Whilst it's entirely possible they simply don't give a flying focaccia, it's equally plausible that they are just completely unaware of the illegality and potential for Council parking fines, driving infringements/demerits (courtesy of VIC Police), or the implications for their vehicle insurance and at-fault responsibilities. Making them aware of this may well result in the desired behavioural change along with engendering some neighbourly good will.
Ultimately though, whether to have a polite chat or go down the SSS path probably depends on the sort of relationship you have with the neighbour in question.
FWIW, I have some similar personal experience with this....
A number of years back, my then-unregistered second car was parked on the street outside my place (which yes, I appreciate was a no-no). Anyway, someone anonymously reported my car to NSW Police as having been "abandoned". I only discovered this when I received a random call from the local constabulary advising me he'd done a drive by to check it out and whilst it was blatantly obvious to him - and, in his words, "any normal person" - that it was not abandoned, it
was currently unregistered and therefore technically illegally parked. He politely suggested that I move it onto my property because chances were the same person would report it again if it wasn't moved (and that would mean that he / NSW Police would have far less ability to exercise discretion), but more importantly, I was at significant personal risk in the unlikely event of someone colliding with my car. From the police officer's perspective, it was clear I was trying to park the car safely and had not abandoned it, but he wanted to make me aware of the risks so that I could avoid the potential headaches (and no doubt so he could avoid the inevitable paperwork and otherwise pointless need to do another drive by).
The point of my story is twofold -:
- It irked me at the time that some random resident anonymously reported my car to NSW Police as being abandoned. Anyone who was enough of a "local/regular" to have perceived the car as being abandoned was equally enough of a "local/regular" to know which house was attached to the driveway in which the same vehicle had been consistently parked for over 12 years, yet couldn't do me the decency of knocking on the front door to have a polite chat about their concerns. I understand they may have had their reasons, but it doesn't change the fact that I would have appreciated them talking to me first.
- More importantly though, had I been initially aware of the insurance aspect, I would never have left my unregistered vehicle parked on the street in the first place.
