Is this legal?

Some homeowners have started to place large pointed stones outside the bounds of their properties onto the grass verge, which is clearly public property.

While I understand that during winter it turns into a muddy swamp from irresponsible drivers who don’t live there. However, this does mean car drivers who sometimes have to mount to the side in order to allow emergencies vehicle to pass can't do so.

Who fault would it be it the underside of the car got ripped in such cases?

Should the council get tough or just let it be?

The legalities of this aren't black and white. I would think that if damage was caused to your car (by hitting one of these rocks whilst getting out of the way of an emergency vehicle) you could be accused of driving without due care and attention - because you should have seen it. Also, I think you would find it very difficult, without eyewitness evidence, to prove who had placed the rocks there. That is not to say that I agree with this practice, on the contrary I find it really annoying.

You could always remove the offending rocks, but then you could find yourself accused of theft. :) Best course of action is probably to contact the local council/police and ask for there advice

I've noticed some areas of Sheffield, people have paint them white to make them visible at night. Others, simply cannot be seen and it seems that when you are in a traffic jam, your course of action is simply to turn in and so you can't see that they are actually there as you crawl along.

Originally posted by "John"

Others, simply cannot be seen and it seems that when you are in a traffic jam, your course of action is simply to turn in and so you can't see that they are actually there as you crawl along.

I know what you mean, just spoke to a friend and she told me that she actually damaged the passenger door of her car on one of these rocks - she had stopped to drop somebody off and as they opened the door it hit a "huge f**c*in piece of stone" (her words) and put a dent in the door. She was very annoyed - to the point that she got out her car, picked up the rock and "placed" it on the bonnet of a car that was in the drive of the house concerned, along with a note the contents of which I wont repeat...
Good for her, perhaps this is the best course of action to take :lol:

kinda does make sence tho, placing rocks there.

we dont do it personally, but it certainly stops idiots mounting the curbs and driving all over the grass, i saw a council van drive into a verge and it just sank, so it serves him right! :lol:

grass verges are council property and no member of the public has any right to put anything on them. If there is an ongoing problem with people parking / driving on verges, send a petition to the council requesting bollards be installed.

Perhaps some of the people who put stones on the verges are marking their territory.
Saying 'this is my land keep away' like hostile African tribes used to put their enemies heads on poles and stake them out around their borders.
I bet some of these people walk their dogs a few hundred yards along the street and leave dog mess on someone else's verge.

Or on the other hand they could just be caring people who want to keep the grass looking good.
:wink:

So this woman didn't see this "F*****g big piece of rock"
Perhaps she shouldn't be driving at all.

Originally posted by "royalscam"

So this woman didn't see this "F*****g big piece of rock"
Perhaps she shouldn't be driving at all.

Yes... quite.

What if that stone was a small child playing? Would she have gone and put an injured child on the car bonnet of the house she was outside?

:lol: :roll:

I think that a small child playing would be considerably more visible than a rock. I would also be asking the childs parents why he/she was allowed to play alone next to the road.

If you haven't got anything constructive to add to the discussion then maybe you should just stick to posting on your own website forum - looks like it needs all the visitors it can get :lol:

You can't really be telling me that only constructive comments are allowed here!?!

I guess I must've missed out the slightly overused geeky <sarcasm> and </sarcasm> tags :roll:

(Good point well made about my forum though... I know it sucks - but I do have a couple of friends! Honest... I do I tell you!)

Originally posted by "Tony Ruscoe"

So this woman didn't see this "F*****g big piece of rock"
Perhaps she shouldn't be driving at all.

Yes... quite.

What if that stone was a small child playing? Would she have gone and put an injured child on the car bonnet of the house she was outside?

:lol: :roll:

Seemed perfectly constructive to me. I'd be annoyed if I'd damaged my car on a rock but by the sounds of it if I'd been in the situation Party Boy's friend was in I'd only have myself to blame - it's just a case of not being careful enough. Why didn't she drop her friend off at the end of a driveway instead of next to a piece of grass (possibly muddy)? That does seem a bit inconsiderate towards her friend :wink:

Maybe the passenger wasnt really a friend and just an acquaintance!

Maybe she should have sat her friend on the car bonnet seeing as she rammed the car door into the innocent rock.

Dont the rocks have rights too??




Blessed are the cheesemakers :D

Originally posted by "brg"

Perhaps some of the people who put stones on the verges are marking their territory.
Saying 'this is my land keep away' like hostile African tribes used to put their enemies heads on poles and stake them out around their borders.
I bet some of these people walk their dogs a few hundred yards along the street and leave dog mess on someone else's verge.

Or on the other hand they could just be caring people who want to keep the grass looking good.
:wink:

I suppose they could Urinate on it to mark their territory just like in the animal kingdom. :wink:

The Rocks are not allowed. If I would have damaged my car on them, I would have been fuming and would have acted accordingly. What if someone trips on one of these rocks and smashed their skull? who is liable?

Possibly the silly sod for tripping on them. Watch where they're going, thats what I say!

