Imagine parking in a customer only parking spot because, well, you are a customer.

Once you finished your shopping, should you immediately move your car, or is it okay to leave it parked there while you walk around the town for a bit?

In today’s story, one woman assumed it was perfectly fine to leave her car where it was, but it led to a misunderstanding that escalated pretty quickly into drama between the customer and the shop owner.

Now, she’s wondering if she messed up. Let’s read the whole story.

AITA for how I handled an accusation of parking in customer parking as a non customer?

Today I (31 year old woman) bought a piece of art in for framing to the local framers. I live in a smallish town. I have been a customer of them for years, doing much framing with them.

I paint myself but I also enjoy art especially since the pandemic and like to get pieces framed. I have gotten many items framed with them.

I parked in customer parking. I spent quite a bit of money with them that day- around $100. The woman recognised me and gave me a regular customer discount. It was also not busy at all, with several car spaces open.

Following paying I didn’t move my car straight away. I saw on my step counter I needed to get a few more steps in so I walked to the main section of town and grabbed some food before heading back to the car and leaving.

A man confronted her.

I was backing my car out and a man approached my car as I was backing out. I did not recognise him.

He started saying I wasn’t allowed to park there. He was quite hostile.

I told him I was a customer, and continued to back out in order to leave.

He started trying to get me to stop and try to stop me leaving. This made me uncomfortable.

The man wouldn’t leave her alone.

I told him to get away from me.

He was staying “hold on, hold on”.

I told him to “get the f away from me”.

I exited the premises but could see him in my rear view mirror. I want to be clear there were several parking spaces open.

You’ll never guess who the man was!

When I got home I called the Framer and told her a hostile man was bothering me outside her store.

She said it was her husband. She said he misinterpreted the situation and thought I was a non customer parked in customer parking.

She defended him saying that he wouldn’t have approached me rudely and I escalated the situation too quickly, insinuating her husband was targeted by me because he was a white man.

She defended herself.

I told her that her husband had not even asked me if I was a customer but immediately started throwing around accusations.

I told her I had told him I was a customer but that still did not seem good enough for him and he was trying to stop me leaving before I swore at him.

I did think it was likely he had profiled me because my car is not very nice but I did not say this.

I also said I wanted my money back and my art back.

Now, the woman is upset.

When I said this she seemed upset and wanted me to reconsider.

I said I was feeling upset about what happened and would think on it.

I ran into my mum in the driveway and asked her to pick up my art and get my money back.

She did this quickly and said the woman seemed flustered and a bit surprised and upset. I think she had thought I would go ahead with them but I was upset she had defended him.

AITA?

Wow! That escalated quickly. What started out as a pleasant trip to have a picture framed and get lunch turned into an emotionally charged argument.

Let’s see what Reddit thinks of this situation.

I’d be upset if I were the shop owner too.

The shop owner’s husband was completely out of line.

He could’ve been dangerous.

This person recommends never going back to that business.

That’s woman’s husband could cost her a lot of business!

If you liked that post, check out this story about a guy who was forced to sleep on the couch at his wife’s family’s house, so he went to a hotel instead.