Reading the thread on Tesco parking restrictions reminded me of a run-in with a mean council.
We were on a trip out to a place in Northumberland with my disabled mother and could not find a space in one of the few blue badge bays close to the entrance to a supermaket. We drove around to find an ordinary space close to the entrance but there were non at all due to an antiques fair being held at another premises. In the end I parked in an area which was not a designated space which I thought was ok as I was not causing an obstruction. Imagine my surprise to return to find a ticket on my screen despite having a blue badge. It was then I realised it was being policed by the borough council.
I made my way to the council offices confident I would be able to explain ths away on arrival I was given the impression the £30 would be waived once my appeals form had been seen by the official responsible.
A week later I recieved notification by the borough council that the fine stood!!.
My mistake was assuming the same rules on blue badge parking on the highways applied in council owned car parks.
I have never returned to this place since that day 2 years ago.
{Actual place name removed, and generalised - DD}
|
Surely ALL blue badge holders are aware that although public highway concessions are consistent across the UK there are widely varying concessions on private ground, whether council car parks, private car parks or whatever.
Mal - there are plenty of councils in the UK like the one you mentioned - edit by DD, just beware.
|
|
AFAIK East and North Yorkshire require payment for all car park parking. All the badge does is let you use some reserved spaces.
|
|
In Beverley (East Yorks) when they introduced parking charges for all including the disabled they managed to install ticket machines that could not be approached by wheelchair users! I think the disabled can now park for free though.
|
not be approached by wheelchair users! I think the disabled can now park for free though.
Not according to their web site.:-
"Fees are charged in all pay and display areas from 8.00am to 6.00pm Monday to Saturday (Monday to Sunday in Bridlington). Parking facilities for the disabled are provided but are charged at applicable car parking rates. "
|
|
|
|
............"Surely ALL blue badge holders are aware that although public highway concessions are consistent across the UK there are widely varying concessions on private ground, whether council car parks, private car parks or whatever"...................
I was never aware of the ability of mean, insensitive, money grabbing councils to increase their income at the expense of disabled citizens. It was not causing any obstruction at all where we were parked, a warning by the parking attendant would have been sufficient to make me aware of the rules.
|
|
|
|
Most councils refuse the 1st appeal as a matter of course. They rely on the punter giving up.
In my experience, most parking restrictions are incorrectly signed therefore invalid. read the Pepipoo parking forum for expert opinion.
|
\my local council has changed the rules to the effect that blue badge holders must be virtually unable to walk more than a few yards for it to be effective.
The mind boggles at the sheer insensitivity of those responsible for laying down such conditions.
One day, hopefully, they will be in the same position and then they might glean some sense of the sheer frustration of those who wish to take rightful advantage of the blue badge scheme.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
|
The local council CAN'T change the definition of (dis)ability, that's defined by UK and EC law.
Local councils, however, have no requirements to make any provisions or concessions. In some cases they only make provision for vehicles for the severely disabled, which are defined and taxed differently and aren't available to the majority of blue badge holders.
|
had an interesting conversation a number of years back when i took my disabled grandma out for a drive and came across Mr Pedantic, the parking warden
I had forgotten to take her disabled badge with me, in the hoo hah of taking a blanket, wheel chair etc i'd left her handbag behind
drove her up to the The Hoe, the bit of Plymouth where you can look out to sea, etc
drove up onto the promendade and parked in a disabled section and walked off to get us an ice cream...
time i came back the conversation went like this
warden "your car"
stroppy 21 year old "yes, why"?
"you're parked in a disabled bay"
"very good reason for that"
"are you disabled"?
"no, but she is"......pointing to granny who is sat with a big grin, looking out of open window,. which when the warden approached and looked in, realised she had no legs at all, having had both amputated above the knees
and that was that.... was left in peace
|
|
|
|
My mistake was assuming the same rules on blue badge parking on the highways applied in council owned car parks.
The rules are all here ................ tinyurl.com/8wwxh
--
L\'escargot.
|
|
I am afraid you parked in a restricted area, you do not know why it was not a parking space, it could have been a fire brigade requirment to gain access with the bigger or trucks or anything. I'm sorry there was not a space for you but that if life. I am always amazed at the number of cars with blue badges park in the appropriate bay and leap out of there car and rush into the store as though they were perfectly healthy. I stopped a women as she was leaving her car a bit spritely and rudely told me she had cancer. I also questioned a guy who parks in the disabled bay at my fitness gym and he is perfectly healthy in appearance, circuit trains, weights, spins, he informed me that getting a badge was easy. However the club has barred him from parking in the limited number of disabled bays. Your case is genuine but you can not park anywhere. Regards Peter
|
|
|
|
My run in was with Ilfracombe council when they changed their rules during the winter,having not visited since the previous Sept. I parked as usual only to get a ticket,my offence was that I did not have a free road fund tax disc,no appeal was allowed.
