Blue Badge Parking - HELP!

davsidipp

yes the car can be used without the disabled person in it if you are using it to benefit the disabled person but you are not allowed to use the badge unless the disabled person is in the car.

Altarf

Welshcakes thanks for confirming your source, but I believe that your doctor is wrong.

The Disabled Persons (Badges for Motor Vehicles) (England) Regulations 2000 has two sections that are relevant.
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2000/20000682.htm

s13 "Display of an individual's badge when a vehicle is being driven" and s14 "Display of an individual's badge when a vehicle is parked".

s14 (which is relevant for parking) says

14. - (1) This regulation prescribes for the purposes of section 21(4A) of the 1970 Act the circumstances in which an individual's badge may be displayed while a vehicle is parked.

(2) An individual's badge may be displayed on a vehicle while it is parked if it-

(a) has been driven by the holder, or has been used to carry the holder, to the place where it is parked; or

(b) is to be driven by the holder, or is to be used to carry the holder, from that place.

Which is pretty straightforward. Either the disabled person has to be driving the car, or if a passenger has been driven to or is being driven away from the parking place. If the disabled person was never in the car it is not valid.

s13 which is for displaying the badge whilst driving and is for circumstances where you need to gain access to disabled only restricted areas (as exist in some town centres). I believe that this is where Morglin and davsidipp are being mislead.

13. - (1) This regulation prescribes for the purposes of section 21(4A) of the 1970 Act the circumstances in which an individual's badge may be displayed while a vehicle is being driven.

(2) An individual's badge may be displayed on a vehicle while the holder is either driving or being carried in it.

(3) An individual's badge may also be displayed on a vehicle if-

(a) the vehicle is being used for the collection of the holder and no other purpose;

(b) a disabled person's concession (other than a concession relating to parking) would be available to a vehicle lawfully displaying a disabled person's badge; and

(c) it would not be practicable for the vehicle to be lawfully driven to, or to stop at, the place at which the holder is to be collected if the concession did not apply to the vehicle.

(4) An individual's badge may be displayed on a vehicle if-

(a) the vehicle, after being driven by or carrying the holder, is leaving the place where he got out;

(b) a disabled person's concession (other than a concession relating to parking) is available to a vehicle lawfully displaying a disabled person's badge; and

(c) it would not have been practicable for the vehicle to have left that place if the concession did not apply to the vehicle.

So there are limited circumstances where the car may be driven displaying the badge when the disabled person is not in the car, but unless the disabled person is being collected then the car could not be parked with the badge.

Morglin

Sam_Spends_Too_Much wrote:

Anyone in receipt of High Rate Mobility component of DLA automatically qualifies for a BB, and also for a VED (which means that car tax is free - although, again, the car cannot be used unless the disabled person is in it.


I'm a little concerned about the above passage. My 6 yr old daughter has the higher rate mobility and as such I am able to get our car tax free. If I'm not supposed to use it without her in the car, what am I supposed to do when she is in school. The issuing office are aware of her age so one would assume they know she will not be in the car for 6 hours of every week day and furthermore that I would be using it without her. I'd appreciate any comments from someone in the same boat. Many thanks.

There are problems with this - Motability say that if you have one of their cars, then you can occasionally use it without the disabled person in the car (if it's for their benefit). There are also other circumstances in which it's ok for the non-disabled person to use the car.

DVLA say that you must NEVER (under any circumstances) use the car without the disabled person in it, if it is VED.

This used to be ok, as you could pay and tax a Motability car and thereby be legal in occasionally using the car without the disabled person.

But, Motability have now changed the system, and they retain the registration document and send the tax discs to you (which are duty exempt, and therefore free).

So, now, we have Motability doing one thing, and DVLA saying another.

They have been asked by disability groups to get together and sort this out - but meantime, DVLA are sticking with the rules of anyone using a VED car, without the disabled person present, is committing an offence, and effectively driving an illegal car (thereby making the insurance void).

So, as DVLA rules stand, you cannot use the car without your daughter in it. Ever.

Which makes the whole thing a bit of a nonsense as many families are now having to buy another car to be used when the VED can't be driven.

Lin

peter999

Morglin wrote:

DVLA say that you must NEVER (under any circumstances) use the car without the disabled person in it, if it is VED.

