I thought the whole concept of disabled bays was for disabled DRIVERS
Sorry WTM, but it ain't.
I have two few friends who have had disabled badges because of a non-driving disabled family member. In each case the disabled person was not a wheelchair user -- one was an elderly stroke victim, the other a child who had polio -- and both relied on crutches to get around.
Both of these disabled folks really needed someone with them while they moved around, so dumping them and parking elsewhere was not a practical option.
One thing those ain't disabled ought to remember is that disabled folks ain't just people who need to use a wheelchair instead of walking on their legs, but are otherwise fully-fit . There are some folks in that siuation, but many (most?) disabled people have a lot else wrong with them too, and really benefit from being accompanied when in a busy public place.
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I have two few friends who have had disabled badges because of a non-driving disabled family member.
I thought badges were issued to the person with the disability, NOT the driver?
MIL has a badge but no licence. FIL has license but no badge.
And why are they treated as a permit to park wherever the fancy takes them?
WTM
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WTM, you are incorrect on this. Badges are issued to non-drivers but can only be used if they are present in the car. Disabled bays are another thing - these are usually only for drivers except in exceptional circumstances. The idea is that the disabled person can be dropped off and then the driver can go and park up.
We have just had a disabled bay put outside the house for my 4yo son. The reason being is that parking is a nightmare at the best of times and because my son is both physically and mentally handicapped he can't be left on his own while spending 20 minutes looking for somewhere to park.
It is nice to see that the able bodied neighbours are more than happy to use it when there is no where else to park!! Suppose that comes down to him appearing "normal" (save for not being able to walk).
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WTM, you are incorrect on this. Badges are issued to non-drivers but can only be used if they are present in the car.
Ok, why Am I incorrect?
I've also witnessed people displaying badges parking on the black & white bit of a crossing, parking opposite a middle of road crossing island, parking across a corner (effectively parking on two streets at once) and even once on the tramlines at blackpool prom! And then they scream when they get a ticket.....
I've got a lot of sympathy for genuine badge holders, but have no time for the phonies who have 'just borrowed mum/dads badge to nip to the shops'. Likewise, genuine badge holders who park in genuinely horrendous spopts without a really good reason (life or death) deserve what they get.
WTM
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WTM I too deplore the sort of dangerous parking you describe ... but for a disabled person who finds the disabled spaces all used up, there often isn't the option of finding another space at a distance and then making your way back. For a disabled person, the alternatives are often parking illegally or going home.
As volvoman says, some folks should realise how lucky they are. (And to my mind, that includes able-bodied folks who decide to "borrow" the badge, who deserve some sort of public humiliation)
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WTM I too deplore the sort of dangerous parking you describe ... but for a disabled person who finds the disabled spaces all used up, there often isn't the option of finding another space at a distance and then making your way back. For a disabled person, the alternatives are often parking illegally or going home.
At some (perhaps many?) of the out of town shopping centres there's literally nowhere else the for the able-bodied to park if the car park is full. Yet sometimes there will be many empty disabled spaces - is it so unreasonable to use some of them?
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there's literally nowhere else the for the able-bodied to park if the car park is full. Yet sometimes there will be many empty disabled spaces - is it so unreasonable to use some of them?
Yes. Find an alternate car park and leave the disabled bays, empty or otherwise, for those that actually need them.
Although they are empty at the time of you looking, how do you know whether or not someone will be along shortly who will actually need to use them?
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>> there's literally nowhere else the for the able-bodied to park if >> the car park is full. Yet sometimes there will be >> many empty disabled spaces - is it so unreasonable to use >> some of them? Yes. Find an alternate car park and leave the disabled bays, empty or otherwise, for those that actually need them. Although they are empty at the time of you looking, how do you know whether or not someone will be along shortly who will actually need to use them?
But what I'm saying is that at some on them - isolated out of town malls etc - there's literally nowhere else to park, especially at busy weekends. The only alternative is to go home.
So if there's nowhere for an able bodied person to park and they have to abort their shopping trip, why should it be any different for a disabled person?
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But what I'm saying is that at some on them - isolated out of town malls etc - there's literally nowhere else to park, especially at busy weekends. The only alternative is to go home. So if there's nowhere for an able bodied person to park and they have to abort their shopping trip, why should it be any different for a disabled person?
So, basically then, you're jealous because someone who's disabled can park up and go shopping, whereas you're unable to?
If it's busy when you go shopping, then try going at a different time. It's not as though most shops close at 5pm these days.
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So if there's nowhere for an able bodied person to park and they have to abort their shopping trip, why should it be any different for a disabled person?
Because the whole trip is a whole lot more difficult for a disabled person, who may be physically unable to repeat the efort involved on the same day, or may no longer have a carer available a few hours later.
Reading this thread, some folks give the impression of never having talked to a diasbaled person about how their lives worked, let alone with one.
