GRRR!!! Blue badge and parking ticket!

zaksmum

My husband drove me to the shops today and we parked in a pay and display area. I put my Blue disabled badge on the dashboard with the timer disc as our council allows blue badge holders to park there without charge.

I have mobility problems and got out of the car with difficulty. I was immediately approached by a man wearing jeans and t-shirt who said he was a police officer, and he wanted to check my blue badge photo to verify it wasn't being fraudulently used. He showed his warrant card.

My husband reached back into the car, got the badge out to show the man. He checked my photo and said it was fine, apparently there'd been a lot of abuse of the badges in our area.

My husband put it back on the dashboard and we did some shopping. We returned to the car within half an hour and a traffic warden was placing a parking ticket on the windscreen. I asked why, as we had the Blue badge displayed.

The warden pointed out that it was, in fact, upside down. Therefore, he said, it was incorrectly displayed and so the ticket was correctly issued.

I'd put the badge the right way up...I'm always careful about that. But the intervention of the plain clothes police officer had confused the issue and my husband, when he replaced it, didn't realise he'd put it back upside down.

I explained all this to the warden. He agreed police were always checking that area but said all we can do is write in to contest the ticket and explain the circumstances.

I do feel really annoyed about it, but is there anything I can do, or will I just have to cough up the £30?

BargainGalore

You can appeal but they do have grounds to fine you though but no harm in asking

Nice to see Police are stamping down on frauds though that's welcome news for those like yourself

Lady_K

Yes it is nice to see that the police are stampimg down, I wish they would do more of it.

Someone I know uses her disabled sisters blue badge all the time, she doesnt even live with her but she keeps it in her bag rather than her disabled sister keep it herself plus she has her tax paid as her sisters driver but she uses it for everything herself including going to work. She parks everywhere in disabled parking bays and just says she looks like her sister in the photo so she can get away with it but shes not disabled. If she does get checked do they just go by the photo or would they want other id like her driving licence?

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

Appeal. Check the parking thread. If the council and then the tribunal say no, it's not like it was an £80 fine getting doubled. It's case of keeping your nerve. I appealed against a fine and it went to tribunal (I didn't attend) and they found in my favour because an asterisk was missing from the Pay & Display sign. Never even noticed that, I appealed on other grounds, but who am I to complain!

Paparika

How bloody petty is that.

can you remember the policeman's name or anything... to help with the appeal?
just to say what you have said, and they could check with him that this had happened, and how flustered you were after (do you get flustered with your illness...)

zaksmum

Paparika wrote: »

How bloody petty is that.

can you remember the policeman's name or anything... to help with the appeal?
just to say what you have said, and they could check with him that this had happened, and how flustered you were after (do you get flustered with your illness...)

That's what I thought, petty. I know it's good for the cops to clamp down but even so...pity they have nothing better to do. Gangs of lads hanging round, people being mugged and beaten up, eggs getting chucked at houses, the whole city awash with drugs, dealers and addicts...and the pride of Merseyside Police is checking photos on Blue Badges!

I will appeal though. Just worried about the fine doubling within 14 days.

zaksmum

Oh, yeah, I do remember the policeman's name, it was a foreign type name so not all of the spelling, but the name itself is unusual so there wouldn't be another similar name.

Poppycat

I think if you appeal then surely the appeal process would delay the fine from doubling. They probably send you a photo and grounds on if they accept or refuse your appeal.

a11waysindebt

You should have got someone to pick the warden up upside down and said can you read it now.

moredeadthanalive

In Salisbury, I once parked on double yellows with blue badge showing and returned to see a warden giving me a ticket. He explained that the badge number was hidden by the speckled pattern that is printed on the edge of the screen, and he was required to issue a ticket.
I received a notice in the post with a photo of the offending badge. It was mostly obscured - but I am sure the number could be worked out.
I wrote a grovelling letter to the council stating that from my level in a wheelchair, I couldn't have seen that the number was not visible, and that from inside the car all seemed OK as I had set the clock and dispayed it and the badge as required.
The nice people at Salisbury council saw fit to take pity on me and cancelled the fine.

If you don't ask, you don't get. :j

zaksmum

a11waysindebt wrote: »

You should have got someone to pick the warden up upside down and said can you read it now.

Ha ha!! I wish I could've done, believe me!!