Woman shouted at me for parking in a disabled spot

I am glad people are challenging. I am fed up of spaces being taken by people not displaying a blue badge. I have been in contact with parking enforcement services who are going to send someone to ticket all the parents who keep parking in disabled spaces to collect their children because they do not want to walk a bit further.

I’ve read it just fine thanks. And it’s still concerning, as is your rudeness. No one is saying all hidden disabilities require a blue badge - I certainly haven’t. What I have said is that those people with hidden disabilities deserve the same respect as those with obvious ones if they are displaying a valid blue badge. Because you can’t see the disability doesn’t mean it’s not there, and if the person has a blue badge it’s because someone a lot more qualified than a random passer by has decided they need it.

I’m concerned because you don’t seem to understand how blue badge criteria works - you kept referencing the fact that they are not issued on an individual basis when that is absolutely not the case. The only automatic qualification is if the claimant has an award of a qualifying component of PIP - which again is very stringently assessed - or if they have a terminal cancer diagnosis and are not expected to live more than twelve months, when the application is fast tracked. And in all cases the claimant is assessed on the medical evidence provided.

I’m struggling to see your point here if I’m honest, I’m also struggling to see where you actually said that not everyone with a cancer diagnosis may qualify for a badge - and again no-one has stated that to be the case.

I watched a youngish couple making their way down the row of spaces examining the badges on cars parked in the disabled bays and when they got to ours there was a knock on the window. I wound it down to be met by a very superior young man telling me that it was illegal to park in a disabled bay if the disabled person wasn’t getting out. I waited until he’d finished and calmly picked up the badge and showed them the photograph of DH on the reverse, explaining that he was in the supermarket. Cue red faces and apologies all round. Fair enough.

Honestly, it never even entered their head, that it could be the driver who is disabled then! How shortsighted of them.

Again not sure why they are troubling? As other posters have said just because they have a hidden disability doesn’t mean they automatically qualify?
My mum has suffered arthritis for 10 years which has not caused her any issues and she’s never had struggle to get in and out of car or walk long distances however in the last 6 months things have changed in her condition and we are now looking to apply for one. Everyone is different!

Mmm You have pretty much echoed my post that not all hidden disabilities require or may be entitled to a blue badge. I’ve also stated that not everyone with a cancer diagnosis may qualify. Therefore your gaslighted dramatic response that my views on this are quite concerning clearly suggest you have failed to read the post properly and you are simply looking to cause trouble. Twitter may be more appropriate for you.

Makes me sick - I bet you didn’t get an apology either. Both DH and myself are disabled and we both have badges. I remember being in the supermarket car park on one occasion waiting in the car while he went in for some bits. His badge was the one displayed.

I watched a youngish couple making their way down the row of spaces examining the badges on cars parked in the disabled bays and when they got to ours there was a knock on the window. I wound it down to be met by a very superior young man telling me that it was illegal to park in a disabled bay if the disabled person wasn’t getting out. I waited until he’d finished and calmly picked up the badge and showed them the photograph of DH on the reverse, explaining that he was in the supermarket. Cue red faces and apologies all round. Fair enough.

Then I said, if you really want to see misuse have a look in the parent and child spaces and see how many children are sitting in the car while the parents are in the supermarket - explained that those spaces should only be used if the child is getting out of the car with the parent. They both scurried off and out of curiosity I watched where they went. Turned out it was straight back to their car which was parked in a P&C space. Their kid was sitting in the back and was hurriedly taken out of the car and disappeared into the supermarket with them !!

And those who automatically qualify do so by satisfying the stringent mobility/mental health assessment for PIP. Unless this poster thinks PIP is handed out wholesale too, because that certainly seems to be how she views blue badge issue. This attitude and the myth it perpetuates, is the reason disabled people get challenged even when they’re displaying a perfectly valid badge - because Joe Public feels entitled to know every little detail as to how they qualified for it.

I agree @Rosscameasdoody . My friend could go downhill really quickly, when she was having a flare up, and it could come on, out of the blue. Just these small concessions, such as having a BB, or radar key, can make such a difference, in her daily life.

I’m glad you brought up the question of individual assessment because I’m not sure what this poster means either. Blue badge issue is assessed on an individual basis and there is a high bar for eligibility and many claimants have to attend a face to face interview before a decision is made.

In my professional experience I’ve also come across many Crohns sufferers and whether the condition was stable or not they all had badges because flare ups are unpredictable, as is urgency. No two people are affected by the same condition in the same way, so the badges would have been issued according to need.

