Saints and scroungers BBC1

sunnyone

I watch this and its intresting, today a bank manager was caught using someones else's blue badge and she was fined £1000 with over £1500 costs. She was caught because she was reported, why does this only seem to happen in London and not country wide?

The fraudster today wasnt disability related, the saint was a elderly woman who was living in squaller until the red cross intervened to clean her home and ready it for her return from hospital (she was admitted with a water infection and didnt want to leave due to her home). They got her the benefits she was entitled to and went the extra mile to get her home including sorting out utility bills, spring cleaning her home and even getting new bedding for her.

I wish the red cross was their for more people, they did an amazing job for the lady, on line so many disabled people seem to have no one and need help but none is their for them.

Richie-from-the-Boro

London, highest prices in our Islands, a vehicle bay in Kensington and Chelsea was valued at £95,800, that's around £13,500 more than the average price of a home in Middlesbrough. If you can afford a £140,000 Ferrari the £1500-£2000 a pop for a knocky~off Blue Badge is cheap money well spent.

The sand in the disabled oyster is that the disabled themselves are complicit in that very badge becoming available for the black market. That very act denies the remainder of the honest law abiding disabled users somewhere to park.

What to the Ferrari owner is cheap or free convenient parking. To the legit Blue Badge owner its not the free parking, but being able get there at all. The very ability to park close to where you want to be including work, home, doctors, etc.

For the first time in its long history there is to be a central single national dBase of badges starting this year that will allow instant on~the~spot proof enabling the police or warden to confiscate a badge right there and then.

sunnyone

Richie-from-the-Boro wrote: »

London, highest prices in our Islands, a vehicle bay in Kensington and Chelsea was valued at £95,800, that's around £13,500 more than the average price of a home in Middlesbrough. If you can afford a £140,000 Ferrari the £1500-£2000 a pop for a knocky~off Blue Badge is cheap money well spent.

The sand in the disabled oyster is that the disabled themselves are complicit in that very badge becoming available for the black market. That very act denies the remainder of the honest law abiding disabled users somewhere to park.

What to the Ferrari owner is cheap or free convenient parking. To the legit Blue Badge owner its not the free parking, but being able get there at all. The very ability to park close to where you want to be including work, home, doctors, etc.

For the first time in its long history there is to be a central single national dBase of badges starting this year that will allow instant on~the~spot proof enabling the police or warden to confiscate a badge right there and then.

All to true, I have had to return home when I couldnt get parked and the stats say about a third of BB's are used illegally, so when there are three bays outside radiography one is illegally parked and I miss my appointment because I couldnt get parked.

I would support the removal of all BB's that are used fraudulently, disabled people need to keep their badges safe and not allow relatives/friends to abuse them.

I have never allowed my badge to be misused because I understand how difficult it is to park as a severely disabled person, surely the badge holders cant be that disabled if they allow their badge to be misused because they would understand that they are denying legitimate BB users from parking so they wont miss their badges anyway.

Role on the database and on the spot removal of BB's that are misused.

Richie-from-the-Boro

sunnyone wrote: »

All to true, I have had to return home when I couldnt get parked and the stats say about a third of BB's are used illegally, so when there are three bays outside radiography one is illegally parked and I miss my appointment because I couldnt get parked.

I would support the removal of all BB's that are used fraudulently, disabled people need to keep their badges safe and not allow relatives/friends to abuse them.

I have never allowed my badge to be misused because I understand how difficult it is to park as a severely disabled person, surely the badge holders cant be that disabled if they allow their badge to be misused because they would understand that they are denying legitimate BB users from parking so they wont miss their badges anyway.

Roll on the database and on the spot removal of BB's that are misused.

- agreed my friend
- I've alienated myself for years on these boards for going further
- I think the badge should be revoked completely for 3 months to 3 years from the official owner
- and the most heaviest of fines or prison imposed against the convicted illegal 'user'
- maybe then the disabled will be able to park closer, which is the intention of the badge

Its nearly always relatives & friends who abuse them, and they, and the disabled legitimate user know they are abusing them, they've just never been caught because the catching was uneconomic till this year. If the disabled don't get their own house in order, bet your little cotton socks someone else will - now that they can.

dori2o

It's not just London where people are reported.

