To moan at a man parked in parent & child bay when he was clearly childless!!

[Nannyto2]

Had a lovely moan at a man parked in a parent & child bay today at a supermarket!! He told me to f**k off as he could park there as it was the first space he saw and he has a daughter at home!!!!

Carpark attendant saw the incident and told me I was out of order!!! As a result of this idiotic man parked in that space I had to struggle to get a infant carseat out of a 3door car in a normal space.

Was I unreasonable to have a go at the man??

Sorry for the long post

Shelly, I get what you're saying, I totally agree they're not the same.

Unfortunately, to probably 95% of the population, they are EXACTLY the same thing - a more convenient space near the door with more room.

So if a P&C space is there, I don't get why you'd park there without "reason" (and yes of course being disabled is a reason) as if you do, then to your average Joe, you're just reinforcing the message that it really doesn't matter who parks there or not.

The thing is people associate disabled bays with physical need, and p&c with convenience.

Pickles I think you're absolutely right, I hadn't thought of it like that. I associate them with 'need' because it's labour that's caused all the physicial difficulties I have now, like not being able to walk very far.

...But then that's why I shop online!

Tufty- , I'm not one of the people who uses them without a reason.. Just thought it seemed like a better system.

Can't you get a blue badge feak? Then you wouldn't have to rely on them.

Not sure how it all works.

Land and absolutely nobody would have a problem with that.

What people do have a problem with is people who don't need them using them when it would be far safer for mothers with toddlers to be nearer the store and not navigating dangerous car parks with heavy trolleys over crappy surfaces whilst holding a toddlers/toddlers hand/hands whilst possibly pg etc,etc and easier for mothers of toddlers/babies being able to get kids and seats out with more than a 10 cm gap.

It took over 5 mins as some twat next to me can't bloody park in his own bay! And I wasn't going to lump a baby in carseat half away across the carpark

Hopefully the op I've just had is the last one and once recovered I'll be able to fling DS out the back, sling him over my shoulder and leg it accross the car park

Get a trolley first nanny and push the little blighter in.

But you chose to park in a space you knew you would struggle to get the baby out. Why? Makes no sense at all.

Glad to hear it feak!

TidyDancer - in our local Asda there is a notice which says you risk being fined if you park in a P&T space with no car seat. Whether these fines can be enforced I have no idea. Years ago at Tesco you used to have to get a badge from customer services to use these spaces with your child's date of birth etc. These are the reasons why people start to think they need a bigger space than they actually do because they have a child with them.

I think the only way to stop the arguments is to remove them.

For this very reason I wish they would put P&C spaces at the back of the bloody car parks. I don't give a fuck that I have to walk half a mile into Tesco's, I care that I can't get the children out of the car!

Next time, just park him in. Or park on the other side of him, in a regular space, just very close on the edge of the extra bit beside his car IYSWIM, and door bash the dick.

Hard.

Exotic people want the spaces for their wide expensive cars, seriously thats what I got told and honestly as a mother of 3 under 18 months I needed to be near the store. It's a nightmare pushing a heavy trolley with crap wheels over crappy surfaces whilst holding little hands.Car parks are way more dangerous than they used to be.

It's lovely taking my 3 now and being able to park anywhere,I seriously didn't relish the sweat of finding a P&C space and a double trolley on each shopping trip(you'd be amazed at the amount of selfish people who use double trollies when they don't need to).

I parked there as I wasn't going to lump a heavy carseat through the car park & the man was sat in his car so I presumed he was leaving!

I can't get excited by it- when mine were young there were no spaces and we managed!

Also I wouldn't leave a baby in the car while I walked to the other end of Carpark - car would be out of sight

I know, perception. The supermarkets really do not help the attitudes.

Those signs will say they can fine you, but unless it's a local authority car park, they are invoices and not fines, and therefore not legally enforcable.

I can conceive of the argument that spaces should be bigger because some people really are shit at parking, but this has little to do with P&C spaces. Other than to stop people moaning.

It used to wind me up when people parked in them without small children. To stop me getting wound up I now call them Parents and Incompetent Parkers parking spaces. I think if they really can't park in a normal size space they are welcome to them.

No Kladd but they don't because they have badges which family members can also use.I have a friend who has one for her child and another who has one for herself, have never heard of either having problems with needing a P&C space,why would they-they have badges?hmmThere are always hoards of disabled spaces quite rightly in far better places than the P&C.On the rare occasion a disabled person needed a P&C space they'd simply display their card which nobody would have a problem with and the man in the op didn't do so obviously not disabled.

At every Tesco I've been too recently, P&C spaces are closer to the door than the disabled spaces. Sometimes the disabled spaces are full. Sometimes a P&C space is better suited eg if it's an end of row space or because of the kerbing or cobbling which is popular these days. When I park, I choose the optimal available space for me.

As for displaying the badge. Two things, firstly it is to show the parking attendant that I am allowed to park in a disabled space, it is not intented to show angry mummies that I am disabled. That is none of their business. Secondly there are circumstances where I don't have it on me so use the P&C space instead eg the gap between sending in the old and receiving the new or when travelling when I've had to leave it in my parked car and am in another vehicle.

So basically you chose to park somewhere which would make things harder for yourself. There where no p and c spaces left so you decide to squash into a space you know you will struggle with. Sounds rather daft to me!

Exotic lucky you maybe you had bigger gaps between dc,didn't have a C-section scar,shopped at a store with decent tarmac(our Tesco which I stopped going to is so shit you need too hands and a lot of effort to push a laden trolley over it so any toddlers have to be trusted to follow),shopped before cars got so bloody big,spaces got smaller,car parks so rammed and people took more care driving.

It's nice you managed but is it so hard to have empathy for others who find it hard?

Mildred I suspect because the tosser next door had over parked and the width between the door cracked open was less than the width of a heavy car seat-not rocket science.

Also not rocket science to park away from the tosser who has overparked - find a less busy area of the car park, maybe then it would be possible to get the seat out within 5 mins

Erm if the man was there First why "door bash the dick"

Nanny you chose to park there. You could have parked next to a trolley bay and wheeled the baby in.

Ermm no I expected him to have moved as he was sat in his car - engine running & reverse lights on!!! Instead he sat there & glared at me.

I parked where I parked so I didnt have to lump a heavy carseat across the Carpark

All the trolley bays are outside the store of only tend to have the small or seated trolleys. Parking next to the trolley bay is a nightmare as they have huge metal bars!!