The neighbour has been branded ‘inconsiderate’ for blocking the disabled mum’s spot
A homeowner has expressed their frustration after a neighbour chose to park in front of her mum’s disabled bay, effectively trapping her inside. Writing on Reddit, a user named Penny_b_ shared her story on the subreddit r/AITAH.
AITAH means ‘am I the a******’ and is frequently used by worried users seeking others’ views on whether they acted correctly or incorrectly in particular situations. On this occasion, Penny shared details of a personal dispute and requested judgment from others. She alleges that a neighbour created problems for her mum through an ‘inconsiderate’ action, but secured quick retribution by having her car towed, reports the Mirror.
The Reddit user explained: “I 29(F) let my mother move in with me. She is physically disabled after crashing her car in 2020. In front of our house, we have a spot for her. We had to go through a bunch of hoops and hurdles for her to have that spot in front of our home.
“My neighbour has been extremely inconsiderate lately. Her reason for parking in my mother’s spot is, ‘It’s a pain in the a** to park in my drive way. Your house is beside mine. It’s not a big deal’. Yeah… like my mother not being able to walk long distances due to her disability is ‘not a big deal’.”
“She parked in my mother’s spot again as we were coming home from the store. I went to her house and knocked. She answered the door, and said, ‘What the hell do you want?’
“I said, ‘Hey I’m not trying to be a burden. Can you please move your car. My mother is waiting in the car for you to move. My mother is disabled and cannot walk far distances. Last time you parked there we had to park all the way down the street. It was hard for my mom to walk.'”
“My neighbour said, ‘It’s a public street.’ She slammed the door in my face. I grabbed my mother and helped her into the house. I parked the car down the street. I went into the house and called the non emergency line. They gave me the number to call to get that car towed. An hour later, the towing company came by and towed her car.”
At the conclusion of her post, Penny wrote: “My neighbour saw the car being towed and cursed me out. For literally parking on my private property because I own that house. AITAH?”
Many people flocked to the comments section to voice their opinions on the situation. One person wrote: “NTA. She shouldn’t have been parking there if she wasn’t handicapped. Do not feel bad at all, you did the right thing.”
Another commented: “It’s a signposted disabled spot, neighbor had zero business parking there. She should have been fined and towed.” A third added: “I would have her towed EVERY SINGLE TIME she parks in that space. Eventually she will learn you mean business.”
Another user asked: “How can it be that parking in her own driveway is less convenient than parking in front of OP’s house? Maybe I’m missing something???” To which Penny responded: “It’s because her driveway is an inclined hill or some bs like that. She just likes causing problems.”
If a neighbour is taking up your parking space, the first approach is typically to have a friendly chat to clarify the situation and request that they relocate their car. If this doesn’t solve the problem, particularly if the space is on private property such as a driveway, you may want to reach out to your local council or the police. For ongoing problems, it could be helpful to get in touch with your building manager or landlord or seek guidance from Citizens Advice or a solicitor.
