WIBTAH if I stopped strangers, neighbours and kids using my garden as short cut?
My fiancé and I bought our house a year ago and our garden backs onto a large public car park. The play park, community centre, bus stop and the towns super market are all off this car park.
The train station is just down the street at the front of our house as well.
Now our home was empty for three years before we moved in so people have been walking through our garden (fully fenced and gated at both ends) as a short cut. Otherwise you have to walk down the street and basically around an entire block of houses.
Now ultimately... they're just walking through. Thats it. Yes there is occasional litter left in our garden but they're not doing any real harm.
Part of my thinks whats the big deal? Let them cut through, But the other part of me is like thats our private property that we have paid for.
We have four children between 7 and 13 and if they're playing in the garden I dont want random strangers just walking through.
So would I be the asshole for locking the gates either end of our garden to stop people? Or am I just being possessive?
EDIT: I am in the UK. I am very highly unlikely to get sued by a trespasser hurting themselves because there are no obvious, out of the ordinary, already known dangers in my garden.
From what i have seen, it's mostly children/ teenagers but I have seen adults 2-3 times as well. But im not always home or looking out the window.