As for damaging your car on them, try driving on the roads and not the verges. I damaged the underside of my car purely because I did not see the verge protecting rock. I felt extremely angry to the owner of the house (who I knew). Simple fact was, I was in the wrong. I didnt look hard enough, I just assumed that it wasnt there before and therefore wouldnt be there now.

I didnt have a God given right to park my car in front of their house and the grass verge so there you go.

Dont assume that you can park there, dont assume that there might not be an obstacle in your path, lets all open our eyes a bit more.

Originally posted by "JonHarrison"

Possibly the silly sod for tripping on them. Watch where they're going, thats what I say!

As for damaging your car on them, try driving on the roads and not the verges. I damaged the underside of my car purely because I did not see the verge protecting rock. I felt extremely angry to the owner of the house (who I knew). Simple fact was, I was in the wrong. I didnt look hard enough, I just assumed that it wasnt there before and therefore wouldnt be there now.

I didnt have a God given right to park my car in front of their house and the grass verge so there you go.

Dont assume that you can park there, dont assume that there might not be an obstacle in your path, lets all open our eyes a bit more.

Hmm , this is alot easier said than done for Young Children and Old Age Pensioners. Some of the stones I have seen are at the side of the road! you stop to drop someone off, they open door to get out, smash door on stone, damaged door. These stones are simply not necessary.

I say, if the verges want to get stoned... let 'em!

There are some of these stones painted white on the grass verge outside my mother in laws house. They were there when she moved in. Who put them there, I do not know, (Perhaps the previous occupant?) but if someone was to damage their car on them, then put the stone on her car bonnet, I know she would be less than pleased, as she had nothing to do with them being there in the first place, so I think this course of action was a little unfair to say the least.

My original post mentioned lives could be at risk simply because drivers were no longer able to pull up on a verge to let the emergency vehicles pass. This could easily happen in a traffic Jam where one or more cars cannot get out of the way.

Can one be done for manslaughter for holding up vital seconds of such vehicles indirectly?

Personally I find that grass verges are useless today and that they should be dug up for car parking spaces unless there is a tree there. The street would be much tidier and safer with less cars to weave in and out of.

And far less greener. Are we not proud of being one of the greenest big cities in the UK?

Is this not a knee jerk reaction because of a rare incident?

As for the emergency vehicles, unless you deliberately stop emergency vehicles performing their duty then I cannot see how liability would attach. How could you prove whether 1 minute would save a particular life?

Originally posted by "John"



Personally I find that grass verges are useless today and that they should be dug up for car parking spaces unless there is a tree there. The street would be much tidier and safer with less cars to weave in and out of.

You're not wrong there. I lived near a grass verge on Beaver Hill Road in Woodhouse. When they changed it to a car parking lay by a few years ago it had one or two cars on it at most. Now when I go and visit my folks it is almost always full.

Drivers should not mount the kerbs with their cars, it not only makes a mess of the grass verge ( an eyesore) it is illegal and also dangerous. I know I wouldnt want anyone parking their cars on the grass verge outside my house, I would soon report them to the council.

Some folks just dont care about anyone or anything, but isnt this true in all walks of life, litter, drunkenness, noise, filth, obscene language, yobish behavior, everyone else has to conform, but they are not going to, so I say lock them up untill they do!!!

Bradford council have passed a bylaw - £30 fine for parking on pavements and grass verges.

This is what is needed in Sheffield.

Does anyone here mount two wheels on the pavements/grass verges where they live?

I always park on my drive but it is quite common on my road to mount the pavements.

Buses pull up onto the verge outside my house all the time and its so annoying! If you see the mess it looks in winter, its just irritating. I drive, but I actually have consideration for other people, so dont drive onto the grass outside their house.

Im sure the people who are complaining probably either dont have verges outside their house, or just dont care whether their area looks a mess!

Originally posted by Mooseyb
Buses pull up onto the verge outside my house all the time and its so annoying! If you see the mess it looks in winter, its just irritating. I drive, but I actually have consideration for other people, so dont drive onto the grass outside their house.
cant you put a little pickets fence up??

Originally posted by Mooseyb
Buses pull up onto the verge outside my house all the time and its so annoying! If you see the mess it looks in winter, its just irritating. I drive, but I actually have consideration for other people, so dont drive onto the grass outside their house.

Im sure the people who are complaining probably either dont have verges outside their house, or just dont care whether their area looks a mess!

Is there a particular reason for the Buses pulling up on to the Verge?Double parked cars for example?

If they are doing it for no reason then you should complain to the depot,or put some white painted rocks on the verge!!

Originally posted by John
Bradford council have passed a bylaw - £30 fine for parking on pavements and grass verges.

This is what is needed in Sheffield.

Does anyone here mount two wheels on the pavements/grass verges where they live?

I always park on my drive but it is quite common on my road to mount the pavements.

Many streets are very narrow and houses were built before it was common for every family to have a car.

