Millionaires in 'trivial' war over 30cm of car parking space in Hampstead

A community of millionaires are at war in a “trivial and pointless” row over 30cm of car parking space, a court has heard.

The dispute in Hampstead has gone on for year and now involves bankers, art dealers, a company boss and a doctor.

Central London County Court heard how Andrew and Penny McSpadden and their neighbour Sheriar Bradbury have argued over the right to park cars outside their home.

The dispute escalated in 2013 when art dealers Mary and Yuval Hanina paid £1.45 million for the third house in the converted church development, as a buy-to-let for their doctor daughter Sophie.

The Haninas and finance company boss Mr Bradbury, 53, insist each house has a 2.4m wide parking spot. But the McSpaddens, who are both bankers, say the space is 2.1 metres.

Mary Hanina, 70, told the court that the way the neighbours currently park means there is not even enough room for a motorbike in her daughter’s space. “The tragedy is there’s enough space on site to accommodate parking spaces of 2.4m,” she said.

Sebastian Kokelaar, representing the Haninas, added: “The difficulty that arises is that, if the position is as the McSpaddens say, then there’s not enough room for all three cars to park conveniently.

"It would just about be possible for three professional drivers to park, but they would have great difficulty getting out of the car.

“It is simply not possible for three modern vehicles to be parked conveniently in the space the McSpaddens say was allocated.”

He claimed the McSpaddens have been trespassing by parking “in accordance with their mistaken understanding of the location of the boundary.

“Their continuing trespass has effectively prevented any meaningful use being made of Sophie Hanina’s parking space. It is physically impossible to use it when there is also a car parked in Mr Bradbury’s space.”

The court heard that when the properties were built in the Seventies, the deeds included three parking spaces side by side in front of them. At the time the area was enclosed by walls on two sides but one has since been demolished.

Mr McSpadden, 47, and his wife, 49, insist the parking area is the space between the inside of the original walls. However their neighbours say the width of the walls should now be included in the measurement.

Mr McSpadden said problems began in 2009 when cars in Mr Bradbury’s space began to squeeze out those in the middle: “The approach to parking came to be ‘take what you can get, what’s convenient to you.’”

But Gary Cowen, barrister for Mr Bradbury, 53, insisted his client was using the space he was entitled to.

“He purchased the property with the benefit of a parking space,” said Mr Cowan, adding that Mr Bradbury had the right to encroach into Dr Hanina’s space because he had done so for more than 20 years.

“Mr Bradbury considers this to be an especially trivial and pointless dispute, given that there is an obvious means of accommodating each party,” added Mr Cowen.

The McSpaddens are relying on the original deeds, which date to 1974, granting each house 2.1m of space.

The court heard the couple are also fighting their neighbours over use of a bin storage area which they claim is theirs exclusively.

However Dr Hanina and Mr Bradbury say it is the only bin store on the development and it must have been intended that they be able to use it.

The hearing this week, in front of Judge Nicholas Parfitt, continues.