Disabled Bay Private Car Park

amibovvered

Thanks for clarifying things for me - I was vaguely aware of the new criteria for BB but as you point out, my disability certainly would not qualify so I hadn't really looked at the detail. I was basing my query on the old criteria which included the discretionary element under which the majority of BB were issued in the past. I would hastily point out that I have no intention of parking in disabled spaces, whether on private land or not!

Coupon-mad

Robredz try Googling your county + 'Blue Badge does not apply private'. When I did so I found my Council, West Sussex, says this:

http://www.westsussex.gov.uk/default.aspx?page=9005

There were also similar results from other areas but some are better than others. Some articles weakly say that 'the landowner can decide' which of course suggests they can choose to break the law...

You must fight back this week with a letter complaining of an Equality Act breach and officially complaining about that man.

robredz

Coupon-mad wrote: »

Robredz try Googling your county + 'Blue Badge does not apply private'. When I did so I found my Council, West Sussex, says this:

http://www.westsussex.gov.uk/default.aspx?page=9005

There were also similar results from other areas but some are better than others. Some articles weakly say that 'the landowner can decide' which of course suggests they can choose to break the law...

You must fight back this week with a letter complaining of an Equality Act breach and officially complaining about that man.

The DirectGov site mentions "Contractural arrangements" on private car parks, thus opening the door to rogue PPCs

The guy thinks I have committed a criminal offence and banned me from the building, the organisation i was visited got me re admitted but I parked on the road to avoid him getting the motor towed.

I have contacted the Equalities Commission and hope they will back my stance but the advisor thought the lack of badge may count against me, as in it may mitigate the action of the guy, but I pointed out he knows my motor from frequent visits, he also knows I am disabled and use a stick, so she said she would discuss the case with colleagues and "Higher Authority" and get back to me.

I am completely peed off by this mate of Mrs Palm and her Five daughters, so may well send a letter before Action regardless.

thanks for your support Coupon-Mad, there is too much of this sort of thing going on that is not revealed.

However you can see from this article why the guy has such an attitude about bay abuse,

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/6936804.stm

where they go on about criminals without badges taking bays in private car parks with no sanction against them. it fails to register on their radar that conversely it is not mandatory for a disabled person to HAVE a badge, nor could everyone who would benefit from the concession be able to obtain one.

esmerobbo

I would assume any "Contractual arrangements" the land owners made would have to be legal. They could put up signs saying all blue cars park here, all red cars park here, and all others park over there! However the conditions could not discriminatory by saying only disabled people who have a blue badge can park here, would not be allowing disabled people the necessary adjustments they need.

I wonder what would be any PPC's thinking if a person placed a sign on their dashboard that simply said. "With regard to the Equality Act I am a disabled person"?

robredz

esmerobbo wrote: »

I would assume any "Contractual arrangements" the land owners made would have to be legal. They could put up signs saying all blue cars park here, all red cars park here, and all others park over there! However the conditions could not discriminatory by saying only disabled people who have a blue badge can park here, would not be allowing disabled people the necessary adjustments they need.

I wonder what would be any PPC's thinking if a person placed a sign on their dashboard that simply said. "With regard to the Equality Act I am a disabled person"?

they would place an invoice on the motor, this one is a receptionist there is no ppc just him, he said he would get mine towed away, and completely ignored the evidence of disability, i regularly use this building and avoid using disabled bays, looks like i will have to apply for a badge with all the mither it now entails, and shove it down his throat when i get it. it would be worth 12 months in jail for assault to choke him with the badge

robredz

Had the Equalities commission come back to me, they don't think on a first look there is discrimination, seems to hinge on his duty to keep the bays clear for BB holders, and therefore had no duty towards me told them that he knew i was disabled and that i qualified as so under the Act, so they are looking further into things and will get back to me tomorrow Mind you isn't this one of the quangos for the chop?

Coupon-mad

robredz wrote: »

Had the Equalities commission come back to me, they don't think on a first look there is discrimination, seems to hinge on his duty to keep the bays clear for BB holders, and therefore had no duty towards me told them that he knew i was disabled and that i qualified as so under the Act, so they are looking further into things and will get back to me tomorrow Mind you isn't this one of the quangos for the chop?

UNBELIEVABLE! :eek:

Can you copy them into this thread and ask them where on earth the Equality Act says that a disabled person has to have a (Council on-street only scheme) Blue Badge to use a PRIVATE reasonable adjustment? And why they think that a person does not have the right to use such parking bay adjustments if they qualify as a protected person under the Act, the service provider knows that they qualify, but it just so happens that the person does not have an irrelevant permit?

Did you quote the info I posted before, from the lawyer's website mentioning section 29 and the link to the Equality Act where disability is clearly defined? If not then throw that in their direction too.

Bottom line is the guy knew you are disabled so he IS in breach of the law. The Equality Act simply says that if a service-provider 'knows or should have known' about the disability then they are in breach if they discriminate, unless they can show that their actions were reasonable. His actions cannot be described as that.

robredz

@ Coupon Mad post# 47
When they phoned me, I couldn't quite believe what was being said, I then reminded them of Section 29 and the provision of service, my status as being disabled, I went through what my mobility issues are, that the person knew I am disabled, and surely knowing that and my intention to move the motor asap when a normal bay came available. There were empty spaces but they are allocated to other organisations in the building, so if you park in one of them you get grief also They asked why I haven't re applied for a badge, i told them that due to my restricted income at present and the rise in fuel prices, along with 20% in gas and electricity I am in fuel poverty I don't have a a spare tenner to spend on an application. so they said that they would take further advice and email me tomorrow. i mentioned that the consensus on forums was that there IS discrimination under the Act and she was surprised, I think they are using the BB as the defacto proof of disability for parking which I feel is erroneous, due to the wording within the Act itself.

She then seemed more interested in the organisation I was visiting, and tried to pass the responsibility for the discrimination onto them I replied that as the staff places are severely limited, and the spaces are allocated to a member of staff visitors have to take pot luck with visitor parking whoever they were going to see, and there were no disabled bays specifically allocated to anyone they were first come first served, and parking is totally the remit of the managing agents.

I will post up their reply, and copy them into this thread when they reply tomorrow, then they can get a feel for the "really real world"

robredz

I have been trying to get my head around this and I am trying to second guess their line of reasoning. I will quote the argument off the pdf tomorrow, to them again, and I have used it to form a skeleton argument to support discrimination referenced to the facts of what happened, and the concepts of reasonable adjustments. such as temporary use of the bay

With regard to the EC They seem to contend that as he thinks you need a badge, he isn't discriminating against me because he is treating me the same way he would treat anyone without a badge, so though I am disabled, I am being treated equally in the same manner as a non disabled person would be given the same circumstances, my disability ergo is irrelevant, I parked in a bay, no BB guy only doing job. they don't seem to get the Section 29 angle at all, even though I mentioned it to them when I first contacted them, they don't seem to consider the concept of parking in the bay without a badge constitutes a reasonable adjustment that the managing agents have a duty to provide to me.

amibovvered

robredz wrote: »

@ Coupon Mad post# 47
I don't have a a spare tenner to spend on an application"

Just a quick point - surely it doesn't cost £10 for a BB? My council issues them free, and DfT currently authorise councils to charge no more than £2 although I believe this will probably go up from 2012 - in which case, assuming they are still good for 3 years I would advise applying this year!