It's easy to say 'don't put two wheels on the pavement' if you have either wide streets or a drive - not so easy if you have neither.

It IS an issue - cars shouldn't be parked on the pavement at all, or on verges. Perhaps if it's not possible to create more drives for people to park on, we should concreete over parts of the verges to make them 'hard standing' areas for residents?

Joe

Originally posted by unners
Is there a particular reason for the Buses pulling up on to the Verge?Double parked cars for example?

If they are doing it for no reason then you should complain to the depot,or put some white painted rocks on the verge!!

We have quite a narrow road, with no off road parking. There has been a system for ages where people park on one side of the road, allowing all traffic to get past. There was never a problem and this never happened, till a year ago First decided to change the bus route to run down our road. That was a big mistake by First believe me. The two bus times often co-incide on our road, and its a nightmare - the verges look shocking and all visitors comment. They look like farmers fields after theyve been ploughed, seriously!

As for complaining, believe me, I know First all too well. Im a lawyer and have sued them on many occasions. They are the least approachable company I know, and as the verge isnt strictly my property (just right outside it) they would ignore me completely.

Time for some white painted rocks i think. :)

Guilty! I cut and edge the grass verge outside my house (and I've planted bulbs in it) I am not being territorial or attempting to annexe it as an extra garden. I'm trying to maintain my part of the street and keep it tidy.
I don't appreciate ignorant contractors and motorists ploughing up the verge that I spend hours on every year. I have therefore cemented painted bricks on the kerb and I'm not going to move them.

can kinda see both sides of this argument. I don't really think anyone is right or wrong.

Regarding parking partially onto the pavement. In my parents village it's done by everyone. The pavements are wide and you can park half off the road without stopping people getting past.
I've never heard anyone complain about it, and even the odd police car you see is parked like that.

Cars quite simply should not be parked on verges - it is nothing more than vandalism.

If someone damages their car parking illegally because they hit an ornamental part of the pavements greenery that they didn't see because they couldn't be bothered to look then it is their own stupid fault.

As for steering out of the way of emergency vehicles this is a poor excuse. The design is generally so that the grass verge is just short sections between drives, so the driver could easily pull into the hard bit at the top of the drive - they do not need to continue onto the grass (and will avoid damaging their suspension by bumping down the curb).

As far as parking half on the pavement I don't think this is so bad, as long as enough room remains on the pavement for pedestrians to pass safely (including those with wheelchairs or pushchairs).

The land that forms the verge outside homes doesn't, in most cases, belong to the householder. They aren't marking their territory, it's not their land any more than it's mine. However, it's not a crime. If the owner of the land has a problem with the rocks they would have to take it up with the householder.

However, taking the rocks and chucking them over the wall onto the householders car in protest would be a crime, and very satisfying. I imagine :hihi:

I remember that this started to happen in our village when I was a youth. I also remember the council removing them.

Although I'm not against them myself I believe the reason they where removed was if any injuries did occur they could take the council to court as it was on there land.

As an example how many times have you seen reports where somebody (usually youths) fall through a factory roof and is injured. They then claim from the company for not maintaining the roof even though they shouldn't have been there.

In regards to parking on the verges this is wrong but has other people have said it is different if you are getting out of the way of emergency vehicle.

What if you are driving down the road and a kid runs out. I don't think a plea of "I had to run over him or I would have hit these big stones" would work.

Originally posted by SlimboyFat
Although I'm not against them myself I believe the reason they where removed was if any injuries did occur they could take the council to court as it was on there land.

As an example how many times have you seen reports where somebody (usually youths) fall through a factory roof and is injured. They then claim from the company for not maintaining the roof even though they shouldn't have been there.


Believe me cases like this are a myth. Im a personal injury lawyer. They would never succeed. Its all something the papers hype up. The odd case slips through, then is corrected on appeal by the higher Courts. Same goes for the press favourite "criminal sent on holiday by courts". Media hype designed to cause a stir. Nothing else.

Originally posted by Mooseyb
Believe me cases like this are a myth. Im a personal injury lawyer. They would never succeed. Its all something the papers hype up. The odd case slips through, then is corrected on appeal by the higher Courts. Same goes for the press favourite "criminal sent on holiday by courts". Media hype designed to cause a stir. Nothing else.


You may be correct, I am not in a position to know. Just stating what I have read. ??

That practice is soooo annoying!! yeah ive seen people paint them white, but why??? so we can see the rocks that shouldnt be there anyway?? or to mark out there drives?? if its so hard to see then those people shouldn't be driving at night anyway!! last year my dads car got stuck on a rock, his was driving up our hill and it was really really icy and snowing and he tried to pull in to our drive and the wheels locked, the car slid backwards and on to a rock, now you might say that that is what stopped the car but this is a substantial grass verge that would have stopped him anyway!! he nearly had a heart attack trying to get the rock out from underneath the car!! next day another neighbour moved them for him and they were never put back.

I remember reading a while ago about the council ordering someone to remove flowers that they'd planted in the grass verge outside their home.

Does anyone else remember this?