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And why are they treated as a permit to park wherever the fancy takes them?
I don't know whether they are supposed to be used that way, but mobility can be a nightmare for disabled people, so I'm inclined to give them a lot of leeway.
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No way is a disabled badge a licence to park wherever the fancy takes you!
There are more rules and regs. governing where and when you can park than you can shake a stick at.
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My younger sister suffered from MS for 10 years so I was forever locking horns with low-life parked in disabled bays. The steroids made her a big girl too so fighting a heavy wheel chair and a fully loaded, wonkey supermarket trolley on a carpark that always seems to have an incline was often a nightmare. Maybe one could argue that that kind of supreme selfishness is a disability too...
The funniest disabled bays were in the Trafford centre. We never found them. The signs for them led into a continous loop that took you to exit of complex.
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I'm sorry but some of the people should try spending a morning living with a disabled person or visiting a school for disabled children. Like CM I know plenty of able bodied adults with disabled (mentally & physically) children. Not only do they have to live with this 24hrs per day, they have to have their lives made even more difficult by sad people who would rather block a disabled bay than walk 20m using their 2 perfectly normal (if underused) legs.
It's very easy to capture the image of a young supposedly fit person jumping out of a car in a disabled bay and presume they're abusing the system. Well hang around for a few minutes and you might well find that person accompanying someone else who's rather less able-bodied. It may even be that they've several other kids in tow too. What are they supposed to do? Mrs V and I can still just about carry our son if he has a fit and blacks out but it won't be long before we can't and that may be when we need to apply for a badge. Perhaps rather than force a 'normal' person to walk a few extra yards though we should load his limp body into a shopping trolley next time it happens.
Some people really need to realise just how lucky they are.
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My wife is disabled, so I take note of how many spaces there are. It would be unusual to see more than 25 to 30 spaces. I think that our local Morrisons store has the most. How many parking spaces in total would you imagine there to be in a big supermarket car park?
What percentage of the UK's population is registered as disabled?
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My employer goes for a ratio of 10% disabled spaces, IIRC.
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3 disabled bays at my local LIDL today were taken up with parents with children on on board. No blue badges on display. One disgruntled disabled driver parked right across the back of two of the cars and boxed them in with his Range Rover, but didn't cause any disruption to other traffic using the carpark. Subsequently an annoucement was sent around the store asking if the driver of vehicle reg blah blah blah would come to the tills. I happened to be stood at the tills at the time when the wheel chaired occupant of the RR came up to explain his actions and that he wouldn't be moving it until he had finished his shopping. He said that he had been inconvienced by inconsiderate able bodied drivers, so it was his turn to now inconvenience them.
My personal opinion is that anyone who uses disabled bays without displaying a blue badge should be wheel clamped and then fined by the relavent shop or carpark authority and the money donated to charity.
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Come the day that I am tormented by disabled parking spaces because I fear that someone else getting an advantage that I don't get, I shall seriously consider ending it all.
I'm not disabled. I don't need to use disabled spaces. I don't use disabled spaces - not even for 5 minutes to buy a loaf or a pint of bread. Sometimes I park quite a way from the store and walk past empty disabled spaces on my way to the store - I survive the inner torment.
Every now and again I see someone seemingly able-bodied using a disabled space - there are two possibilities; he is disabled in some way in which I case I wouldn't really want to be him, or he is an ass who cares little for anyone and uses disabled spaces without caring in which case I wouldn't really want to be him either - so whichever is the reality I don't get worked up about it, life is really too short.
Someone who abuses the disabled badge scheme or disabled parking spaces ? what small-minded little plonkers.
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In a way you can link this thread to one that was discussed previously and the general consensus was that the further you parked from the entrance, the less chance you had of getting dings and dents in your car from other car doors, trollies etc.
Think its fair to say the majority of us on the backroom would fall into this category.
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Someone who abuses the disabled badge scheme or disabled parking spaces ? what small-minded little plonkers.
Not much different from the people with posh motors (usually BMWs or Mercs on personalised plates) that park across two bays to avoid getting their precious possession damaged.
Rarely do you see any of these cars with a even the smallest blemish. Is it just because they can't bear to see them with any damage and so have to get them repaired?
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>> Someone who abuses the disabled badge scheme or disabled parking spaces >> ? what small-minded little plonkers. >> Not much different from the people with posh motors (usually BMWs or Mercs on personalised plates) that park across two bays to avoid getting their precious possession damaged.
And you blame them? I'm paranoid enough about damage to my car, let alone the people with £10-£60,000 cars. Cars are a lot of peoples pride and joys - why should they have to put up with them being damaged by selfish, careless morons becuase its just 'one of those things'.
