Snowy_Astra

founda letter on my door mat this morning from the council

I opened it and was absolutely gobsmacked, it was nothing but accusations from a housing officer who is just going by what a resident has told him.

Basically i got the astra back outside the house on my drive, and someone hascalled the council telling them i'm running a 'Car repairs business' which of course is rubbish, all i'm doing is rebuilding my astra, and i rebuilt the top end of the omega a few months back.

This is what the letter says:

Now that to me is an accusation, which i am now taking VERY seriously. All he had to say is:

Is there any one on here that can advise where i stand with this? I want to take action against the council for the blatant acusation. I don't like being accused of things i've not done.

Rich_w

Heres a suggestion.

Write them a polite letter explaining that you are only working on your own car, and that you can prove this as you have the V5.

Of course you could always start a fight with the council, as that will really help...

Šhatter Box

i have had this before as long as the cars are in ur name there are fuck all they can do if they was in other names and had lots of car on ur drive every week u would be fucked 11

Snowy_Astra

Its not the first time we have had dealings with the idiot that wrote the letter.

The first incident was regarding our stairway wall (which i might add is a supporting wall) was on the brink of falling down, and we wrote a 'polite letter' WITH a builders report, and the idiot wrote back saying all it needed was plastering.

So no, i will not be writing polite letters, because they get ignored and its an open invitation for them to screw us over. Our council tax is Ł100 PM, what do we get for it?

Alex, Cheers for the advice mate I'll look into that on monday properly

focusv8

Before you go over the top with the council you need to check your tenancy agreement to see whether you are allowed to "carry out work on your own car".
If you admit you are working on your own car(s) you may be making a mistake.

If the council keep getting complaints they might try to come at you with other threats (Asbo etc)
.

RWD_cossie_wil

iTrader: (9)

just burn the fuckers flat what a tool

AlexF

lol I had that too

deamand the name of the complianer and invite them roud to explain the situation lol

alex

Charlie Chalk

iTrader: (1)

Tossers!

CarismaDave

Can you not get the name of the complainant under the freedom of information act? You have a right to know I would have thought if it is malicious.

Mind you mate, don't get too arsey, they're only taking up what 'could' have been a fair complaint.

Zetecfiesta

i wouldnt be too arsey mate cause they can make your life hell if they want to, id recomend a firm letter instead or one drafted by a lawyer?

KSA-Cossie

iTrader: (4)

Find out who snitched and pour cockroaches through their letterbox.

Snowy_Astra

Very good point, We've been scanning through law books and have found a paragraph that shows he is 100% at fault for making allegations without evidence. Its something to do with a law set by the european court of human rights.

I'm not disputing the fact i am in the wrong for working on my car on council property. What i am moaning about is the accusations

Cheers for your input guys, Very helpful indeed. Will keep you all posted next week & let you know how i get on

ooooh just to add to this, if it ends up in court (which it probably will as we have a a previous complaint against the same man for being racist to my mother as she is french & he commented on it) then the name of the person who complained will be made available to us

I'm a true beleiver in the moto 'Live & let Live' but obviously there are people out there who've got nowt better to do. The car is covered with a special car cover, so when its on, it looks like a perfectly normal running car which is just covered over.

CossieRich

iTrader: (1)

Fuck sake Spence. Cant seem to do anything without nosey do gooders putting their nose in. what cock that bloke is for reporting you

xr-stu

im surpised we havnt had a similar thing thrown at us, weve got a garage and two car drive, but 5 cars and a bike :blub:

right this very second my stepdads outside welding up my sisters mini, ill be welding one of my fiestas up tomorow and the other firsta is on the drive in bits.....very fortunate our nieghbors havnt got pissed off yet

Carlsworth

well,.......



you will go running a small business from your house and not paying tax


mate of mine had the same,....hes got a proper kitted out garage, as he was a mechanic before he started teaching at the college, and now and again he helps his mates out by fixing their cars,..he doesnt charge labour, just for bits,.....

someone moaned, then council came down, and removed 2 of HIS vehicles for not having tax....although they are at the end of a culdesac on a bit of disused land next to his house

Snowy_Astra

I know mate, Perhaps its jelousy? Not because i own an Astra obviously, but perhaps because they had a shit life at my age and they don't want me enjoying myself.

People can be so spiteful sometimes, I really don't understand.

But something else has come to light also, When mum saw the letter earlier she mentioned the DVLA paying us a visit.

Basically DVLA matey comes round, all polite, top bloke and all that. Explained to us that he had a report from a civilian that the tax on the Omega was out of date by a month. We explained that we still havn't got the tax reminder form, so were unable to apply for tax.

Its DVLA's fault we havn't got the reminder slip, and they acknowledge that. But they are still getting the same person calling up reporting us.

I really can't understand what we're supposed to have done to the idiot reporting us for everything?! We are quiet people, no loud music, well tended flower garden front and rear, I sweep the path outside the house once a week, etc etc

I'm hardly 'The vilan next door', All the other neighbours come to me asking for help with cars + computers, Just wish the person who hates me sdo much had a chance to get to know how i am, they would have benefited from my knowledge and helpfulness towards my immediate community because thats the way i am.

