Money Moral Dilemma: Would you park free if it blocked wheelchair access?

A.Jones

Rotti wrote: »

What about overcharging for items associated with disability (a bit like red roses on Valentine's Day!). We have a leather cover for our blue badge purchased on eBay for £2. At the mobility shop the same thing was £13.99!!!! we recently bought a fully kitted out 2-person picnic rucksack for £14.99, but a friend who has breathing problems needed an oxygen carrier to put over his shoulder. Couldn't find on on the net so had to go to the mobility shop. It is a simple open tube of standard canvas with two long straps and it cost a whopping £33!! Outrageous!:mad:
Check out the prices of gadgets "designed to make life easier" in these insert magazines and you will find it applies across the board.

The answer is simple. Shop around, and don't buy from the well known dealer (here the mobilty shop) if they rip you off. It's true of any item, be it a DVD or a car part. Go to the main retailer, and they will charge more than another shop you have to do a bit of searching for. That's not a disability issue, it is a being a savvy consumer issue.

Cornopean

elsol wrote: »

i think a lot of people have missed the point...nowhere does it say that the free space behind the disabled car is a disabled space. Therefore, you could freely park there. however, i would suggest leaving your mobile phone number so if the disabled person infornt needed access you could go back and move it. Just on another note, it could be that the disabled drived didn't need the access on that specific day...!

Aha, someone else with my thoughts. I've seen so many signs (child on board etc.) that are just left in a car when they don't apply, and equally have seen a significant minority of disabled badges being misused. And yes, I know that not all conditions are immediately apparent - I had one myself which I'm fortunately recovered from that would have qualified me for a disabled badge had I been older, but to all outside appearances I was fully fit and mobile.

So if I noticed the sign, I'd be puzzled why they hadn't used a disabled space (which are well patrolled these days so shouldn't be full of able-bodied people), wonder whether the disabled user was in the car that trip, park towards the rear of the space to allow more room, and leave my mobile number on view (which I do whenever I'm parking somewhere really congested without marked bays etc. anyway). Because if nothing else, if I didn't take it, someone else probably less considerate would.

I can't help thinking that most of the people angelically leaving the space on here would in real life take it and not even notice the sign. Hey ho.

Al

Twinny99

Nope..............

RuthnJasper

No. It would be cruel and immoral to block a disabled user's space. Supposing the disabled person had to make an urgent hospital visit, for example if they were pregnant and went into labour, or a friend or relative of theirs was sick and they needed to get to them quickly, and they weren't able get in their car to until the sneaky parker deigned to return? I couldn't forgive myself if I'd taken that liberty.

I might be tempted - but I'd NEVER actually do it. What I might be sneaky enough to try is to go into the NCP and try and get away without buying a ticket. Naughty, I know ;-) but £5 for a short parking stay? Grrr...!

And maybe some kind soul who is departing the car park might offer me their ticket with remaining time on it - I always do that if I'm leaving a car park and there's time left on my ticket. It's nice to do a favour for a stranger and make them smile!

I mean, really. What sort of person stitches up a disabled person anyway?! x

THRIFTY_GIRL

BigSky wrote: »

Absolutely NOT! Only the most ignorant lazy !!!!!! would do that.

I’d park in a “family” parking bay though even if I was on my own. Why should people that decide to bring their screaming, fat, badly-behaved kids round the supermarket get special parking bays?

Yes and you are very rude in not understanding that by doing so you are also making life difficult for those people that genuinely need these spaces... that is those with YOUNG children. It is not easy when you have to deal wit baby seats pushchairs and the like, and NO it is not always possible to leave them behind.

Now I know who these ignorant **** are that turn up in their 2 seater sport cars to hog the spaces. I think parking in a family bay like you do also classes as being an .... lazy !!!!!!.

Summer76

A.Jones wrote: »

I would park there to save the money. There is no law against parking behind another car. Why should I pay to park somewhere more expensive to save the disabled driver / passenger money?

But given the number of responses saying that they would never ever park (legally) behind a car with a sign like that in the window, maybe I will put one in my car. The extra space will make putting shopping in the boot and backing out a bit easier.

Can't believe that you would actually dare to do it.

oldmasterjds

Lol, some of the social warriors on this forum are hilarious! If someone is completely wheelchair bound (like my father who has Parkinsons for instance,) it is not always possible to find a disabled space if you are not near a town/shopping centre or park etc. This is a fairly uncommon occurance but it can happen and unless a space is left behind the car, the scooter cannot be wheeled in or out as the ramp extends back.
It does not surprise me that there are so many sad & selfish individuals out there who try to justify not giving up 6 feet of space for someone who is in need, as this is the kind of problem some people only become sympathetic to when they have had personal experience - kind of ironic huh!
Maybe if some individuals could take a step back from their own self important existance and spare a thought for those who are limited in mobility for no reason other than bad luck, we would be better placed to move on and evolve into a friendly caring society, although i personally would take a most 'unfreindly' attitude towards someone who did not respect this simple space requirement!!!:mad: - That would be my moral dilemma!!

puddings_2

the dilemma DOES NOT say that you are parking in a disabled space, it says that you are parking in a normal space behind a disabled vehicle.

If it is the driver him/herself that needs rear access to their own vehicle then they would be unlikely to park there in the first place. I am confident that they would be very aware of the risk of them being blocked in.
It would be much more likely that this scenario would be access needed for a passenger/child, in which case the able bodied driver could (although not ideal) pull the vehicle out of the space into the road before loading up.

marmitethedog

BigSky wrote: »

Absolutely NOT! Only the most ignorant lazy !!!!!! would do that.

I’d park in a “family” parking bay though even if I was on my own. Why should people that decide to bring their screaming, fat, badly-behaved kids round the supermarket get special parking bays?

My child is neither fat,badly behaved or especially screamy. Also the parent spaces are wider so its easier to load babies in their car seats and without having to breathe in to the size of a pencil so your car door doesnt tocuh the car next to you. So big Sky maybe you should take the ignorant lazy !!!!!! badge and wear it with pride.

jmalls

It's potilical correctness gone mad! Park anywhere you want! Some disabled people will quite often exploit situations to an advantage so I see no difference...