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Not much different from the people with posh motors (usually BMWs or Mercs on personalised plates) that park across two bays to avoid getting their precious possession damaged. And you blame them? I'm paranoid enough about damage to my car, let alone the people with £10-£60,000 cars. Cars are a lot of peoples pride and joys - why should they have to put up with them being damaged by selfish, careless morons becuase its just 'one of those things'.
Yes, I blame them, as they would soon moan if a lot of people followed their practice and this resulted in no parking spaces being available when they arrived. Most of us accept the narrow spaces and the almost inevitable damage that will ensue sooner or later. It is part and parcel of life for the vast majority.
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There are two advantages to special parking bays. One the proximity to the destination, but the other is the wide bays that allows the car door to be opened fully allowing easy exit or entrance for disabled people or allow carers/helpers to present the wheelchair to the passenger door.
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Last week I saw the ultimate in abuse of disabled spaces. It was in a service area, containing a petrol station and a small branch of Somerfield. There were only two disabled spaces separated by the usual hatched area to allow for door opening, wheelchair access, etc.
A newish Clio (might have been the souped-up version) with a group of young, obviously able-bodied, men was parked diagonally across the two spaces: quite an achievement in such a small car.
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I don't have an issue with disabled bays at all, and despite not needing to use them fully support them.
What bothers me is parent and child bays. Shameless, ridiculous marketing ploy that wouldn't be neccesary if the supermarkets actually made the spaces wide enough in the first place.
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>>What bothers me is parent and child bays. Shameless, ridiculous marketing ploy that wouldn't be neccesary if the supermarkets actually made the spaces wide enough in the first place.
I assume that "ridiculous" translates as "no advantage for me". Because it is a successful, effective and appropriate marketing ploy.
I don't actually think its much to do with the width of the space, its more a question of how far I want to walk with a trolley and two children who have to be watched - its not like they actually have footpaths that you can walk on safely and you certainly can't trust the average supermarket carpark user to be aware - they're all to worried about how many disabled spaces there are, how many parent spaces, if there is a BMW parked across the lines, if anybody is wearing a fashion they don't like, or any one of the million things about other people's livces which worries them.
Life is too short for such bitterness.
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I don't actually think its much to do with the width of the space,
So how many times have you had your mirrors smashed/ripped of, indicators broken, panels banged/dented/gouged, door handles broken, all by clowns trying to force a trolley between cars when theres no room?
I dont care how far-within reason-I park. the walk wont kill me. what I do care is the space between cars.
WTM
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I know a place where the disabled bays are always free.It is a first floor car park over some shops,parking about 40 cars.A while back 9 slots were made into disabled bays,they are policed by a private firm who will put a £60 ticket on any car that should not be there.As the only way down to the shops is by the stairs they do not see much use.
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So how many times have you had your mirrors smashed/ripped of, indicators broken, panels banged/dented/gouged, door handles broken, all by clowns trying to force a trolley between cars when theres no room?
Erm, no, never happened. I've had incompetent drivers dent my car, but not what you describe.
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I too think it's less to do with room and more to do with selfish inconsiderate people who'd do anything rather than walk a few extra yards and/or just couldn't care less about anyone else's property or convenience.
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I'm not disabled, or a parent, but I'm glad that spaces for these groups exist. It reduces the likelihood of my car being damaged by a thoughtless child or a distracted parent. I don't give much thought to these spaces anyway, as I always try to use the emptiest part of the car park. An extra 30 second walk is no hardship.
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>>So how many times have you had your mirrors smashed/ripped of,.........
Roughly ? Ummm, never. Not once.
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>>So how many times have you had your mirrors smashed/ripped of,......... Roughly ? Ummm, never. Not once.
Thats about what I thought. If you had had hundreds of pounds of damage done to your car by cretins with trolleys you might just possibly think differently.
WTM
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>>So how many times have you had your mirrors smashed/ripped of,.........
Looking back through my records that will be .... Never. Door handles ripped off? by trolleys? oh come on
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>> >>So how many times have you had your mirrors smashed/ripped of,......... Looking back through my records that will be .... Never. Door handles ripped off? by trolleys? oh come on
Read what I wrote, not what you think I should have written.
WTM
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You wrote
"So how many times have you had your mirrors smashed/ripped of, indicators broken, panels banged/dented/gouged, door handles broken"
Ok so How many door handles have you had broken?
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I don't actually think its much to do with the width of the space, its more a question of how far I want to walk with a trolley and two children who have to be watched - its not like they actually have footpaths that you can walk on safely and you certainly can't trust the average supermarket carpark user to be aware - they're all to worried about how many disabled spaces there are, how many parent spaces, if there is a BMW parked across the lines, if anybody is wearing a fashion they don't like, or any one of the million things about other people's livces which worries them. Life is too short for such bitterness.
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At our local Morrisons, the parent & toddler spaces are quite a way from the entrance, so it is everything to do with space. As the victim, on at least two occasions, of a parent pushing a door against my car whilst they got a child out, space is definitely the issue.
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