Did you know (roadside repairs)

[E270 Owner]

Heres something interesting.

It is Illegal, according to Mrs B Bobby London Borough of Bexley council Enviro crime Officer, to open your bonnet and check your oil at the road side, in fact all you are allowed to do is open your boot to place or remove items or the doors to gain access and drive away.

I was reported for changing a neighbours flat tyre outside my house, hence a letter from the councils Enviro Crime Officer Mrs B Bobby and my phone call to her that informed me I cannot open my bonnet to check oil water levels or make any top up or repairs at the road side.

They have other photographic evidence of my Mercedes bonnet being open some weeks ago and the wheel being changed on the Astra from a neighbour or themselves, they wont tell me who or how they got the pictures, but I have been advised to write in and request a to have them sent to me after they have consulted their legal team.

what the f88k is going on these days...............I know I have a ****** off neighbour who goes out of their way to upset me but I have lived with it for years as they have mental health problems so I just put up with ti but this is too much ......

I cannot open my bonnet to check oil or water outside my own house.

 

[Scott_F]

Tell the silly bint to do one.

 

[davidsw]

AA and RAC men must have a police record as long as the arm of the law !!

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Carry on doing it, get taken to the local station, tell the local/national press about it.

It would get thrown out of court.

 

[Druk]

There's something lacking there. Ask her if she's had any Bobby lately?


Ask a Bobby...https://www.askthe.police.uk/content/Q621.htm




.

 

[johnnyb]

Ms Bobby sounds a little mixed up. I suspect she has got confused with using your home address as a trading premises without permission.

 

[E270 Owner]

Ok

After pleasant phone call from Mrs Bobby after a chat with her boss, apparently if I write in claiming I'm not doing repairs for "gain or reward" they will keep this on record and inform the person doing the complaining.

So any advice on what the letters composition and content should look like so I cover myself from prosecution ?

Cheers.


http://www.theyworkforyou.com/pbc/2...ods_and_Environment_Bill/02-0_2005-01-18a.7.0

 

[camerafodder]

Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005
This might be helpful for you.

 

[johnnyb]

Just as I thought

 

[Sp!ke]

It sounds like you have an angry neighbor with too much time on their hands and a disliking for you.

It is a shame that the council didn't do any legwork before pointing the finger.

 

[Scott_F]

Ok

After pleasant phone call from Mrs Bobby after a chat with her boss, apparently if I write in claiming I'm not doing repairs for "gain or reward" they will keep this on record and inform the person doing the complaining.

So any advice on what the letters composition and content should look like so I cover myself from prosecution ?

Cheers.

I wouldn't waste my time and effort.


The onus is on them to prove that you have committed an offence and you haven't done so.

 

[st13phil]

I wouldn't waste my time and effort. The onus is on them to prove that you have committed an offence and you haven't done so.

While there is an attraction to that course of action it must be remembered that those people are in a position to make life awkward for the OP and be paid to do so. Much easier to respond to the complaint (perhaps using the word "malicious" in the text), and it being an end to the matter.

 

[lexman8]

I think Mrs Bobby is surplus to requirements if she's drawing a salary for this kind of nonsense.

Typical of local government. We pay for these people...

 

[grober]

I'm afraid I can see method in the madness. The legislation is to prevent people from using domestic premises and the street to conduct a car retail/ repair business. We have all seen drives filled with rotting hulks leaking god knows what on to the street-people being unable to park outside their house as the street is occupied by numerous traders cars in various states of repair-guys reving up engines or using angle grinders at 10 oclock at night keeping little kids awake-pouring waste oil down street drains-- the list goes on. Council staff are duty bound to investigate and act if they suspect such practices are going on. OK they sent the OP a "cease and desist" letter but its not exactly strong arm tactics? The real culprit here is the initial complainant who misled the council. The council were at fault in not carrying out "due diligence" in their investigations but were perfectly amenable once appraised of the true situation. The problem with such "catch all" legislation is that by definition it must be wide reaching rather than precise otherwise a sharp brief would wriggle their client off any environmental charges on a technicality.

 

[E270 Owner]

Thats my take on the whole thing grober.

I fell sorry for the Enviro Crime Officer who is only following legislation and acting on someone constantly phoning them up complaining, they have a "cover all" policy but they have taken photos themselves with a telephoto lens (I assume it was them someone in a black Nova was doing it caught on CCTV in our road) so they apparently have a record of "other" vehicles I have been working on.
I questioned this and they said "black Mercedes" (mine) and another incident 2 years ago when I was repairing a thumb sized dent in the wing of my 2009 Astra van they actually came out told me I cant do that (was rubbing down a little bit of filler) and I should have it stopped in the next 48 hours
I carried on and they left heard no more till today about this case file of 3 things over 2 years !!!!!

