'My neighbour won't stop using my driveway – I think she's taking advantage'

Doing a good deed for the people next door can sometimes backfire, as one woman found out the hard way.

We've all been there - hopping across to help out our in a pinch, whether it's keeping their plants alive during a vacay or handing over that elusive screwdriver for a DIY emergency. It's part of the unwritten code of neighbourly love.

But one lady's generosity has bitten her back. She reckons she's being "taken advantage of" after a friendly favour turned into a driveway dilemma.

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She took to to share how she let her neighbour on a temporary basis - but now the cheeky neighbour seems to think she's bagged a permanent spot. Their 'brief' parking pact looks to have parked itself indefinitely.

Her neighbours have space for three but own four motors. On the flip side, the woman and her hubby have a two-car driveway with only one car to their name. So, out of the kindness of their hearts, they let the neighbour's extra set of wheels squat in their spare slot.

But despite it meaning short-term, just while they sold one of their surplus cars, it hasn't turned out that way.

The woman wrote: "Their son was in the process of selling his car and moving abroad, so my husband and I, trying to be friendly, said that they were welcome to use the space on our drive to park one of their cars until the son sold his car. They were extremely grateful, so for the past five months, their daughter has been using our drive."

But recently, the woman's hubby clocked that the family had sold the motor - yet the daughter's still parking on their patch instead of her own. The pair aren't fans of a fuss, so they're not keen on kicking up a fuss over the parking spot, but they're after their space back as it's been a bit of a bother when they've got guests.

She continued: "We were hoping she'd just take the initiative and do it herself without us intervening. Neither my husband nor I like any type of confrontation (yes, I know it's silly), so the fact we now have to speak to one of them to ask to get her car moved off our drive is daunting.

"I appreciate it's not a big deal as we rarely use the drive, but when we have visitors on occasions, they struggle to park, and it's the principle of being taken advantage of."

Other Reddit users understood the couple's wish to dodge drama, however many reckoned they had to make it clear to the neighbours that the parking arrangement was never meant to be "permanent solution".

One individual suggested: "You go over to their house, you politely say, 'Hey, we noticed that your son sold his car. Now that that has happened, your daughter needs to park in your driveway. This was not a permanent solution, thank you.'".

Another user agreed, saying: "You did them a favour, and it's past due that they stop using it. You need to tell them and communicate. This isn't something you need to feel guilty about, and you don't need to appease them."

Some people recommended that they park their own vehicle in a way that blocks both spaces, so the neighbours "get the hint" that it's time to make alternative arrangements.