Bee poop on neighbours cars.

[idg]

Where do I stand?
Bees are on my land and have been for about 5 years. A neighbour has had a new car. The car gets spatted with bee poop. In previous years this hasn’t been a problem but the new car has prompted her to complain. Not knowing what was causing the marks she has called environmental health. They have told her it’s the bees. The hive is 40 - 50 yards away.
Where do I stand with this. She has asked me to move the hives but this cannot be done easily.

 

[Ian123]

She can’t prove it’s your bees you stand your ground if you wish.....just go have a look scratch your chin take a sniff and say that wild bees or bumbles not mine

 

[Stiffy]

Where do I stand?
Bees are on my land and have been for about 5 years. A neighbour has had a new car. The car gets spatted with bee poop. In previous years this hasn’t been a problem but the new car has prompted her to complain. Not knowing what was causing the marks she has called environmental health. They have told her it’s the bees. The hive is 40 - 50 yards away.
Where do I stand with this. She has asked me to move the hives but this cannot be done easily.

Tell her to either move her car, find a garage to put it in or put a car cover over it. I doubt she would be able to prove it was your bees or legally get your hives moved. She may also never speak to you again, blessing or not.
Think she is lucky, my wife’s car is regularly splatted with wood pigeon poop roosting above it or covered in pollen early spring!
S

 

[Wingy]

Ask her to point out the guilty ones and you will advise them accordingly as it’s unfair to blame them all due to the actions of just a few. If she can’t pick out the guilty ones how can she be sure they are your bees.
I have used this approach before where the problem was bird poo, I kept racing pigeons so obviously it was my pigeons causing the problem not the feral street pigeons that one of the other neighbors was feeding further down the road

 

[Beefriendly]

Diplomacy suggests you might offer to pay for a "car wash" and donate a few jars of honey.
Best to get the stuff washed off before it dries....

 

[Murox]

Where do I stand?
Bees are on my land and have been for about 5 years. A neighbour has had a new car. The car gets spatted with bee poop. In previous years this hasn’t been a problem but the new car has prompted her to complain. Not knowing what was causing the marks she has called environmental health. They have told her it’s the bees. The hive is 40 - 50 yards away.
Where do I stand with this. She has asked me to move the hives but this cannot be done easily.

I do not imagine there is any real evidence supporting the environmental health claim. Did they take samples from her car ? have you been given real proof? Check your bylaws re keeping bees. Is the property a new build ? - the bees were there before she bought the house ? (Its a bit like moving house next to a working farm and then complaining about the smell from cattle s**t and so forth) Perhaps she will help pay for the cost of moving the bees and the cost of rental for new ground etc.

 

[Ian123]

If you start offering to pay for stuff you are admitting it’s your bees, to be honest much depends on your existing relationship with them. If you’ve not spoken to them before and you have sighted hives a reasonable distance from the other property then I would stick to your guns

 

[Beefriendly]

If you start offering to pay for stuff you are admitting it’s your bees

Who else's bees would they be?
Come on.... it's a fair cop!

 

[GuyNir]

Really depends on what current relationship you have with them and what you want it to be post this complaint.
Different approaches can be used based on the above...

 

[For want of a better word]

Treat her with the contempt she deserves.

Had a similar problem with Mr Auto-Glym a near neighbor.***

I wonder why he did not get planning permission for a house extension ?????

What goes around comes around.

***We moved bees from our 1 acre orchard...... because he chopped down a beautiful old oak and opened up a flight path for the bees early morning constitutionals onto his nice shiney white van!!

 

[Beefriendly]

Treat her with the contempt she deserves.

What world do you live in?
Car covered in bee shiite and "treat her with contempt".
If someone did a Richard the third on your land-rover front seat....bet you'd have a few issues about it....but hell he/she had to "go" somewhere.

 

[Summerslease]

You are either a good neighbour or a bad neighbour. Your decision will determine your next step. If you want to live in a ****** neighbourhood then be a ****** neighbour. If you want a peaceful life living in an area where people are nice to each other then be nice to your neighbour. The offer of honey and possibly a car wash suggested by a previous correspondent would be my way forward.

 

[mazzamazda]

It amazes me sometimes when I see the defensive replies. In PT there is a rule and I actually think it is a good one, no beehive less than 100 metres from any house, walkway or road, not only good for people being stung and could be allergic but for this case too. How would some of you feel if the neighbour's cat took a dump on your car, bee crap isn't the easiest thing to remove either.

I would move them as further problems are more than a probability.

 

[GuyNir]

Diplomacy suggests you might offer to pay for a "car wash" and donate a few jars of honey.
Best to get the stuff washed off before it dries....

I’d personally respond as above

 

[coffindodger]

Many years ago I worked in Environmental Health and had a complaint of spots on washing and shed. We identified it as bee poo (it was late winter/early spring so guess cleansing flights). I went to see the complainant who was very angry - on the basis that she was a biology teacher and knew that it was from industry and we were covering up for the offenders.

 

[Antipodes]

Is it a white car by any chance? White seems to trigger the "release". I wonder if you were to spread a white sheet on the ground in front of the hive it might encourage earlier frass release?

 

[Swarm]

It amazes me sometimes when I see the defensive replies. In PT there is a rule and I actually think it is a good one, no beehive less than 100 metres from any house, walkway or road, not only good for people being stung and could be allergic but for this case too. How would some of you feel if the neighbour's cat took a dump on your car, bee crap isn't the easiest thing to remove either.

I would move them as further problems are more than a probability.

It's a point yes, but complaining about seedlings being dug up and ruined and disgusting feline deposits left in my borders always seems to fall on deaf ears.

 

[Show me the honey]

This is why my hives are secret. Bee poo... what’s that’s?

And if she owns a cat ask her to come clean it up. Vile predators

 

[Show me the honey]

And while We are on the subject I don’t asked horse riders to pick up the mess they leave outside my house I just get on with my life. It does smell and I do run it over but I live in the country that’s life

She should be lucky that it’s all she has to moan about

 

[oliver90owner]

The problem, if it was your bees, has already gone away with the colony now well cleaned out and active. There may well be other colonies close by which are not so visible as yours.

All assuming they haven’t got dysentry!

Pass by each day and inspect for new droppings. I doubt there will be any. Look around for other colonies - chimneys, walls, etc. Did your car have a problem? Likely it is not your bees.

Don’t necessarily roll over like one p—-t on here. Make your own mind up. Might be from your bees, but there again, it might not.