Why is backing into a parking space suddenly offensive?

I have noticed that and it’s really dumb. Unless you are in a lot that requires a tag or sticker to be seen right away, I can’t think of why. Being a small, silver haired lady, large, middle-aged white men feel it’s their duty, or their god given right to criticize how I do anything (including backing to a space).
As a young woman, I got into the habit, quick getaway and all.

We have parking spot downtown that you have to back in to park ===> > Like This

Who issued the warning and what did it say?

Without more info, this appears to be the kind of asinine edict you’d get from an HOA.

From what I just Googled, the objections are similar to those about backing out of a spot.

I hadn’t noticed that. In fact, most people living in my neighborhood back into their spots but I do not. I’ve never been good at backing up my vehicle and getting within the lines, but I’m perfectly comfortable with backing out of a space. I don’t mind if people back into their parking space, unless it takes an incredibly long time for them to do so, while they’re holding up other people from getting by them.

Same as @canidmajor. Other than needing to see your tag, I don’t understand the objection.

I would just ask them?

I’ve seen a few social media posts complaining about people backing into parking spots. Fortunately, most comments in these posts are people educating them about how cars work, turning ratios (some people aren’t even aware that only the front wheels turn), etc. Objectively, backing into a parking spot is safer for everyone. Once people understand the physics behind this, they’re usually ok with it and wonder why they don’t back into spots as well.

If the parking spots are parallel to the curb, then we MUST fight to avoid succumbing to this insanity!

In the apartments I’ve lived in they don’t “allow” you to back in because it takes up a lot of the grassy area and prevents mowers from doing their jobs easily and competently. In the summer they mow once a week and use huge mowers that they sit or stand on, not hand pushed, so they have to go around these cars, which leaves uneven grass when the car is moved. When prospective renters come to take a look it looks crappy and unkempt. As far as I know, that’s the only place where they disapprove of backing in in my city.

@smudges
Oh ok I see. Large trucks will do that, although I’m just in a sedan.

It’s completely understandable, I have out of state plates, so they were probably just being cautious/curious as it’s a smaller town.

Thanks for the answers, guys.

I always back in. Never heard of it as offensive.
It is common sense because there is more to go wrong when backing out to leave, than when backing into a spot between cars.
I also grew up in an area of the country that gets a lot of snow. Much easier to pull straight out in any scenario.

Only if It is a Tesla.

In a very busy parking lot backing in can take more time and hold up traffic. Obviously, you pull past the space and then back in, rather than just turning into the space.

Also, if it is a high theft and vandalism area, maybe they want to be able to see the plates. Although, if there are video cameras on the lot they can see the plates as cars drive in, so I don’t think that should matter. Maybe it depends how the cameras work and the angles they can see.

Florida actually has a law (or used to, it might have changed) that license plates must be visible at all times, but we have parallel parking in many places, and to me there is no difference between parallel and backing in, in terms of plate visibility, except if backed in where an officer might have to walk into bushes or brush to see your plates that would be inconvenient.

I don’t back in, but I do pull forward to the next space so I essentially wind up parked backed in. Pulling through like that is technically considered dangerous and not the right way to do things in a parking lot, but I do it a lot, and it is rarely in a full lot or very busy lot, so it is easy for other drivers to see what I am doing.

Edit: plate visibility would be less of a problem in a front plate state, but many states only require back plates. I think the traffic flow and possible accidents are more the problem.

I can’t back to save my life, but even so, I don’t believe that backing into a narrow space between two parked cars is safer than backing into the parking lot.

I pull through when I can. Sometimes it’s not possible because there are curbs between the rows, or sign posts, so it’s not possible.

Some lots are tight, and backing in is slower and with impatient drivers looking to pass, it would be cumbersome and time consuming. I’m thinking of the Costco I go to a lot. Tight rows, and only if it were slow, which is almost never, would it be do-able. There’s another Costco I go to where the spots are angled, so the rows are every other row. The spots are in the 2 o’clock posiition and the 10 o’clock position, so it would be impossible to back into them because when you pull out, you’d be facing the oncoming traffic.

In lots where backing in is do-able, I’ve never heard anybody say don’t do it. It’s way easier to pull out, forward than backing out.

On more than one occasion, when backing out of a spot, the person in the row behind me was backing out too, and if I didn’t see them backing out and quickly pull back in, we would have collided.

