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OrangeHow to Keep Neighbors Off Your Driveway?
We will teach you how to keep neighbors away from your driveway legally!
Perhaps almost every homeowner has faced this problem at least once: you leave your home to drive to work just to find out that your neighbor’s car is blocking your driveway! This is annoying and irritating, but also it makes you waste time finding ways how to leave your home without smashing the neighbor’s vehicle.
What to do when someone parks in your driveway?
In this article, we will give you more information on that subject. You will learn a few creative ways to block a driveway if you want to keep your neighbors and anyone else away from your property and driveway.
Also, we will explain what measures can be taken in order to legally prevent those folks from using your driveway as their own.
What to Do If Someone Parks In Your Driveway?
If someone is blocking your driveway constantly, this can become quite a big issue for you. Having another car on your way prevents you from driving out of your yard, which means you have to waste extra time asking your neighbors to remove their vehicles. And if this is a stranger’s car, things become even more complicated!
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So what can you do if your neighbors ot somebody else keeps on leaving their car on your driveway? Let’s see how this issue can be solved.
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Tell Your Neighbor About the Problem
First of all, you need to inform your neighbors about the problem and relate your displeasure towards them. The same works for any of their guests using your driveway. Just explain politely how you feel about having their cars on your driveway, and what inconveniences it brings to you.
See, your neighbors might have assumed that you are okay with them using your driveway! Perhaps, the previous owners of your property didn’t see any problem with it, or it was a normal situation in their previous home. Either way, make sure you let them know about your displeasure.
Like that, should you take more serious actions, your neighbors won’t have a chance to say you didn’t warn them.
Get a Formal And Certified Letter from the Relevant Authorities
If you warned your neighbors and told them about your displeasure, but nothing changes, the next step you should take is to obtain a formal, certified letter or document from the relevant authorities. This document/letter should state that your neighbors and anyone who comes to visit them have no right to use your driveway and that deprives them of any rights of way legally.
In this case, it is important that you make sure your neighbors have a copy of this document or letter! Like this, they know that the authorities have been informed of his trespass.
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Put Up a Sign Or a Fence to Protect Your Property
This is the final measure that you can take. If after informing the authorities and delivering a certified letter to your neighbors, the problem still persists, it simply means that your neighbors ignore all the steps you have taken to stop them from blocking your driveway.
In this case, you have nothing left but to put up a sign or erect a fence to stop the intruders.
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Inform Your Lawyer
It sometimes happens that you can’t get a fence erected or the sign you have put up is still being disobeyed. Should this happen, your last resort should be to inform your lawyer. Also, make sure you explore legal options that can be used to force your neighbors to follow the restrictions.
Well, these are all the possible options you can use if you have problems with your neighbors blocking your driveway with their car. We provided you with several alternative solutions so that you could start with the least harsh methods like verbally warning the intruders. But of course, if you see that no mild methods work on them, the last resort is to go for a legal force.
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Do Neighbours Have Legitimate Right to Use Your Driveway?
ce this kind of problem, you might start wondering whether your neighbors have any legal rights to use your driveway. And in fact, it is a good idea to check this nuance before you proceed with the official complaints! It will help you avoid any misunderstandings.
What you should start with is to read your property’s title deed very carefully! If there are no written rights in it that specifically state that neighbors can use your driveway, then it means they have no right whatsoever to use it.
But there are times when title deeds may include the right of way, which means that other people, as well as your neighbors and other drivers who are passing by alike, have the right to use your driveway as they want.
This is why it is important that you check this document very meticulously. Also, if you are going to buy a house, before doing it, make sure you carefully read all the documents attached to the property. It will allow you to know whether there is anything that you might not be okay with that the agreement contains.
So if there is no written rights of way in your property’s title deed, it is up to you to decide whether to allow your neighbors (and other drivers) to use your driveway or not. This also allows you to put up a sign that prevents anyone from parking or turning on your driveway.
However, there is something you should be aware of in advance!
See, sometimes, even though there is no legal right in your title deed that allows your neighbors to use your driveway, they might still have a legitimate right to do it. How come?
They may have this right in case they acquired it one way or another in the past.
So we recommend you check all the property documents very thoroughly to make sure that your neighbors really have no right to use your driveway or a part of it.
And if you confirm this, and you find out that your neighbors have no right of way to use your driveway, then you are free to act! You can put up a sign that states they cannot use your driveway, or even put up a fence.
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How Do I Make My Driveway Private to Stop Cars From Parking There?
If you have figured out that you have the full right to prevent anyone from parking on your driveway, you might start searching the ways how to block the driveway access.
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The most effective way to make your driveway private is to create separators around it or at the sides of your driveway.
However, homeowners often want to go further and find some creative ways of making their driveways both private and unreachable to anyone else. So here are a few ways to block off your driveway and do it aesthetically.
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Paint Your Driveway
This is a fun and effective way to show everyone that this is your driveway. You can simply paint it in a color clearly different from the road. This way, everyone will know that it is not part of the public road or a public driveway.
You can use any paint color you like, just make sure it is bright enough and easy to notice. Like that, it will clearly separate your driveway from the rest of the road. For example, you can paint it yellow, bright orange, white, pink, or whatever color you like. You can even paint it like a rainbow!
Install Stones Around Your Driveway
This is another way of separating the driveway from the road. You can stack up stones around your driveway, creating bumps just before the road. Like this, you will clearly let everyone else know that this is your territory and your driveway, and besides, big stones will prevent cars from physically getting to your driveway.
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Build Fences to Demarcate Your Driveway
By putting a fence, you make a very clear statement that it is your very own driveway and it is only accessible to you. Fences around a driveway will keep out not only your neighbors but also other drivers. The only thing you must pay attention to is that your fence doesn’t affect your own navigation.
Consider Garden Beds Around
This is not just an effective way of making your driveway private. It is also very aesthetically pleasing! Besides, you have plenty of options regarding what to plant. You can choose to plant shrubs or garden beds around your driveway. In fact, thick shrubs might even be a better option since they will create a kind of natural fence.
Anyway, whatever you plant, anyone who then crosses into your garden to get to your driveway will be liable for the destruction of the private property!
Well, now you know what to do if your neighbors keep on parking their cars on your driveway. You learned what preventive measures can be taken like warning them verbally if this is the first time they trespass. And also, you are now aware of what you should do if your neighbors keep on breaking the rules and parking on your property.
In addition, we explained what legal nuances there are about this issue, so now you know what papers and documents you should check to be sure that your neighbors are indeed trespassing. Finally, you learned a few easy and even creative ways of blocking your driveway! All this will help you keep your property private and undisturbed.
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Frequently Asked Questions
⭐Who to call if someone blocks your driveway?
Call 911 to report a vehicle illegally parked in the actual driveway of private property. This is considered trespassing!
⭐What is considered blocking a driveway?
To block a driveway, one has to park in a space that causes the person who lives there to be unable to leave or return home and park in their driveway.
⭐Can I put spike stripes in my driveway?
You have full right to do so, however, it’s advisable that you do not put spike stripes in your driveway as they can harm other people’s tires and injure unsuspecting individuals.
Written by Melinda Sherween
