"Do not park here" stickers

irlirishkev

Hey,

Those stickers that security guards slap on your car window if you're parked where you shouldn't be.. Does anyone know where you can buy them?

Thanks,

Kevin.

Sleipnir

You probably have to have them printed up. I doubt you can buy
them from a shop.

Someone stealing your spot

Mr E

Have you ever seen someone parked so badly that you'd love to have some "Shit Parking, Asshole" stickers made up (just in case). Especially plonkers who park across two spaces in a busy carpark with their 3 year old 'souped up' Honda Civics......

Fionn101

irishkev, make sure your entitled to use them , seriously , otherwise there is ether vadalism or litter abuse I'd reckon.

Tmb Nice generalisation, you know it's actually me in my honda, I follow you around and park badly just to wreck your head, just cause i drive a honda

/me wonders if you have the sixth sense we call humour ?
must resist Limerick generalisation.

irlirishkev

good point about being entitled to use them.. I should look into that.
To be honest I can't see myself using them.. it's a bit extreme..

Just annoying when you pay extra for a car parking space and some muppet parks in your space. It's not just that someone has parked in yours, you then have to p1ss someone else off by parking in theirs. I usually leave a note on my windscreen apologising though..

I'll probably just have a few ready made notes ready to leave on the offenders windscreen.

K.

alias no.9

It's illegal to put those stickers on car windscreens / windows. It used to be the practice in a place I used work, it soon stoped after the security manager was asked to check the legality of it. The clampers get away with using sitckers because they have effectively immobilised your car and remove the sticker when removing the clamp. If you have a private parking space, I suggest you invest in a clamp, put up a notice that any unauthorised cars will be clamped and hey presto you've got a new income stream and people who won't make the same mistake again.

Farls

Could you please quote a reference for "it's illegal to use those stickers" just asking because i had a big falling out last year with security at college over them. The college is short over 100 spaces a day and i used to park on the grass etc. like everyone else when we were starting late.

Anyway the security guard stopped me one day and gave me a bollocking about my parking, i explained the situation to him and asked why some cars never got stickers no matter where they parked. He asked for my name to report me, i told him not to bother that i was going to get the guards to do him for vandilism anyway. He soon backed down. I didn't know i was right tho

Cheers

Farlz

Bri

Really?

2 problems with that:
1) The clampers (UCD) left myself and 7 other cars a sticker on our car windows without clamping us (amazingly!) telling us this little parking area was not to be used again...All of us moved within a day or two (it's beside our apartments) and one guy left his car/didn't know and got a sticker a day until he got clamped. i.e. Our cars were not immobilised.

2) Liffey Vally rightly stick this signs on cars parked in the disabled parking bays at Ster Century - they don't clamp them and their signs are way bigger than a clampers notice. Infact they're the signs that you can barely peal off without leaving bits all over you window.

Unless they've stopped recently. The UCD crowd are a big company and that happened last week.

daymobrew

irlirishkev wrote:

Those stickers that security guards slap on your car window if you're parked where you shouldn't be.. Does anyone know where you can buy them?

Years ago I looked into buying these bastard-to-remove stickers. I found a company (name long forgotten) that sold blanks. You could simply print what you wanted on them. My plan was to stick them to cars inconsiderately parked around town, those that create dangerous scenarios for cyclists (i.e. me).
I was planning to put the stickers on the driver's window or windshield, not the lame place most security guards put them (rear side windows). Legal? I would have used the 'he started it!" defence.

seamus

It's only illegal to place these stickers in a position that would compromise the safety of the vehicle. That is, they should be capable of driving their vehicle away (safely) with the sticker still place. So, you may only stick the notice on the driver side rear window, nowhere else (because otherwise it would obscure the driver's ability to see).

Clampers are exempt for two reasons:
1) The sticker needs to be somewhere where it cannot be missed - if the person attempted to drive away while clamped, they could do serious damage, and the clampers would be in trouble - so the driver's window is the only place this is guaranteed.

2) While the clamp is in place, the vehicle cannot be moved, so the presence of the sticker doesn't compromise the safety of the vehicle.