I also am curious who told the OP not to back in and what the reasoning was .

@jca2 A friend of mine was in a crash when she was backing out and so was someone behind her at the same time. She was surprised her new car didn’t beep telling her a car was there, because her car alerts her when any car is nearby usually. I thought maybe she just didn’t hear the beep, maybe she was distracted. We could tell from the hit the other woman hit my friend. A few weeks later I was backing up and I luckily noticed someone behind me was pulling back and my car did not alert me. Something with the angle of the cars I think.

Parking lots can be treacherous.

One time, about ten years ago, it was snowing pretty hard and I was in a supermarket parking lot, backing out. There was a lady in a wheelchair/scooter thing, coming along and I didn’t see her because her head barely was higher than the trunk of my car, and I started backing out. She cursed me out. What a disaster it would have been if I hit her, because I would automatically be wrong, since I was in a car and she was not.

Usually when I back out of a spot, I put my windows down and I shut the radio off, so if anybody is yelling, I can hear them.

Another time, in a parking lot, I was pulling through and didn’t realize there was a curb in front of my parking spot. I was in a low car and it got stuck on the curb. It was very embarrassing.

January through March I avoid the grocery store closest to me from 10am to 6pm primarily because of the parking lot. Also, the lines are long, but the parking lot is ridiculous. Between cars and pedestrians it’s treacherous to back out of a parking space. All year it’s much better to shop late, but high season especially.

Some places give you a parking permit sticker that goes on the rear bumper. They insist that you park head in so that their parking officer can see your sticker in the back.

Context is everything. There are a number of places that I go to around here that have parking laid out in such a way that it is more dangerous to pedestrians to back out of a spot, I would prefer to bump another vehicle than a soft little organic person.

@jca2
It was the apartment complex that left a note on my car of their parking policy, specifically highlighting (with highlighter pen) a printed out piece of paper the bullet point that said not to back into parking spaces, but didn’t specify why.

Keep in mind, there are other cars backed into spaces.

@Blackberry now I’m very curious. Can you call and ask them why then come back and tell us??? Please please please…

There is every reason to back into spaces and I have done it for my whole life. The insurance safety folks along with about 10 other outfits including the national safety say to always back into a space. Backing up, particularly out of a parking space is very dangerous and one of the places most crashes happen, as well as pedestrians are hit. A policeman once backed out of a parking space and t-boned my brand new car. The company I worked for required us to back into driveways 100% of the time if driving a company car or driving for a company purpose. I don’t know why it would offend anyone other than someone walking behind cars which is part of why we should not back out of a space.

If you’re not good at backing up, then it is definitely not safer to do so, and I’ll argue with any insurance company on that. Plus, I have a 13-year-old car, and even that has a rear camera that comes on when you’re backing up. I have no problem with people that want to back in but this is what gets me kind of hot and bothered, that everybody assumes that if you’re not backing in, you’re not being safe.

Pick-up trucks seem to like to back in the most of all drivers, and next in line are men in general more than women. That is what I observe. I used to back in more when I was younger, but now it is too much effort when I am parking. Part of it might be personality. What I mean is whether people tend to run late getting somewhere or if they have a lot on their mind when they arrive somewhere than when they are leaving.

People tail gate in busy parking lots, so if you pass the space to back up, the guy behind you is already taking the space or, so far forward that he has to back up to let you back up, and all of that backing up is less safe.

The best is probably having spaces on the diagonal and then traffic is one way and easy to park and back up. You just can’t pull forward in that case, which I do like to do.

One great thing about where I live now is the spaces are wide and long. Especially the width is so nice, usually 9 feet. A lot of cities it is 8 or 8.5. It’s the difference between having to be super careful getting in and out of your car or not.

@Blackberry If the apartment complex gives you a resident sticker that is required to be put on the back of your car, then I could see their logic. If not, then I’m curious what their reasoning is.

@jca2 See my first answer. Our parking regulations say not to back in, but so many do.

@JLeslie I agree about pick-up tucks doing it the most, usually they’re driven by men, which is second on your list. I often wonder if it’s a macho thing for some odd reason. Big Man, Big Truck…uggg! My sister drives a Tahoe and is one of those people who wait right until they’re on your bumper before stopping, not purposefully, just how she drove. She lived in Houston for ~20 years and I told her that people don’t like that and she’s going to get shot one day.