences etc. I often suspect that the government want it that way 'cos it's an easy source of revenue to keep another load of civil servants in pensionable jobs. They know I'll pay up because I don't want to risk my Harley being scrapped, the scumbags won't bother because they'll just go out and buy another duff car and do the same again.
Irks the hell out of me.
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Get some neighbours to help you carry it onto the road early one morning. Then report it to the authorities.
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LOL!
I like the sound of that, and if you're careful and don't damage it (!!) then I can't see that it'd
be breaking the law in anyway...unless someone knows otherwise?
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Has the possibility that the owner of the car has fallen on hard times been explored? It might be the case that he/she would love to get the vehicle operational again but is simply not currently in a position to do so, Could this maybe a good old case of "kick a man when he's down"?
Surely the starting point in all of this is to politely discuss the situation with the owner to explore the reasons behind his/her actions and to see if any compromise can be reached or indeed whether they could just do with a little help or advice?
Stealing their car and dumping it on the road with the potential legal and financial comeback for the owner is the sort of thoughtless act which could tip a vulnerable person over the edge. Be careful.
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You do not even have to carry the car - if there are enough of you , you can bounce it on the springs and keep bouncing it out of the drive and on to the road. Then just leave it there , preferably on a double yellow...
Some workmates and I did this once without compunction to a car who had selfishly blocked in another of our workmates in a car park, a lady who was quite distressed because she had to go and collect her children .
We did not leave this car on a yellow but in such a position that he would have had as much difficulty getting out as he had left her in....eye for an eye.
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If I suspected a car was involved in a serious offence, I would have to follow my conscience and report my suspicions to the BIB. Of course, a less upright citizen than myself would probably phone the Crimestoppers number - anonymously - alleging something quite, quite serious going on re: car reg. ABC123 parked at the back of.... Road.
End result: car's keeper gets an official visit, which may or may not result in car being made roadworthy or moved or sold. Car's keeper rightly suspects who dobbed him in and fillets his co-tenants with a bread knife while they sleep.
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