My brother had a big argument where he worked years ago about this, because they kept sticking it on the passenger window (even though he was parked properly, but that's not relevant), and it was that annoying kind that never came off properly, leaving paper on the window after it was torn off. So they had to stop putting the stickers on the passenger window after the danger was pointed out to them.

Legal? I would have used the 'he started it!" defence.

If you had put them on the windscreen or driver's window, I'd like to see you arrested for such stupidity. (of course, I'd turn a blind eye if you stuck them on the driver side read window)

If a car is illegally parked, ring the Gardai. It's not your place to go sticking signs on people's windows in public places.

koneko

That sort of vigilante action actually has a special place in my heart
People really need to learn to park properly, and park with consideration for others. I'd love to just go around the city for a day sticking these on people's windows when they park in front of someone's door/entrace, on the pavement, or just generally blocking the way. It's the only way some people will learn.

Please not that... errr.... I'm not condoning this type of illegal behaviour of course.

daymobrew

seamus wrote:

If a car is illegally parked, ring the Gardai. It's not your place to go sticking signs on people's windows in public places.

My plan (which was not followed through), like most vigilante activities, was born out of the failure of the authorities to take action against these people.

These days I make calls to the Gardai every few days, reporting driving that poses a danger to me as I cycle to/from work. This morning I was cut off by two people (different locations) and one driver was on the phone. That latter incident was at a junction that the local Gardai told me they get loads of complaints from cyclists. But they don't do anything... what am I supposed to do?
I've written to the Garda Commissioner highlighting this issue (another junction has the same "we know about the problems" situation).

I firmly believe many people don't change their behaviour if they are not punished in some way. [Yes, my faith in other road users, cyclists included, is eroded daily - and yes, I'm a saint ]

seamus

daymobrew wrote:

I firmly believe many people don't change their behaviour if they are not punished in some way. [Yes, my faith in other road users, cyclists included, is eroded daily - and yes, I'm a saint ]

Vigilante action only makes people angry and pissed off at the Government for not catching vigilantes. Vicious circle tbh. Cyclists posting stickers on cars will only make more people defiant against cyclists.

Farls

Ok there's really a mixed feedback here.

Some people think its totally illegal to put these stickers on a car (unless the car has been clamped)

Seamus says its ok if its on the drivers near side back window?

Has anybody got a valid link to or know a law that states either of these to be true?

I'd like to know because i'm parked in a get a sticker place again today, even though i cause no obstruction to anyone. The only choice i had was park there or in a disabled spot and i think the latter deserves a clamp at the least.

Farlz

puntosporting

Id be interested to know the actual legislation on this too?
One question i have is it the law to have a warning sign in place that if you park in such a place you will get a sticker stuck to your car?

Farls

puntosporting wrote:

Id be interested to know the actual legislation on this too?
One question i have is it the law to have a warning sign in place that if you park in such a place you will get a sticker stuck to your car?

Very interesting point

weemcd

i would doubt that anyone who parks in the wrong places ie off limit areas or disabled spaces, would be put off by a sticker. these kind of fu*kers would only learn after a fine and/or clamping, it is narrow minded to think that a sticker would change these people's attitudes.

Stephen

Where I go to college there is a space about 3 car spaces wide for motorbikes to park. It has metal bollards in front of it to stop dicks parking their cars there, so said dicks just park across the bollards, blocking all the bikes in. Every time someone does that to me, the only way out is to drive the bike out over a slippery grass verge into a bus lane, so I always leave a note with something to the effect of "You drive like a ****ing idiot" on the car. Brightens my day. If i had those sticker things that leave ****e all over the window when they're removed I'd use those too

seamus

Had a flick through the Irish Statute Book (we have it in an info base here, so I could do quick searches) and can't find anything relating to notices on a person's car, clamping or whatsoever. Just bits and pieces about was does and does not constitute illegal parking, and the powers of wardens.

