Refused Blue Badge- help

verafrost4

My husband has had a Blue Badge for over 12 years & at 74, his disabilty is progressively worse not better. This Blue Badge is his life line, & he has just had an assessment.
Be warned when going for an arduous assessment
.There is no sympathy for pain, basically if one can walk at all you get refused.
I was told that they have audits & targets to acheive.
Why, when someone is in so much pain with every step,can this be refused & who is he penalising?
He is not claiming money so no one is loosing, maybe just the council who will be thre richer for this.

Mojisola

I've just renewed my Dad's BB and I just filled in a form. Who did your husband have to see for his assessment?

Richie-from-the-Boro

verafrost4 wrote: »

My husband has had a Blue Badge for over 12 years & at 74, his disabilty is progressively worse not better. This Blue Badge is his life line, & he has just had an assessment.
Be warned when going for an arduous assessment
.There is no sympathy for pain, basically if one can walk at all you get refused.
I was told that they have audits & targets to acheive.
Why, when someone is in so much pain with every step,can this be refused & who is he penalising?
He is not claiming money so no one is loosing, maybe just the council who will be the richer for this.

- its the new law & criteria that came into force in Jan this year
- the general 'walk' criteria applied is the bit in pink in here
- most LA's are now using these general forms of guidance

It won't help your hubby Vera, but it might help your understanding, take care.

Brassedoff

sunnyone wrote: »

It would be much better if everywhere was the same, to many people get BB's when they dont need them.

I would add my vote to this one. Far too many have badges and can hop skip and jump from the car whilst holding their partners hands. But then watching a grown up claiming they cannot go out to get a badge and then have a Lazarus moment they get a BB.

It's the biggest scheme open to rip off in this country and the rules should be tightened to those with qualified mobility issues. Not by the local quack who gets the wool pulled over their eyes, but from a Consultant who has carried out the tests that prove through a range of tests there are genuine mobility issues.

Brassedoff

pwales wrote: »

bad knee ! blue badge ! are you having a laugh! :mad:

whats next oooo i got a blister ?

come on hello real world!:mad:

:rotfl:good to see you around. Keep on wheeling mate!

Moneysaver_newbie

I have been refused the renewal of a blue badge and am about to appeal for the 2nd time. I have degenerative disc disease which is a condition which is progressively getting worse not better, yet because I am managing the condition with painkillers, exercises and generally looking after myself the council have decided I am no longer eligible. The criteria changed not my condition! I have not seen my Gp for a while for the condition because they have said there is nothing more they can do and to keep doing what I'm doing. Ive had injections in the past and sometimes they've worked and sometimes they haven't. I had a double discectomy 10 years ago which saved my mobility, and I do now have more good days than bad, but my bad days range from not being able to move out of bed to walking very slowly with a constant cold sweat and looking like I've got a stick up my rear end. Its a very unpredictable condition, so planning anything is risky. I would never use the badge on a good day and its when I'm having a not so good day when I need it. My work car park is very tight and so its the clearance around the car which I need to get in an out, so parking in a disabled spot is important to me. If I get to work and the old back is killing me, how am I supposed to get out when I get there without injuring myself further? I need the space, simple. Yet the council don't care about that, they say I can walk..end of. I'm annoyed that so many people get one that don't need one...how????

Richie-from-the-Boro

HiYa Moneysaver newbie, that's very [STRIKE]h[/STRIKE]andy, your first post in almost 5 years of membership.

If, after being assessed by your local issuer using 'eligible - subject to further assessment' criteria they tell you "you can walk..end of", I'm not sure an appeal will do you any good.

The assessor generally will be looking for :

- a permanent [lasting for at least 3 years] and substantial disability?
- can you to take a single step, putting one foot in front of the other?
- are you only able to walk without always having one foot on the ground [e.g. swinging through two crutches.
- are you able to walk more than 30 metres in total, without experiencing severe discomfort?
- are you only able to walk with excessive labour (gait, manner of walking, breathlessness and exertion) and at an extremely slow pace [<0.67m/s]?
- are you only able to walk with excessive labour [gait, manner of walking, breathlessness and exertion] and with excessive pain?
- should you, not walk far because of a danger to your health posed by the effort required to walk?
- do you have a serious chest, lung or heart condition which poses a danger to your health from the effort required to walk?
- were statements provided by you consistent with the assessor's observations on the applicant's walking ability / behaviour ?

If nothing has changed since your original 'walk test' and assessment, then the appeal outcome is the same.

BobQ

Richie-from-the-Boro wrote: »

HiYa Moneysaver newbie, that's very [STRIKE]h[/STRIKE]andy, your first post in almost 5 years of membership.

If, after being assessed by your local issuer using 'eligible - subject to further assessment' criteria they tell you "you can walk..end of", I'm not sure an appeal will do you any good.

The assessor generally will be looking for :

- a permanent [lasting for at least 3 years] and substantial disability?
- can you to take a single step, putting one foot in front of the other?
- are you only able to walk without always having one foot on the ground [e.g. swinging through two crutches.
- are you able to walk more than 30 metres in total, without experiencing severe discomfort?
- are you only able to walk with excessive labour (gait, manner of walking, breathlessness and exertion) and at an extremely slow pace [<0.67m/s]?
- are you only able to walk with excessive labour [gait, manner of walking, breathlessness and exertion] and with excessive pain?
- should you, not walk far because of a danger to your health posed by the effort required to walk?
- do you have a serious chest, lung or heart condition which poses a danger to your health from the effort required to walk?
- were statements provided by you consistent with the assessor's observations on the applicant's walking ability / behaviour ?

If nothing has changed since your original 'walk test' and assessment, then the appeal outcome is the same.

OP I would agree with the above. One other issue (implied by the above about walking safely) does your medical problem give you balance problems, perhaps making it difficult to walk on uneven surfaces. These factors can affect your safety too.

If your workplace is a private carpark not accessible to the general public it may be worth explaining the concerns to your firm's occupational heath advisors. They may have some latitude to allow you to use disabled bays at your place of work. Some firms do this for temporary disabilities if it makes the difference to someone getting into work . Clearly this would not affect your eligibility for a blue badge.

edwolf88

who can be considered for a blue badge?
You may be entitled to a blue badge without further assessment if you are in receipt of one of the following:

Higher Rate Mobility Component of the Disability Living Allowance
War Pensioner's Mobility Supplement (WMPS)
Registered as Severely Sight Impaired, (previously 'Blind') under the National Assistance Act 1948
Mobility Component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and you scored at least 8 points in relation to the 'moving around' activity in the PIP assessment, or at least 12 points in the mobility activity for planning and following journeys
Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) - guaranteed payment under tariffs 1-8 and have been certified as having a permanent and substantial disability which causes an inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking.

Indie_Kid

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