A woman was left furious after a driver parked their Mercedes across her driveway for more than two hours.
The woman, who lives in Southport, said the car had been "abandoned" while its owner went to watch a football match.
She was understandably annoyed at not being able to drive her own car from her driveway - but what are the laws around parking outside your home?
READ MORE: Mercedes driver explains why he parked across woman's driveway for two hours
It might be assumed that a quick call to the authorities would solve the issue, but homeowners are often faced with the news that a legal loophole means the act is not punishable.
The council cannot intervene if a motorist parks on someone else’s driveway because it has no authority over private property and cannot dictate or control access.
However, if the car is parked on a public road blocking a driveway, the driver is committing a parking offence.
In these circumstances, local authorities have the power to get involved and issue a fine to the motorist.
If a homeowner suspects the vehicle has been abandoned, their local council would be required to move the car regardless of its position on private or public land.
However, if the car has up to date MOT, tax, insurance and is not in a position where it could cause danger to anyone around, the council are again powerless.
What about if someone parks on your driveway?
While there is no criminal law against a stranger parking on a driveway without the homeowner's consent, a driveway is a part of private property so by driving on to it the unwanted motorist is committing an act of trespassing.
Trespassing is classed as a civil offence rather than a criminal offence, this means that the police do not have the power to make an arrest.
The only way courts would have jurisdiction to remove the car from the driveway would be if the homeowner decided to pursue a civil case for trespassing.
This would involve a solicitor from the homeowner’s side getting the civil court’s permission to find out the legal owner of the unknown vehicle and the court would then need to make an order to remove the vehicle.
Alternatively, the affected party could pursue a legal claim for nuisance behaviour. This would need to be on the grounds that the driver is interfering with the use and enjoyment of the property.
Homeowners should be aware pursuing action through the courts can be a long and potentially costly process if they do not have legal expenses insurance.
A spokesman for StressFreeCarRental.com told the ECHO : “Unfortunately, many homeowners stuck with someone else parked on their driveway are turned away from local authorities and councils as they have no authority to remove vehicles from private properties.
“Although this act can very often go unpunished, there are some things irritated homeowners can do to help avoid this problem happening to them again.”
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