NC53

Ask for details of the corporate complaints procedure. It is usually a three stage system i.e. complaint to line manager/head of service/chief executive.

If you do not get any satisfaction from the complaints procedure, once you have reached stage3 you can then complain to the Local Government Ombudsman who is independent from the Local Authority.

The Council will not release the complainant's details even if you make a FOI request as this information is confidential. A court could order the release of this info to you.

There may be covenants in your tenancy agreement which prevent you working on cars although I doubt that it will be so specific. It is more likely to say that you can't park boats/caravans etc or anything other than a private motor vehicle on the driveway and must not not do anything which causes a nuisance or annoyance to your neighbours.

Someone else mentioned an allegation of a car repair business on privately owned domestic property. The Council can take action under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 for a change of use of the land. However, you are entitled to repair your own vehicles and those of your friends and relatives within reason without there being a change of use of the land. Siuch activities are normally incidental to the use and enjoyment of the dwelling house.

As for cars being uplifted by the Council for being untaxed,
the power for this is in the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978. It applies predominantly to highways, although it can apply to private land also. if the vehicle is on the highway and appears to have been abandoned, it can serve a notice (usually 7 days or 24 hours depending on whether the car is in such a condition as to have no economical value). They can not uplift it until the notice expires. If it is on private land, they must serve notice on the occupier first. If they don' t then they are trespassing and also interfering with goods both of which are actionable in the County Court by the owner.

cheers

NEIL

dave cos4x4

iTrader: (5)

cannot even fix your car/cars now outside your own house.

Snowy_Astra

Neil, fantastic information there mate. You've jsut backed up what i read in law books.

I owe you a drink

big_wig_074

spence: i hope you are aware that french is not a race! so racism is out of the window,maybe xenophobic,but not racist.

James

how illegal is it to repair cars on the road outside the house assuming they have tax/mot/insurance etc just no engine for example?

filthyrichie

offer them a special rate on there sita stuff, bin wagons ect

angel 1

Know how you feel, we get it all the time. Had abit off welding to do on my own car and got reported to the council who then came out with the fire warden who then said "you have nosey neighbours and can you look at my car". As we don't charge the council couldn't do anything. Friends and neighbours all come to us for help n the cars, still getting it now but who cares. We found out who did it from someone else so we went round and had a quite word with him and found out that he was jealous because we have a nice house and car.
Who ever has done this to you sounds a right prick and needs to get a life.

evergreen72

I cannt even to do an oil change outside my place, i found out the hardway when some interfeering shite complained when i wa changing a flat tyre had council rep round reading me terms an conditions of my tenancy an Ł80 fine for an oil spill that was there even before i moved in!

Snowy_Astra

Cheers for all the comments Most helpful.

Council obviously think that cars don't need repairing

We are in the process of buying the house. Every one down the road is private and has been for the past 30 years, this is the only council house left.

If we buy this, then we can apply to get road humps etc and bring the standard of the area up a bit

Ah well, till then i'll just have to bite my tongue and take the shafting coucil is gonna give me

Snowy_Astra

UPDATE:

Short and sweet cos i cant be fucked to type.

Found out who it was (next door) He's a bastard. He grassed a woman opposite last year after she broke her arm and hip, because she used her hosepipe cos she couldn't lift a watering can.

Ironic really, as thats what i was gonna shop him for in the summer

Anyway, i've not said nothing to him (yet) but mum had a go at him.

Because of him grassing me to the council.....the council got guilty that they worngly accused me. So they gave me a garage IN MY ROAD! lol how cool is that!

He's been trying for ag arage for yeeeeeeeeeeeeears and never got one. But because of him, i got one.

Mum told him that, and thanked him........my god, his face was a picture i tell thee. his plan proper back fired on him

Anyway, Gonna roll the astra down there within the hour, its literally a 2 second walk from my front door, its dry, i can run an extension cable there, garage is big enough to mess about in etc

So, like i said.....what goes round, comes around....and once again, i am the victor not the victim

AlexF

Jay,

iTrader: (4)

paint his windows black in the night so when he gets up for the grassing hour he thinks its still night

if this dont work stamp his face till jaw is smashed and break hands to then no dailing or typing can be achieved

BlueSmoke

Greg Shepherd

nice one m8 least you gained out of it

Stu.H

result

Snowy_Astra

He's got it comming to him in the summer

A ton of grass on his driveway should suffice, I just hope he puts 2 + 2 together and understands why its grass and not shit on his drive.

Fudgey

iTrader: (4)

well done mate, now go and knock on the door and when he opens it, call him a C*NT

top result

andyt

iTrader: (1)

good work

evergreen72

Is it worth making trouble carry on, you have won if he causes more trouble do something otherwise it never going to end.

congratultion on the outcome

Snowy_Astra

Well, i still owe him one back. I'll call it quits after i've done my dirty business on his doorstep

Mike Rainbird

iTrader: (3)

I'd be singing "thank you for my garage, thank you for my garage, thank you for my garage" in a leary way every time I saw him . Really wind the fucker up, much better than doing anything that will enable him to grass you up AGAIN for .

You could even send him a thank you card to REALLY rub it in .

Kia_Breizzze

I don't think that's a valid reason for no tax

Road humps - you want road humps?
masochist