Tesco - Parent/Child + disabled car spaces

Ivory_Tinkler

I don't have an issue with where parent and child spaces are placed in a car park and I have to say, when my daughter was small, these places were a godsend (if I was ever lucky enough to get one). I never had an issue with rain, snow, wind, walking across car parks etc but I have to side with the OP in some respects as some car parking spaces as so tight that they make it virtually impossible to open the door and secure a small child into a car seat!

pogofish

Curiousity wrote: »

In Scotland parking in disabled spaces is now an offence. As laid out in the Disabled Persons' Parking PLaces (Scotland) Bill.

No - FTM, the situation is still much the same as down south. The bill was only passed earlier this year. Despite being progressed with priority, it will probably be next year sometime before it comes into force.

However, few if any of the current "disabled" spaces in private car parks are going to be compliant.

Before any legal enforcement can start, they will have to be rubbed out and repainted to the correct standard, with proper sinage and the site owners will have to negotiate access arrangements and wayleave for council/council-contracted patrollers to operate.

The current bunch of private cowboy operators who prey on disabled and able-bodied drivers alike, will not be ticketing under this legislation

pogofish

BFG wrote: »

AFAIK this still only applies to local gov car parks etc - ie not private land [Tesco et al]??? Happy to be corrected.

No, it will also apply to private car parks but only after the owners satisfy the requirements outlined in my post above.

pogofish

uktyler wrote: »

In that case every 'system' is abusive.

They are - For an action under contract law to suceed, any charge or "cost" to the car park operator must be reasonable and demonstrable - Which is why the few attempts to pursue drivers in court invariably failed. The extortionate "penalties" and follow-on charges simply do not pass that test. Never mind that the cowboys who issue them almost always stray into full-on illegality at some point. Most usually by criminal misrepresentation or full-on extortion.

Council/council-contracted parking operates under specific legislation and is a whole other situation that cannot be easily compared.

poet123

cirrusmp wrote: »

I don't want to start a firestorm and i don't know if its considered bad practice to just but in on someone elses forum posts. But i read the op with interest and thought i'd share the view of someone without kids.

I will start by saying that I certainly don't condone the behaviour of the 4x4 owner, as i fully appreciate the majority of 4x4 owners are c's, but if i'm completely honest i'm not sure i fully support the idea of parent and child spaces as i believe it encourages the idea that people with children should get special treatment and the vast majority of parents, well usually the mothers actually, that i run into seem to go through there day giving everyone that attitude, it is unnecessary, arrogant and i believe teaches children the wrong things about how to treat other people in public.

A few examples:

1. When i was a university student I lived down in bournemouth, well poole but nearer bournemouth centre, and there was a primary school round the corner from our house. Every time i wanted to go out within an hour of the school start and end times, there would be a problem, and always due to the arrogance of parents. On one occasion we had to call the police, a woman had parked up blocking our drive, my housemate couldn't even get his motorbike round her, he knocked on the window to ask her to move, she looked him up and down, locked her door and went back to reading her book without saying anything. As you can imagine this left him absolutely infuriated and he made a point of informing her of this. Husband/partner whatever must've been waiting up at the gates for the children, came back to be told by this woman what my houstemate had said and he started banging on the front door shouting all sorts, we all went out to speak to him but he wasn't seeing reason, as far he was concerned he was picking his kids up and "we have to park near the school", it became physical and we reported the guy to the police. While they agree he was in the wrong, they didn't actually do anything about it.

2. My dad has 2 kids, both of us brought up without parent and child spaces (and i'm under 25). He is married, and was a very respected youth leader, although unfortunately this had to be given up due to ill health. He worked in an office, and every sunny lunchtime would go out, sit somewhere and eat lunch. One woman decided that a middle aged office worker (in a suit n tie) sitting in a park (a large, and mostly quiet, green, not a kids play park) eating lunch was a suspicious activity and made a point of coming over to him, standing right in front and demanding "what do you think you are doing here?". In that situation i personally would've seen red mist and instantly exploded with rage, every child in that park would have learned a few new words, however he is a lot calmer and simply asked to see a warrant card, obviously she didn't have a clue, and so was simply told to f* off. However she'd obviously told the other parents about this "suspicious" man and he felt uncomfortable with them looking over at him, he now eats his lunch in his car. What happened to a free country?.

