Parking in a disabled parking bay

you are uncomfortable enough for this to have played on your mind to talk about it here so I think you know in your heart of hearts you didn’t need to use that space. Park a bit further down next time and let DS walk that bit further on his own to help his independence. I agree with other posters, just don’t use the spaces unless you have a badge it is easy to just do it once for two minutes so it makes it easier next time for a few minutes longer and so on.

My local pool hosts a disabled swim session at a specific time once a week, so yes, it is perfectly possible that nine blue badge users could need access to a space at one time. I don't see why that's remotely outrageous.

'There were NINE spaces available and OP was standing there. Like I said, personally I wouldn't have done that, but the lynch mob on this thread is ridiculous.'

It is the principle, it normalises it.

Everyone is special 'oh there were 9 spaces' well what if there were 5 or 4 would she have thought twice? I doubt it.

You don't park in these spaces unless you have a blue badge.

Are you asking for validation and for us all to sympathise and say how mean the lady was to you?

I for one won’t be doing that. She was 100% in the right for slagging you off. Those bays give independence to disabled people by making it easier for them to access the shops and get in/out of the car if they use wheelchairs. You need to find an alternative way for your son to practice being independent without inconveniencing others and taking away their independence.

As a disabled blue badge holder myself, entitled people who do this sort of thing really annoy me. It’s always ‘just for a few seconds’ aka hours

In these circumstances I don't think you did anything particularly wrong but that lady is not a mind reader and she doesn't know whether you are the kind of person that does what they please for their own convenience or a person that considers others and has seen that nobody is likely to be affected by their actions in this moment. If you are going to do this then you have to suck up the comments- I wouldn't do it. If the non disabled parking area was massively further away then I would have parked up and walked closer but maybe not to the entrance to still give a small degree of independence.

It’s a slippery slope though innit? Every person illegally using a disabled bay has an excuse for it. Unless there is some disability or injury requiring it, no excuse is good enough imho.

It is so ironic. Teaching a 10 yr old to get changed by himself (at 10 that surely should be straightforward if he is NT) but then teaching him how to do whatever regarding disabled facilties. Priorities need a review I think.

Your child is 10 not 5.

You can’t even let your 10yr old find your car in a deserted car park without feeling the need to park in a disabled bay right by the entrance. This is only excusable if he is disabled and can’t cross a road safely by himself.

Good grief, what ever will you do when he is in year 7 next year and expected to make his own way to and from secondary school?

Nine at once?!

When I was parking with my wheelchair bound husband, it would make all the difference in the world if someone was parked but standing by their car. I could then wind the window down and ask if they could move. If they'd disappeared into the building, we'd have no chance.

There were NINE spaces available and OP was standing there. Like I said, personally I wouldn't have done that, but the lynch mob on this thread is ridiculous.

'Everyone has a “but…” reason why they think they’re justified using the space. If everyone did that, they wouldn’t be accessible to the people they’re actually for.'

This.

This disrespectful and selfish me me me behaviour needs to be called out every single time.

You shouldn't have parked there. You could have parked in normal space, walked closer to the entrance of the building, then walked back to the car with your child.

I have a blue badge - it definitely is pretty annoying when people park illegally in the bays.

It doesn't really matter how swift the pick-up was, you aren't entitled to use the space and no matter how much independence your son needs at this precise moment, it doesn't outweigh the independence access to these spaces provides those that are disabled. You had no way of knowing how many disabled users could have turned up at that point, regardless of how quick you say you were.

No, people don't need to calm down.

If she pulled up infront of the building and he jumped in fine but she actually 'swung in' to a space and waited for him.

It isn't ok, it normalises it and next time she will no doubt it again, oh and why not in Tesco as she was going to be quick and the other spaces were full etc etc etc.

She r got out of the car to wait for her son how is that not parking there ?

Good for her - sounds like child is being raised with more respect for disabled people than you were.

Everyone has a “but…” reason why they think they’re justified using the space. If everyone did that, they wouldn’t be accessible to the people they’re actually for.

I applaud anyone taking an effort to instil this attitude in the next generations.

Good grief. I'd never park on one of those spaces without a badge, and when my terminally ill DH had one, I'd be fuming if there was no vacant space for us because some randoms were taking them up.

But jeeze, this thread! It reads as though OP murdered someone. In an almost deserted car park with nearly all the disabled spaces being available, even though I wouldn't do it, I'd not turn a hair at someone pulling in very briefly, staying with the car, and picking up a child.

It's like the people who use toilets for disabled people as 'there wasn't a disabled people queuing'. Well maybe not but if every able bodied person used facilities and parking spaces for disabled people because they were 'going to be quick' we would indeed have all the spaces used up and queues for facilities.

It isn't rocket science, if you aren't disabled you park elsewhere.

I wouldn't even say you parked there, you just pulled up to let your child get in the car. There were plenty available. People need to calm down.

How did she know you weren't disabled? Does she know you? Did she peer in your windscreen first to check for a blue badge? Bit presumptuous if she didn't.

If I was just standing next to my car she wouldn't have thought that I was disabled either, but I am and have a blue badge.

You weren't preventing anyone from parking in a disabled space, so she should keep her nose out.

I think everyone is being ridiculous! Common sense must prevail sometimes! If it was late in the day with plenty of empty disabled spaces OP’s actions were affecting precisely - no one. Chill out people, Jesus.

'Experience what "crap" every day? '

People parking in spaces for disabled people? The clue is in the op..

The OP could have been slow to put it out, for all the other woman knew, or could have forgotten. It does happen. She could have asked instead of apparently shouting out to her Grandchild, who would not have a clue what she was going on about. Meh!

No one needs to be “qualified” to point of if you don’t have a blue badge you don’t use a disabled space

Experience what "crap" every day? There were plenty of spaces. OP was with her car and would have no doubt moved if 9 blue badge holders had randomly turned up while she was there? There's no crap to experience here at all.

People leaving their cars unattended in disabled spaces is a completely different scenario to this one