Disabled Parking

[securespark]

Sat waiting in a retail park car park for half an hour today.

In that space of time, three cars came and parked in the disabled bays without displaying blue badges.

One scarpered before I could get a pic.

 

[LastMagicBean]

There's some p*ss poor parking in the background.

 

[seco services]

If they can walk around the shops they can walk across the car park.

 

[Whitespirit66]

If they can walk around the shops they can walk across the car park.

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Most people who have a badge don't need one anyway.

securespark do you have one for your afflictions?

 

[Whitespirit66]

I would say to Secure that you need to get out more. Sounds like he was out though.

 

[joe-90]

Sounds like he was playing policeman to me.

 

[Astra99]

None of us can see into the future. I never, and I mean never, use a disabled bay. (I see nothing wrong with using a parent/child bay very early in the morning or late at night, though, as these are "concessionary" not "statutory")

My mother was disabled in her later years by arthritis, and when she went shopping she needed a space close to the store. How annoying it was to find able-bodied people in the disabled spaces, but this was before the days of "civil penalties".

Even though I am now partially disabled, and could qualify for blue badges, I have not applied for them, because I can still walk across the car park pushing a trolley. There are others worse off than me who need to use the spaces!

 

[conny]

My partner broke her spine when she was crushed between 2 cars 20 years ago. She has undergone a number of operations in an effort to prevent her becoming wheel-chair bound in the future and is due to have another in the not too distant future. As result of this accident she can walk for about 15 minutes before the sudden onset of severe pain down her back due to the movement of 2 discs which start to press on her spinal column. She is classed as requiring a 'Blue Badge' because her mobility is severely curtailed. It makes my blood boil when you see people use these spaces without a badge, or if they do display one, they literally jump out the car and jog into the shop.
The people in the pictures should be reported to the Mobility people so they can verify if they are badge holders and if not they should be prosecuted.

As an aside, my partners accident occurred in a retail car park which hadn't been gritted, by an uninsured driver. When she tried to sue the shop responsible for the car park they threw thousands of pounds at top barristers to ensure she wouldn't win and therefore set a precedent. She never received a penny and in fact lost a huge amount before admitting defeat. But not once has she been bitter about it. As she says, she is still alive to enjoy her family growing up.

 

[wingcoax]

The thing is Conny, that it is usually the registered driver of the vehicle who takes advantage of the badge belonging to a relative.

 

[conny]

The rule is, if the disabled person is not in the vehicle the badge MUST NOT be used. Though the vehicle can be used to run an errand for the disabled person, for insurance purposes the badge system is invalid in this case.

 

[^woody^]

Do you police the parent and child bays too?

 

[JBR]

At the supermarket nearest to me the lazy ba$tards just park on the side of the roadway in front of the doors.

The problem is that, although misuse of disabled parking spaces (along with using mobile phones when driving and 'middle-lane-moroning') may be punishable under the law, I see people doing it all the time.

People being what they are, they will flout the law without a second thought if they think they'll get away with it.

 

[JBR]

My partner broke her spine when she was crushed between 2 cars 20 years ago...

Sorry to hear that Conny.

 

[mattylad]

Thing is - if its a private car park then it is neither a legal requirement not punishable by law.
Non disabled drivers can park in them just the same as disabled drivers and cannot be punished or fined. Yes the car park attendants can try and give it a worthless ticket but the people that do this care about them just as much as they care about the parking there in the first place.

Securespark - I hope you will be uploading your pics here ?

One day I hope to have some little flyers telling people to look out for their car on this site - where they will be suitably insulted lol