3. Lost count of the amount of times i've been expected to walk in the road to get around a group of women with children, these days, depending on my mood and how busy i am, i occasionally just stop and wait for them to walk around me, any hint of a glare, or disgusted look and they'll get questioned until they either apologise, or walk away. Same applies for PCSOs. If parents don't teach there kids courtesy, how are they ever going to learn?.

Some points i'd pick out of the OPs comment that i feel are irrelevant:

- "forced to struggle with a normal space and walk much further with a young baby in pouring rain"
Children are covered in skin which is waterproof, they are also usually covered in clothes, and at my local tescos miniture builders high vis jackets (thats a whole other rant on its own), and you are adult, its just rain, there is no need for the ridiculously emotive tone!.
I assume by struggle with a normal space you mean struggling with the small door opening gap and being unable to reach a car seat. If on the other hand you mean struggle to park in a normal space, you shouldn't be driving.

- "walk much further..."
...Accross a car park....


- "special spaces for people who need them"
You don't "need" special spaces, all you have is a kid. What do you do when you take them out at the weekends? Just take up 2 normal spaces?. I'm sure everyones seen that one done a few times.


- "On complaining at customer services was met with the response "What do you expect us to do""
I do have sympathy for this one, customer service in all large companies is dire, on the other hand, they are busy and its just a parking space.

That turned out to be a bit more ranty than i'd expected, i hope i didn't offend anyone, maybe all this time on my hands is why i'm on the line for redundancy, or maybe i'm just a good manager.

The issue of how people treat each other in public these days is one that does make me angry, i'm sure everyone could give hundreds of examples of how a little courtesy and mutual respect would make everyones lives a lot easier.

Well, I have 4 chidren and I agree with all your comments. In particular I have sympathy with you on the school issue, I live opposite a school, and the parking behaviour sometimes has to be seen to be believed!!

cirrusmp

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kitchpoo

If a parent and child space isn't available, yes I do go to the far side of the car park because I have had times where I have parked and got my child out of the car fine, but when I have got back, the car next to me is parked so close that I have to move the car to get my child in which is awkward when I am on my own with him. Do I leave him in the pram while I move the car out somewhere where there is space????
So I use the parent and child spaces for the room, not for how close it is to the store. I am not adverse to a bit of walking!!

poet123

No, actually the act of having children does not confer some special right which means you should expect others to make unrealistic and often unecessary allowances ( P&C places being a prime example imo). Rather, it confers the responsibilty of making sure you bring up a well mannered and socially aware next generation who do not believe the whole world revolves around their needs or rather wants. There is a balance of course and parents do sometimes need concessions, but need and want are very different.

vikingaero

Whatever the rights or wrongs of a P&C space, the fact is that the store for whatever reason has provided them. I don't know about you guys but when I go to someones house/office/property I follow what rules they give out. It's called respect - if you can't or won't follow these basic rules then that reveals more about you and the position of our society at this point in time.

At the moment The Vikingettes are 5 and 7 and I no longer use the P&C spaces because they are old enough to strap themselves in and old enough to walk longer distances.

poet123

I agree, to a point, I personally wouldnt park there, but and it is a big but, these spaces have only appeared becuase the stores bowed to pressure from parents.

Having a child does not confer the same needs/rights as being disabled, yet increasingly parents seem to want similar special treatment. I have even seen comments on other similar threads stating that some parents feel justifed in parking in disabled spaces if there are no P&C spaces free, or those who think that a disabled person shouldn't use the P&C space if they cannot park in a disabled space.

It is all down to knowing the difference between need and want, rights and envy.