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    Neighbor chains off shared driveway from new homeowner, claims he's "securing [his] property", tells homeowner to knock and ask for permission to access: 'This driveway situation was not his first attempt at this kind of thing'

    Soon after a new homeowner moved into their new home their new next door neighbor tried to lay claim to their shared driveway by physically barring the homeowner from entering it, forcing them to take drastic legal measures.

    If there's one thing in this life that is certain, it is that if you run into someone who wants to play games with you, you actually have the choice to simply not play it. 

    All too often, we feel the need to get pulled into their modus operandi, their way of doing and thinking, when we can simply just "Walk away." We get told this all the time as children, when we're dealing with a particularly persistent bad-actor on the playground, and regardless of how effective physically walking away is, the idea behind it holds true, you don't have to engage with that person and the problem they present in the way that they are presenting it, by simply countering them with something they don't expect you can usually beat them out by simply not playing by their rules.

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    • 01
      A long driveway between brick townhouses
      via Dan Burton
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    • 02

      My neighbor decided our shared driveway was actually just his driveway and documented the whole thing by accident

      i live in a semi-detached house, built in the 1970s, and the property has a shared driveway running along the side that both houses have legal access to. This is in the deeds, it was explained to me when I bought the place, it's not ambiguous. My neighbor on that side is a man I'll call Gerald who has lived there for about fifteen years and who, I think, had simply gotten used to having the driveway mostly to himself because the previous owner barely drove.
      via Au21ralith
    • 03
      A close up of a rusty padlock
      via Erik Mclean

      The image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

    • A few months after this homeowner moved into their new property which had a shared driveway that ran between his house and the house next door. They arrived home one day to find that the neighbor had put a chain across the driveway, claiming to have done so in order to "secure the property." The neighbor further demanded that the homeowner knock on their front door and request permission if they wanted access. This of course was not going to stand, and the neighbor quickly folded when the homeowner contacted a solicitor and had them send a pointed letter.

      It's surprising how often you hear stories like this, where long time residents, who have grown accustomed to twisting the lens of truth to suit their own wants and desires, try to pull a fast one on new residents, tricking them into thinking that some authority has granted them, and them alone, permissions that advantage them over everyone else in the community. Of course, a little digging or pushback will reveal the truth of these matters. They are, of course, relying on them not calling their bluff and luckily there are usually plenty of other neighbors around who are so sick of their games that they will willingly inform you of everything you need to know to do so. 

    • 04
      About four months after I moved in Gerald put up a chain across the driveway entrance with a padlock. Not across his half. Across the whole entrance. He left a note on my door saying he was "securing the property" and that I could knock if I needed access. I knocked. He seemed genuinely surprised that I had a problem with this and explained that he had been "maintaining" the driveway for years and felt he had more of a
      via Au21ralith
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    • 05
      claim to it. I told him about the deeds. He said deeds were complicated. I took photos of the chain, the padlock, and the note and sent a letter through a solicitor referencing the specific easement language from my title documents. Gerald removed the chain within 48 hours and has not spoken to me directly since, which I consider an acceptable outcome. What I did not
      via Au21ralith
    • 06
      expect is that Gerald apparently complained about this to several neighbors, which I know because three separate people on my street have approached me over the past few months to tell me what he said, and in doing so have told me things about Gerald's general behaviour that suggest this driveway situation was not his first attempt at this kind of thing. The neighborhood has been very informatve.
      via Au21ralith
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    • 07
      A close shot of a padlock chaining two fences
      via Jose Fontano

      The image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

    • 08
      joshisnobody Lol, i would have beat on his door between midnight and 5 am for a week. Something about night drives are just so relaxing in the spring
      via Au21ralith
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    • 09
      Au21ralith Original Poster's Reply i took the legal route but i respect the energy. the solicitor letter was honestly more satisfying than i expected so i think we both got what we needed
      via Au21ralith
    • 10
      halomender D in dude, thats a deep cut reference right there, nicely done.
      via Au21ralith
    • 11
      MrStormChaser Next times he's an a h le just be like- "Gerald, you silly man. You screwed up and then went looking for sympathy in the neighborhood and couldn't find any! Go find a hobby and don't mess with me because I'll match your energy with common sense."
      via Au21ralith
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    • 12
      RedHeadRaccoon13 "I understood that reference."/Cap
      via Au21ralith
    • 13
      doubleohzerooo0 This is awesome! Gerald wanted to talk sh about you to the neighbors, but instead he outed himself as the dirty rat he is.
      via Au21ralith
    • 14
      MacaroonGiggle_ lol yeah once someone's chaining shared property like that, you already know they're gonna be a problem not someone you wanna play games with.
      via Au21ralith
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    • 15
      Teamtunafish I have a funny feeling Gerald has tried his crop on them as well.
      via Au21ralith
    • 16
      2BBIZY We had a neighbor who "interpreted" our right of way deed and shared water well documents as a part of his bu ying behavior. Document ed everything! We put out security cameras. His antics were ridiculous and time consuming. The neighborhood bu y was playing all sorts of games with us and other neighbors. We hired a good lawyer and he was worth every penny. Finally, the bu y went through on his threat to sue us. He lost badly and received a reprimand from the judge. Within a year, that bu
      via Au21ralith

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