If you become disabled after retirement and are not in receipt of any form of income support then you have to pay full for parking,yes I could afford it but it also means that time limits apply which meant the long stay was beyond my walking range,result end of a long association with Coombe,going back to pre war with my parents.
ndbw
|
|
Politically correct censorship is active I see. Why are forum moderators so frightened of factual comment. I'm wasting my time here!
|
Why are forum moderators so frightened of factual comment.
You may know it to be factual, but how do we?
Besides which, the only edit that took place in your post was the removal of the word quoted from the OP's post. So how can I be wasting YOUR time here?
DD.
|
The information censored was the name of a town in the OP which applies different principles to others. There was no shaming, what's the harm in naming? The post was informative but now you've edited it it has no beneficial information for anyone.
Why not just ban the mention of any place, manufacturer, person?
|
The post was informative but now you've edited it it has no beneficial information for anyone.
Apart from not assuming that you can park anywhere you like with a blue badge and think you can evade parking charges / fines of course.
|
|
|
|
Is the forum, or myself in danger of being sued by "Place" Corough counci for chasing away disabled tourists or prospective council tax payers!.....if it were not factual which it is, why would I make such a story up?.
Is that the reason for the the censorship of my post.
With respect Dave, please explain.
Mal .
|
With respect Dave, please explain.
Hi Mal,
To clarify the edit:
I was initially happy to leave the place name in your first post; until you later said "I was never aware of the ability of mean, insensitive, money grabbing councils to increase their income at the expense of disabled citizens."
You *may* not have directly been referring to 'x' council with your comment of "mean, insensitive, & money grabbing" but it could well have read that you were potentially slandering them nevertheless.
DD.
|
RT, I have explained the reasoning for the edit.
As per forum policy, ( www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=33416 ) the moderating is performed in accordance with the small print. Where you feel you disagree with a particular action or the style of moderation please feel free to e-mail the moderators.
Now can we get back to motoring discussion please.
DD.
|
|
|
|
Here is another one on blue badge parking that is true and happened in my local "place"
What realy gets me going are able bodied jerks that think it is ok to park in the blue badge bays as they are just "popping" in to a shop for a few minutes.
Well, there I wasbeside the bays, no spaces left,and along comes a warden checking if all cars were displaying blue badges, I was thrilled to see that he had a catch as one of the cars had no badge. Great I thought, as he got his book out, someone is going to get their just deserts here.
What happened next?
Along comes a pretty young girl on her own with the excuse that she had only been a few minutes and he put his book away, had a little chat with her and let her off.
|
|
DD - I respect the technical input you provide to this and other forums, but this really does stifle freespeech, with no benefit for anyone.
|
RT (and for the benefit of others)
I will *try* to explain this once more, then that really is it. Any further discussion on the matter will be deleted.
The way I see it.
Example 1.
a) "The Ford / Vauxhall / Fiat (note: for example) dealer in 'X' are mean, insensitive, & money grabbing"
b) "'X' borough council are mean, insensitive, & money grabbing"
{'X' is the location, but omitted for obvious reasons}
Both are slanderous comments IMHO.
However,
Example 2.
a) "The Ford / Vauxhall / Rover / Fiat (note: for example) in my local area are mean, insensitive, & money grabbing"
b) "The local borough council are mean, insensitive, & money grabbing"
Example 2 hasn't identified the location / area, whereas example 1 did. The comments in example 2 are generalised and nothing slanderous can be assumed.
You may think I am stifling freespeech - but I am airing on the side of safety; especially when a potentially slanderous comment may have been made.
DD.
ps. please also see:-
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=27804
|
DD, look around other very sensible sites on the internet. They remain decidely free from litigation despite 'airing and sharing' useful information that help one and all.
|
|
|
Sorry for labouring the point, but to illustrate a current thread hightlights Renault and Citroen as being potentially unreliable brands, along with historical HJ car by car breakdowns backing this hypothesis up without the benefit of evidential examples.
Had I not picked up on this I may have bought 'a French car'.
I'm struggling to find the slander; it's an example of shared opinion that can be backed up or ignored. Clearly, the more extreme or outrageous examples of finger-pointing can be outed by the mods and without fear of recourse.
If this forum relaxes a little the benefits are there; genuinely constructive imput in my part and well meant.
|
|
|
>but I am airing on the side of safety
"erring" - i.e. in case there is an error, I am making sure I am well on the side of safety.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