I'm guessing it may be a liability issue, or falling under another category. Putting up stickers that can only be removed with hard work and/or paying for cleaning could be construed as vandalism, or an accident being caused by placing one of these on the windscreen may land the person who put it there in serious trouble.

Anyone?

BrianD

I suppose it needs to be established if the stickers are going to be applied to vehicles in a private car park (e.g. college, business, hospital etc.) or in a public place e.g. street. I would say no problem on private ground but you might get into trouble if you do so on a public street.

daymobrew

I rang Fitzgibbon Street Garda station and asked if there were any laws dictating where stickers could be applied on a car. The Garda told me that there are no laws regarding where stickers are placed.
She said that the clampers put it on the passenger window (I thought it was the driver window) because their rules specify that.

I didn't ask what were the laws regarding who can put stickers on cars.

commuterised

http://www.imagesa.co.uk/stickersandlabels.htm

Kev, try this website, you can get a free sample too.

irlirishkev

Nice one, thanks!

I printed out a few polite 'please refrain from parking in this space' notes, to put under the wipers of the offending car(s).. so far it's done the trick. Probably gives the impression that the Management Company is clamping down.. or something..!

Kev.

commuterised

get yourself one of those yellow reflective vests when your'e putting the flyers/stickers on the car and then if anyone sees you doing it they'll think you're part of the facilities or something!!

Our man in Havana

commuterised wrote:

get yourself one of those yellow reflective vests when your'e putting the flyers/stickers on the car and then if anyone sees you doing it they'll think you're part of the facilities or something!!

A sort of pseudo security guard type disguise?

John R

seamus wrote:

Had a flick through the Irish Statute Book (we have it in an info base here, so I could do quick searches) and can't find anything relating to notices on a person's car, clamping or whatsoever. Just bits and pieces about was does and does not constitute illegal parking, and the powers of wardens.

I'm guessing it may be a liability issue, or falling under another category. Putting up stickers that can only be removed with hard work and/or paying for cleaning could be construed as vandalism, or an accident being caused by placing one of these on the windscreen may land the person who put it there in serious trouble.

Anyone?

I would say it would be a case of vandalism or destruction of property.

Causing an accident would be a big stretch, it is the car drivers responsibility to ensure safe operation. They are not forced to drive with the sticker obstructing their view, if they choose to drive the vehicle even though it obstructs visibility it is their responsibility to ensure road safety. If the vandalism was hidden that would be another matter.

Of course the real test would be a court case and as we all know the outcome of one of those is anyone's guess.

Victor

There are a number of levels of public / private place.

(a) Public road maintained by the local authority (e.g. ordinary road)
(b) Right of way where a person or persons may use a road as of right, but the road is in private ownership (e.g. a housing estate being developed, but not yet handed over to the local authority or a gated housing / apartment development)
(c) Private road used under contract (e.g. work place, multi-storey car park)
(d) Private road used under licence (e.g. hospital, college)
(e) Private road (private driveway, etc.)

With (a), only the Garda or authorised persons can tow, clamp, ticket, etc. a vehicle. Anything else can be construed as a criminal offence along the lines of larceny or criminal damage.

Parking against the occupier's* wishes under (b) through (e) are trespass - engaging in behaviour not permitted by the occupier and while primarily actionable in civil law, trespass can have criminal penalties of up to €3,000. As you go from b to e reasonable** means may be used to remove a trespassing vehicle. The further down the list, the more the law favours the occupier.

An occupier may not withhold the vehicle as such (there is UK case law on this, I am not aware of any Irish case law), however a warning notice about clamping / release fees (this is the normal term used), etc. is likely to sway the law in the occupier's favour and most certainly a court is unlikely to allow this rule to be used to allow the vehicle owner to commit fraud (by evading car park charges and by extension release fees).

An occupier is perfectly entitled to secure their premises, even if this denies a vehicle owner their vehicle. A vehicle parked on a locked*** premises may not be retrieved without permission and any attempt to do so could be construed as further trespass, criminal damage or breaking and entering.

* Occupier = the person in control of a property, whether as owner, tenant, etc.
** What a reasonable man would do.
*** It need not necessarily be "locked".