Be careful, what you are told or read.

DVLA like some other government departments are turning into mini dictatorships
-that is, they see every query or issue as a loophole that has to be closed down by rewriting history, their leaflets, information, the law.

It's lucky the Blue Badge scheme is European based, otherwise this country would have jumped up twit parking wardens filming disabled people & issuing tickets !!

I'm sure that's next.

peter999

oldMcDonald

Morglin wrote:

There are problems with this - Motability say that if you have one of their cars, then you can occasionally use it without the disabled person in the car (if it's for their benefit). There are also other circumstances in which it's ok for the non-disabled person to use the car.

DVLA say that you must NEVER (under any circumstances) use the car without the disabled person in it, if it is VED.





So, as DVLA rules stand, you cannot use the car without your daughter in it. Ever.


Lin

Does anyone else know this to be correct? I'm worried now as we have a bus with access for a wheelchair and this is our only form of transport as we cannot afford another car to run alongside it. Does this mean that we can only use this when our disabled child is in the car?

Thanks for any help.

donnalove

oldMcDonald wrote:

Does anyone else know this to be correct? I'm worried now as we have a bus with access for a wheelchair and this is our only form of transport as we cannot afford another car to run alongside it. Does this mean that we can only use this when our disabled child is in the car?

Thanks for any help.

my friend has a motability car with wheelchair access for her son, she uses her car regularly while he is at school. her ex husband use to use it for work, they have had motability for years they have never been told they cant use the car.

Also i am getting tax for our car through my daughter, i told dla its a family car and they said no problem so now i am really confused.

oldMcDonald

Thinking about this a bit more....


How can the DVLA actually hold this to be the law when the VED is issued to someone who is unable to drive?

Someone who has the VED on the car that they drive will be in it as they are the driver. However, if the VED is issued on a car driven on behalf of the disabled person then it just couldn't work. For example, if you MUST have the disabled person in the car then it would be OK for me to drive my disabled child 5 miles to his school, but would then not be legal should I chose to drive home?

Really confused now...

Morglin

I'm not saying I agree with it - but the DVLA say that is an offence to use a car with VED on it if the disabled person is not in the car.

It is a police offence, which will put points on the license and create a fine, if someone is caught doing this - which is why motoring and disability groups are trying to get some clarity -it is causing confusion all round.

If you BUY a car through Motability, then you can pay for the tax and there are no problems.

But, the leasing scheme has changed and there is no facility to tax the car yourself.

If you own a car, then you can tax it as normal.

As far as I'm concerned, this is yet another government regulation that has no reasoning to it.

The Blue Badge scheme is not Euro based - all that happened is that all EU countries harmonised the parking rules and the badge system to avoid confusion.

Parking wardens can and do issue tickets to BB cars - the only rule I know is that (except for certain places like Camden and Westminster in London), a BB car cannot be clamped - but it can be ticketed.

In fact, the regulations are due to toughen up soon - parking wardens and police are supposed to be monitoring BB parking and cars, and asking holders to produce their badges to try and cut the fraud and abuse of use.

Lin

welshcakes

Think I may buy a horse and carriage!

Also I live in Wales and notice that our blue badge leaflet is produced/printed by the Welsh Assembly Government with specific reference to them so I wonder how they would compare word for word with one printed for distrubution in England. I do know it says you should check with your issuing council as there are also variations on what is and isn't permitted (ie leeway authorised by individual councils).

As has be said before on the boards, like other benefits but especially with disability related concessions, there is always room for abuse and always a percentage who will abuse so it is simply down to the morals of the people involved.

I personally would prefer to see traffic wardens clamping down on the number of double parked delivery vans along busy high streets - now that really gets my goat!

islecastle

Just a little story. Arrived at Glasgow airport last Sunday morning at 4.15 am taking my niece and her 4 year old daughter for a flight to Amsterdam. Stopped at the setting down bay, and on account of the amount of baggage, I helped her as best I could to the check in, and returned to find two policemen looking over the car (I am an OAP, and a Blue badge holder, which was displayed in the car). This was less than 5 minutes after arriving. I genuinely didn't know that there is NO waiting at this point. No amount of begging would get them to let me off. Got A £30 fixed penalty. So much for Blue badges! So much for Strathclyde police!
Cheers, Dave