Parking in a disabled parking bay

You think there was no need for her to comment

I think there was absolutely no need for you to park there.

Other spaces were available. If there wasnt and you couldnt have seen your son cross the car park from where you parked, you should have walked to where you could safely see him. You got out of the car anyway.

As others pointed out...its not necessarily about the parking since there was many other free spaces, its the normalising of this and people then taking it upon themselves to make up rules in their heads "...well I'll only be a second, it doesnt matter" "... I'm waiting in the car so what's the harm?!..." "...there is another free space so I'm not taking the last one..."

Blue badge spaces need to be a blanket no parking unless a blue badge and yes, people should be called out for inconsiderate behaviour in relation to them

“I’d have moved if needed” does NOT work from the POV of a disabled person driving in and seeing you parked in that space.

That disabled person:

• has no way of knowing you are not displaying a disabled parking badge
• has no way to know you won’t be abusive when asked to move
• may not be able to wind down the window, get your attention and articulate the request for you to move
• May not be able to stop the car and block the road long enough to do all this
• may be running tight on time and just need to get on with their life

and on top of that, will likely definitely have had many day-ruining upsetting encounters with “just asking nicely” for someone to move.

People who park in blue badge spaces without a blue badge are very rarely willing to be nice about and immediately move their illegally parked vehicle.

Try asking a few and see how that goes.

Actually no the legal requirement is only 6% of parking bays need to be marked as for Blue Badge holders - SIX PERCENT!

Bearing in mind that Blue Badge holders are much more likely to need parking than non-disabled people, that isn't really that many at all. The building I work in has a total of 5 disabled bays. I know at least 4 people in my team alone have blue badges, plus at least 3 others in my wing possibly 4. There is a second wing, plus we have disabled visitors occasionally. If it wasn't for the fact some of these work mostly from home or out of the office, you'd never get a disabled bay after about 8.30am. Arrive after 9:15 and all the other parking spaces are filled at the entrance end of the building, so you have up to 100m walk to the entrance.

The reason for the somewhat irritable views on here isn't because of that one specific incident the OP is referring to, it's because as stated by many people on the thread this kind of thing happens every single day of our already restricted lives, and it's the attitude in general that enrages us.

Oh this.

YABU for parking in a BB space when you don't have one... but the lady you saw was also BU. She self appointed herself as BB police. Was she even close enough to you car to see you didn't have one?

Or maybe it’s the OP who isn’t ready … because it would mean letting them walk alone in a ‘dark’ car park…..

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Very good point!

Your son isn't ready for that level of independence if you need to park in blue badge spot.

This time. And I'd say there was harm done. She's now taught her son that it's OK to park there without a BB. She's upset a disabled person. Harmful.

Seems like a plop, and run to me.

Are you a people pleaser by any chance? Are you thinking "oh no! People are being so mean - I don't like it!"

Please don't feel you need to soothe the "poor OP".

She came on here either to illicit sympathy, or to gauge people's opinions on her actions.

Well, she's not getting much sympathy and her gauge will be showing her that the opinions are strong. She has her answer.

You’re not a disabled badge user then don’t park there - it’s that simple. I’m tired of entitled people thinking they can do this when they don’t see how much of a lifeline it is for disabled people. In my case, getting a disabled/close space is the difference between me going or being unable to go. If you’re not disabled then don’t use the space.

Yea probably that. Infuriates me trying to get my mums wheelchair in and out tiny spaces when all the bays are filled with cars without badges

Well, no. Hence the name ‘disabled bay’. I don’t think their purpose is the point here, since we all know what it is.

That space is not for you. End of.

Park somewhere else.

That's a personal view isn't it? but in the grand scheme of things it doesn't mean parking or using toilets or sitting In accessible seats etc etc is right though.

If there are only 10 parking spaces in total then the car park is small, and thus all parking spaces are not far from the entrance.
So you were very unreasonable in using a disabled parking spot, no matter how short a time you were parked there.

I’m disabled, and have repeatedly made my views known vociferously to none blue badge holders parking in disabled bays; but in this circumstance I’d cut you a bit of slack.

'Massive inconvenience if people used a disabled bay for a minute or two in the evening picking up their child when there were 8 other spaces available? No it wouldn’t.'

They aren't there for able bodied people to pick up their able bodied 10yr old though?

Yes @Sirzy I mean how dare a disabled person or carers be upset or god forbid angry !

Non disabled people telling disabled people what they should be upset about is part or the bigger issue.

many people who are either disabled or carers for those who are disabled have pointed out that this is an issue yet still people try to justify it

Massive inconvenience if people used a disabled bay for a minute or two in the evening picking up their child when there were 8 other spaces available? No it wouldn’t.

And yes @SquashedSquid , I did read the OP. There was no harm done. To anyone.

Stop enabling and normalising this entitled and self absorbed behaviour. If everyone did it then it would be a massive inconvenience for the disabled people 'rocking up'.

You don't see the issue? The OP parked in a blue badge space when she doesn't have a blue badge. Surely you can understand that very simple concept?

I wouldn’t do it because in my head I just don’t view them as available spaces to me. But to be honest, if there are 9 free spaces and it wasn’t busy I can’t actually see the harm. Especially as you weren’t leaving the car.