Grrr - blue badge

savemoney

It does already

Babshubbie wrote: »

My core belief is that Blue Badges should be issued with strict regard to mobility, not age .

Agreed.

Babshubbie wrote: »

Once issued wardens, supermarkets or whatever should enforce their proper use and keep disabled bays free for those Blue Badge holders.

sheeps68

It does already


Quote:
Originally Posted by Babshubbie
My core belief is that Blue Badges should be issued with strict regard to mobility, not age .

Agreed.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Babshubbie
Once issued wardens, supermarkets or whatever should enforce their proper use and keep disabled bays free for those Blue Badge holders.


Exactly that says it all but what can we do to help ensure this is the case an no genuine users get abuse or added difficulties because we already have enough to deal with.

Pete268

sheeps68 wrote: »

It does already


Quote:
Originally Posted by Babshubbie
My core belief is that Blue Badges should be issued with strict regard to mobility, not age .

Agreed.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Babshubbie
Once issued wardens, supermarkets or whatever should enforce their proper use and keep disabled bays free for those Blue Badge holders.


Exactly that says it all but what can we do to help ensure this is the case an no genuine users get abuse or added difficulties because we already have enough to deal with.

Until such time as legislation is enacted to make it an enforceable offence for parking in disabled bays on private lands without a blue badge then the situation will not improve. As most people now seem aware that parking tickets issued on private land are actually nothing more than unenforceable invoices then the situation will only get worse. In anycase, even the Dept of Transport in their guidance to using the blue badge do state blue badge use only applies on a road and not on off street car parks. Therefore even its actual use on private car parks is currently irrelevent.

Having previously written to the Minister of State for Disabled People on this very subject, the reply I received more or less said there was more chance of me walking on the moom than getting legislation made to make it an enforceable offence to park in the dis bays without a blue badge.

The other problem is that there is even disagreement amongst the disabled community as to whether theses spaces should be made enforceable. I am thinking of cases where genuinely disabled people have been denied a blue badge but currently park in dis bays at Supermarkets etc by agrement with the land owner.

Unless the disabled community can present a valid, creditable and more importantly united lobby to MP's on this subject, then the situation will never change.

Peter

Babshubbie

Babshubbie wrote: »

My core belief is that Blue Badges should be issued with strict regard to mobility, not age

Unfortunately others on this board have indicated that this is not the case. There are Local Authorities who do not adhere to Guidelines and issue Blue Badges to older people regardless of mobility. Some in Scotland, as I recall and, I think, in the North of England.

savemoney

I live in North of England and my daughter who is disabled had to fight for her blue badge before she got DLA and then she had to fight for DLA too, twice.

From our experience neither is easy to obtain

Mistress

I hold a blue badge and at 34 im always being scowled at by elderly people (mainly) when i park in a bay... and when they see my blue badge they sometimes hover around my car to see what visible signs i show of "needing" one - I have arthritis so it fluctuates wildly between not being able to get out of bed without help, to being able to walk ok ish - however what no one "sees" is the pain i am in doing this. Ive had full scale arguements with people i dont know in the street over my valid parking.

I've challenged other people and me and my partner have complained time and again to supermarkets who pay lip service to their obligations and provide bays but never bother to monitor them and the responses by the likes of Tesco and Asda have been appaling and at best, disinterested. Sainsburys ran the "fine" scheme for a few weeks but then never bothered after that, Tesco did the same, a few weeks, it got them the free publicity they wanted.

The supermarkets main excuse is its impossible to monitor and make customers move their cars, i.e. we'll lose custom if we do that... but the fact of the matter is, if they were in any way serious, they could grant the local council or (parkwise scheme) access to their land and they could issue tickets as they would on street bay parking.

Fact is - theyre not interested...

somebody_else

Mistress wrote: »

I hold a blue badge and at 34 im always being scowled at by elderly people (mainly) when i park in a bay... and when they see my blue badge they sometimes hover around my car to see what visible signs i show of "needing" one - I have arthritis so it fluctuates wildly between not being able to get out of bed without help, to being able to walk ok ish - however what no one "sees" is the pain i am in doing this. Ive had full scale arguements with people i dont know in the street over my valid parking.

Get yourself a walking stick, Mistress. I use one all the time when I'm out and it is amazing how many people look away when they see me pick it up out of the car.

You can get some quite snazzy ones these days - you don't have to use one of those ghastly aluminium social services issue.

mumps

I'm amazed at how much abuse people seem to get. My husband became disabled when I was pregnant 17 years ago. We have never had any abuse from people, young or old, when he has parked using his bb. Initially I would have been getting out of the car heavily pregnant with a toddler, then a toddler and a new baby. No one ever seemed to disapprove. I was asked if the badge was mine once when sitting in the car outside my husbands bank when he was doing something. No problems the policeman was pleasant and spoke to my husband when he came out of the bank.

The thing I cant understand is why has no old lady ever attacked us? Weird!

I think the worst bit of prejudice we ever got was when I arrived at hospital in labour and carried my own case in, he wanted to do it but as I said to him I needed him to be fit to look after toddler while I was in hospital so didn't want him making himself worse. A nurse saw us, snatched the bag off me and gave him a very dirty look. Understanding from the caring professions.

One thing I cant agree with is people judging who else "deserves" a bb. I am fit and healthy and thank God for it.

Mistress

somebody_else wrote: »

Get yourself a walking stick, Mistress...

You can get some quite snazzy ones these days - you don't have to use one of those ghastly aluminium social services issue.

I have one - I got it from Alchemy Gothic, Its black with a pewter Skull for a handle... now thats snazzy!! It had a metal tip, so i took that off and put a standard rubber tip on instead and its great - far better than those gastly NHS ones - bless em, they try but knobbled bits of wood or aluminium sticks aint for me :rotfl:

cymrubaby

sheeps68 wrote: »

Perhaps someone could explain to me
- why do skips get put in the disabled badge spaces?
- why do delivery drivers prefer the disabled bays?
- why is it if there is snow piled up to melt anywhere in a car park diggers put it in the disabled bays?
- why if an ambulance blocks a bay people scream at the ambulance to move but not a delivery van? (yes they did when I was trying to breathe and a nicer shade of blue)
- why do people want a disabilty in order to get a badge or does it just seem that way? I'd swap my badge for health any day.

I've seen a couple of these scenarios. At my local Tesco they use one of the bays to store some huge trailer ramp thingymebob which never moves from it's prime spot right next to the entrance.