I'm parking alone....please don't park next to me!

[Zak33]

This is starting to get on my nipples now

Wherever I go to park in carparks I try to park away from other cars. I hate dented doors and scratches.

I also hate squeezing into or out of my car

So when it's empty....I park in the large empty part.

So why oh why oh WHY do people keep parking right next to me?
Are they so insecure that it's unconscious but they need company!?

On Tuesday it happened in motorway service area. I parked furthest from the building and went in. When I came out....someone had parked right next to me with hundreds of other empty spaces

This morning I parked in retail park at 8.55am. Deserted it was....I called two people while parked and in those 6 minutes I was closed in by two cars when the rest of the spaces were empty....and one of them had to squeeze out of his own car to get out!

And now...right now...leisure centre for swimming lessons for my boy....it's empty....50 spaces....4 cars....and I've now got cars either side!

What is wrong with everyone?

Look at yourself fellow HEXUS DUDE AND ASK....DO I DO THAT?

AND further....experiment...park like r do....away from everyone and wait nor your invisible magnet to kick in!!

[peterb]

Herding instinct.

[Ttaskmaster]

I ride a bike, so I park in the designated m/c bays... usually right next to the entrance!

[DanceswithUnix]

I hate dented doors and scratches.

Now there is your problem. I'm sure if your car was covered in dents people would park away from you

I know what you mean though, this has always happened, and I have never understood it either.

[UseItNow]

Zak33, I do the same thing mate!

It drives me nuts, seeing dings and scratches...

Been asking myself the same questions you ask for years now, pretty much given up on trying to figure it out.

[stevie lee]

I'm guessing you drive a nice shiny fancy car.
people are jealous and want a closer look, or do it out of spite, hoping you'll ding your door on their car. they think you have loads of money to be able to drive such a fancy car, so it'll be easy money/compensation for you dinging your door on their car and scratching it.

try it with an old banger of a car, no-one will park near it.

or, you might have parked in 'their spot' and they are getting revenge.

could even be doing it because its funny to them. I remember a behind the scenes video from F1 where all the drivers in the car park, tried to park as close as they could to each others cars without touching. closest was a few mm. I think it was Schumacher and Raikonnen who started it.

[kalniel]

Because someone that cares about their own car will try and avoid dinging theirs with it too

[Saracen]

....

So why oh why oh WHY do people keep parking right next to me?

Are they so insecure that it's unconscious but they need company!?

....

Because, and I'm officially surprised you hadn't noticed before now .... a worryingly significant proportion of people are idiots.

[MrComputerSaint]

I think it's the herding instinct also.

I park quite far away after someone made a dent in my car. I don't have a flash car. A Mondeo from 2003, but I don't want to make it dented.

Luckily I park far away from the other cars and most times I'm not followed.

[Knoxville]

Not only do I do the same thing, I tested it once....

I get to the train station quite literally before the bloke that opens it most days. I got tired of the double parking and messing about that goes on (there are people that show up early and preemptively double park or make up their own parking spaces I kid you not) so I started parking here -



Little patch of scrub ground and concrete that virtually nobody can use, blocks zero access and keeps folk away from my truck... Brilliant.

Less than a week after I adopted my new space a Freelander got in on the act and started parking to the left of me. So close I can only imagine he used to exit through the sun roof. Then the hatchbacks started using it, even though they left some hefty scrape marks every time they did.

So, I gave up my little space and started just picking a proper at random in a morning.... Low and behold nobody but one National Rail van has occupied that little patch of scrap ground since... The mind boggles!!

[KeyboardDemon]

My strategy is to park at the end of a row so there is only one space next to my car, ideally I prefer it so that my door opens away from that space, however I also prefer to be facing out of the space so I can have maximum all round visibility when I pull out of the space instead of having to back out of a space not knowing if it is safe for me to do so, my ideal parking space is a space where I am in the right most position in a row, and backed up to a fence/verge/footpath, so nobody can park behind my car.

[GoNz0]

My strategy is to park at the end of a row so there is only one space next to my car, ideally I prefer it so that my door opens away from that space, however I also prefer to be facing out of the space so I can have maximum all round visibility when I pull out of the space instead of having to back out of a space not knowing if it is safe for me to do so, my ideal parking space is a space where I am in the right most position in a row, and backed up to a fence/verge/footpath, so nobody can park behind my car.

I try to do the same when not using the parent and child. I drive a 17 year old BMW and often find another BMW next to me or other German staff car when I do the away from the rest routine. I have to adopt this due to having a coupe with bloody great doors that have windows that add another 6 inch to the length.

[Zak33]

it needs a university inverstigation..really it does

Knox... your idea proves it...

you think RIGHT outside the box.. and someone even manages to ruin THAT idea

Saracen is right... far too many idiots!

[TheDutyPaid]

A few years ago I had a brand new Astra which my first drive was to the east coast, Frinton Getting down there I went to the new (at the time) Tesco's in Clacton not wanting to park next to them old cars with doors opening I went to a far corner of the "new car park" hey I did not not mind a walk. parked my car facing 8 foot a chain link fence with a wooded area behind. On returning to my car, which was 2 days old, I noted 3 kids on the other side of the fence run off. Did not think much of kids playing in the woods. Jumped in to my car and saw dirt on the window, jumping out I found the little S@#t's had thrown over the fence 3 football size dried lumps of clay. two big dents on the bonnet and one of the roof.

£300 pound insurance claim then probably hirer price for ever later my car was fixed. but to this day I still will drive around car parks thinking about what if's

If you want to park alone don't park too far away
If you must park next to someone, check to see if there is a child car seat in the back, mums bum knocking the door into yours as they strap little Johnny down is not good

One thing I have found, If you park dead in the middle of the space but turn your wheels to full lock, no one will park next to you.

[TaintedShirt]

A new car to Frinton! An area known for parking by touch.

[Noxvayl]

it needs a university inverstigation..really it does

Knox... your idea proves it...

you think RIGHT outside the box.. and someone even manages to ruin THAT idea

Saracen is right... far too many idiots!

Nope, just people wishing to be as clever as Mr Knowville

I honestly think it can be simply explained by people agreeing that your idea was good but failing to recognise why you did it. Humans, weird complex things that astonish themselves.

________________________________________________________


Psychology is weird:



I was looking for something else but found this, sort of relevant I guess. Funny though so worth watching anyway

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqxUH8bpbh0