I think some of your views are a bit concerning - especially if you’re a nurse. Blue badges are issued on an individual basis. The claimant has to either present robust evidence which meets the LA criteria for eligibility or satisfy the required components of Personal Independence Payment to qualify. In cases were the LA has doubts the claimant will attend a face to face interview. You can’t get a blue badge for simply being overweight, and nor can you claim PIP for that - I was a disability outreach worker for many years and the only badges I knew of issued for obesity were either for the underlying condition causing it, or for co-morbidities. And whether stable or not Crohns would rightly qualify the claimant for a badge, depending on how their individual condition affects them - as a nurse you should know that no two people are affected by the same condition in the same way.

You also seem to be under the impression that blue badges are issued automatically for cancer. They are not. There has to be a reason for issue. It works on the same principle as PIP - it’s not the disability it how it affects the claimant. Perpetuating the myth that blue badges are handed out like sweets has a knock on effect on the number of disabled people being challenged when they’re not doing anything wrong.

Yes, but what does that mean really? Should a person not have a BB, because they are stable, for who knows how long? They would have had to be bad to get it in the first place. Your views are troubling imo, as a nurse you should understand why someone suffering from obesity may require a BB as well. It is not for you to decide who needs a BB, thank goodness. And it is an assessment on an individual basis, which determines if a person is eligible for a BB, so I am not sure that you know what you are talking about,

The assessment is done on an individual basis unless you automatically qualify

Actually if you had bothered to read my post properly. I mentioned the word stable. Someone whom can be fine for a while and have a flare up would not be classed as stable would they????
I also mentioned that it should be an assessment on an individual basis!!!

I know someone with Crohn's, and she can be fine for a while, and then have a devastating flare up. I would trust that she would know how to use her BB correctly, and was awarded it, because of need, in the first place. As a nurse some of your views are unfortunate tbh.

That's exactly what I'm saying I should have done. If I had checked and seen a badge, I wouldn't have challenged.

There is no issue here. You have a permit. End of. Next time just tell someone to jog on.

Oh and they will draw the wrong conclusions, my mum has one, and as you know they are NOT easy to get. People frequently scowl at me until I get my small, fragile mum and her walking stick out of the passenger side.

edited to add, it’s usually elderly women nudging their elderly husbands and nodding in my direction which I find very sad.

It is? Apart from those who automatically qualify because for example, they scored at least 8 points on pip for moving around, the rest of us had to justify why we need a blue badge. I remember one of the questions on the form is how would a BB help me. I also had to explain my mobility difficulties backed up with evidence

I had no idea it was not now down to individual need.

I’ve gotta say and prepare to be flamed but although I agree not all disabilities are visible, not all disabilities need a disabled parking permit!

This should be as an individual basis like it used to be but unfortunately it no longer is
As a nurse I have seen people claiming for a badge without need. Overweight is one. Another who had stable chrons disease for example. The condition was stable, no hospital admissions, not requiring a regular review or urgent toilet issues but the person has a ‘disability badge’ due to their hidden disability. They didn’t require an urgent toilet If the chrons was not stable and required urgent toilet for example then certainly.

A family member suffered with cancer. Until the last 12 months, you would not think so despite that they an ‘hidden disability’ and they DID NOT need a badge. They didn’t want one either. They obtained one in the late 12 months due to struggling to get out of the car.

The only circumstance in which you can reasonably challenge is if the vehicle isn’t displaying a badge. Even then l wouldn’t challenge - better to take a photo and report it. Let the parking operator deal with it - they’ll happily fine them if they can. It’s never OK to challenge where a badge is displayed. The reason for issue is not your business.

I once had a parent/child Gestapo member almost break her foot kicking my car when I didn't respond to her escalating rant, shortly before my daughter came out of the shop with her newly nappied daughter!

No, you should have checked for a badge and said nothing once you’d seen it. If the badge is displayed there’s nothing to say. The key here is that many disabilities are hidden. Just because you can’t see it doesn’t mean it’s not there.

You "saw what looked like misuse of a disabled space" with no actual evidence, just because they didn't fit the image in your brain of what disabled people look like.

You weren't being some kind of saviour for disabled people who are fed up of abuse of blue badge spaces; you made an ableist judgment that these people didn't look disabled enough for you and created an incredibly uncomfortable situation for people who've likely encountered attitudes like yours plenty of times before.

It's difficult to find sympathy with you.

I don't expect any sympathy. I was in the wrong - I should have checked for a badge before saying anything.