Last year the Manchester Evening News carried a story, stragely enough about another banker, who was misusing the badge of his wife.

The crux of the matter was though, he didn't need to display it where he was parking as there was no restriction anyway. So he got fined for parking without restriction but fraudulently using a BB.

I know our local council does spot checks.

I was in a disabled only car park a couple of weeks ago just getting ready to leave when the warden came up to me and asked to see my badge.

Hopefully the new database will improve things, but without every badge having to be shown to a uniformed officer, everytime you park up, fraud will go on.

I do agree though that those caught comitting fraud should face hefty fines and the badge holder also should face a fine and the removal of their badge for life.

As for the Red Cross, I don't think they are advertised properly.

You ask 10 random people whhat the red cross is for, and the majority will say they help with people injured in wars, and help with famines in Africa.

Very few people realise the help that is available from them.

2 years ago we went on holiday to Blackpool. We only have a very small car and could not get my wheelchair in plus the cases etc.

Someone on here directed me to the Red Cross who provided me with a wheelchair for a week that they dropped off on the day I arrived, and they picked up from the caravan park after I had left.

More needs to be done to advertise the outstanding work these people do, and also what they can do for you.

Errata

Roll on the database and on the spot removal of BB's that are misused.

I watched a program some while ago about BB fraudsters in Uxbridge. The misused BB's were confiscated on the spot.

sunnyone

dori2o wrote: »

It's not just London where people are reported.

Last year the Manchester Evening News carried a story, stragely enough about another banker, who was misusing the badge of his wife.

The crux of the matter was though, he didn't need to display it where he was parking as there was no restriction anyway. So he got fined for parking without restriction but fraudulently using a BB.

I know our local council does spot checks.

I was in a disabled only car park a couple of weeks ago just getting ready to leave when the warden came up to me and asked to see my badge.

Hopefully the new database will improve things, but without every badge having to be shown to a uniformed officer, everytime you park up, fraud will go on.

I do agree though that those caught comitting fraud should face hefty fines and the badge holder also should face a fine and the removal of their badge for life.

As for the Red Cross, I don't think they are advertised properly.

You ask 10 random people whhat the red cross is for, and the majority will say they help with people injured in wars, and help with famines in Africa.

Very few people realise the help that is available from them.

2 years ago we went on holiday to Blackpool. We only have a very small car and could not get my wheelchair in plus the cases etc.

Someone on here directed me to the Red Cross who provided me with a wheelchair for a week that they dropped off on the day I arrived, and they picked up from the caravan park after I had left.

More needs to be done to advertise the outstanding work these people do, and also what they can do for you.

Come to think of it I think I have read about BB enforcement in Manchester, it would be nice if enforcement was practised everywhere.

I have known about the red cross wheelchair hire since my accident, so its been happening for over two decades, Blackpool isnt the best place for manual wheelchairs though and scooters cost a fortune to hire their (or at least they did when we went, we last went about 5 years ago) but the red cross in the program did much more than provide a manual wheelchair, without them she would have been in a home.

dori2o

sunnyone wrote: »

Come to think of it I think I have read about BB enforcement in Manchester, it would be nice if enforcement was practised everywhere.

I have known about the red cross wheelchair hire since my accident, so its been happening for over two decades, Blackpool isnt the best place for manual wheelchairs though and scooters cost a fortune to hire their (or at least they did when we went, we last went about 5 years ago) but the red cross in the program did much more than provide a manual wheelchair, without them she would have been in a home.

scooters £15 a day, or £10 a day if hiring for more than 1 day, Blackpoolwheelchairs.

timbo58

!!!!!! the badge: confiscate the car!

sunnyone

dori2o wrote: »

scooters £15 a day, or £10 a day if hiring for more than 1 day, Blackpoolwheelchairs.

years ago when I didnt have my own mobility devices it was much more but mobility scooters have come down so much in price from even a few years ago, my grandas scooter was over £1000 about 8 years ago, the same spec can be bought for under half that price now.

The same is true for powerchairs, my NHS powerchair is due for renewal soon (but I would like to keep it because it is perfect for its role) and any new chair would be much cheaper to insure than my current chair and certainly much cheaper to supply than the one I had when my lad was a babe.