Still I will pop a letter off to them just to cover myself and request the photos they have on file are copied and sent to me.

Cheers

AA and RAC men must have a police record as long as the arm of the law !!

Apparently they are exempt.

Ms Bobby sounds a little mixed up. I suspect she has got confused with using your home address as a trading premises without permission.

They must have my registered business address as she mentioned something along the lines of bringing work home lol.











.

 

[EClassy]

I wish I lived in your neighbourhood. I have a similar but 'real' problem and it took the intervention of the local MP for the council to lift a finger. I have now reported the council to the Local Government Ombudsman and an investigation is ongoing.

A tenant in a block of flats has turned the communal car park area into a full time car repair workshop engine crane and all. Massive oil stains all over the grounds, old harzadous car parts disposed off in domestic waste bins and on the floor, oil tipped into drains & garden area and up to 10 customer cars parked on the grounds at any one time.

Picture and video evidence sent to council + several letters of complaint by other residents but I was told its private property so the council cant get involved. The sad part is there is nothing you are legally able to do. Thankfully in this case he is a tenant so as a last resort a possession order was obtained and we are now waiting for the bailiffs.

Whilst I am not saying you are lying and your neighbour may truly be a jobless curtain twitcher, this chap also started out repairing the odd car and no one blinked an eye. Before you knew what was going on, cars started turning up and taking up resident bays, children were 'banned' from playing on the grounds e.t.c.

The rest like they say is history

 

[Dieselman]

Perhaps the Council just has a blanket ban on cars being repaired on the street.

 

[Dieselman]

I wish I lived in your neighbourhood. I have a similar but 'real' problem and it took the intervention of the local MP for the council to lift a finger. I have now reported the council to the Local Government Ombudsman and an investigation is ongoing.

A tenant in a block of flats has turned the communal car park area into a full time car repair workshop engine crane and all. Massive oil stains all over the grounds, old harzadous car parts disposed off in domestic waste bins and on the floor, oil tipped into drains & garden area and up to 10 customer cars parked on the grounds at any one time.

Picture and video evidence sent to council + several letters of complaint by other residents but I was told its private property so the council cant get involved. The sad part is there is nothing you are legally able to do. Thankfully in this case he is a tenant so as a last resort a possession order was obtained and we are now waiting for the bailiffs.

Whilst I am not saying you are lying and your neighbour may truly be a jobless curtain twitcher, this chap also started out repairing the odd car and no one blinked an eye. Before you knew what was going on, cars started turning up and taking up resident bays, children were 'banned' from playing on the grounds e.t.c.

The rest like they say is history

LOL. How much for a clutch change on the Peugeot?

 

[Charles Morgan]

Having just signed a statement for a very nice council official about a flytipping incident witnessed by me, I can honestly see both sides. There are various entrepreneurial types living locally whose businesses cause an enormous nuisance, and without enforcement life would be far less tolerable. On the other hand, this is a nuisance for you, but just be even-headed about it, write a concise report and I think it will be fine.

My sympathies for having a loon of a neighbour!

 

[davidjpowell]

I wish I lived in your neighbourhood. I have a similar but 'real' problem and it took the intervention of the local MP for the council to lift a finger. I have now reported the council to the Local Government Ombudsman and an investigation is ongoing.

A tenant in a block of flats has turned the communal car park area into a full time car repair workshop engine crane and all. Massive oil stains all over the grounds, old harzadous car parts disposed off in domestic waste bins and on the floor, oil tipped into drains & garden area and up to 10 customer cars parked on the grounds at any one time.

Picture and video evidence sent to council + several letters of complaint by other residents but I was told its private property so the council cant get involved. The sad part is there is nothing you are legally able to do. Thankfully in this case he is a tenant so as a last resort a possession order was obtained and we are now waiting for the bailiffs.

Whilst I am not saying you are lying and your neighbour may truly be a jobless curtain twitcher, this chap also started out repairing the odd car and no one blinked an eye. Before you knew what was going on, cars started turning up and taking up resident bays, children were 'banned' from playing on the grounds e.t.c.

The rest like they say is history

Sounds very familiar! You on Pistonheads? If not you should have a look at a thread on there....