Parking your van outside your home: what you need to know

Parking a commercial van in a residential street

At first, it sounds like a silly question – why on earth wouldn't you be able to?

But while you might assume that parking your van outside your home is a simple necessity, other factors often come into play. Here's what you need to know about parking a commercial van in a residential street.

Neighbours. Vans can be viewed as an eyesore by neighbours, often due to their size and any signwriting that may be adorning the exterior. Also, if they haven't been parked particularly sensibly, they can block someone's view as they pull out of their drive. So try to make sure you park in a way that couldn't reasonably be considered a nuisance. Parking partly on the pavement, for example, could stop someone with a pushchair, pram or mobility difficulties from getting past.

Tax and insurance. If you're driving a company van, you should check with your employer that their tax and insurance allows you to park it at home overnight. If it's your van, you'll also need to make sure your insurer allows you to do so – you should have been asked where you parked the van when you took out the policy.

Parking restrictions. If there are parking restrictions on your road, make sure you comply with them. If you need a permit to park, it's possible that it will only cover a car, not a van – or it may only cover a van if you own it, which won't be the case if it belongs to your employer.

House rules. If you park on your drive or in your garage, check your house deeds to make sure there are no covenants or planning restrictions forbidding the parking of commercial vehicles in residential driveways. This is rare but is the case on some new estates.

Pitiful parking. The Highway Code says you should park facing the same way as the traffic, and not within ten metres of a junction. Leave extra space if you park next to a car with a blue badge, as the driver or passenger may need more room to get in or out.

Leave a light on. When it's dark, if your van weighs more than 2,500kg, you must leave its sidelights on when you park. Any vehicle parked on a road with a speed limit of more than 30mph also has to have its sidelights on in the dark.


Knowing all this now you are ready to go on a hunt for your next van. Check our available stock for many different types of pre-owned commercial vehicles.
Panel vans, minibuses, pick-ups, and tipper vans from the biggest makes are all available at great prices.

If you'd like to test drive one of the used vans for sale, have a look at our website to see what we have for you, and call us at our Essex dealership on 01279 216163. Ask us about our vans on finance and van contract hire offers too.