WIBU to park in a disabled space?

[FairfaxAikman]

Ordinarily I wouldn't dream of it.

Our local supermarket closes off half the car park with barriers overnight to deter boy racers. It doesn't reopen until after 8am. ALL of the parent and child spaces are in the closed off side.

DS is still small enough to be in his car seat. In the past if I've arrived before 8am I've parked in a normal space but every time I've ended up with someone next to me, making it hard to get DS back in.

There is a row of 10 disabled spaces, all empty. WIBU to park in the furthest one from the shop?

It's a very simple rule. No blue badge, no parking in a disabled space. Ever. Or expect to get slapped with a fine, on top of being a crappy human being.

I manage to get a 3yo and a baby out of the car all the time without ever using a p&c space. And by far the easiest way to do a shop with a baby is to take them out of the car seat and slot them directly in a sling, IMO.

Well actually they don't. Disabled parking spots are a legal requirement. Parent and chikd spaces aren't.

They weren't around when we were kids and our parents coped

Oh great idea OP, just push those annoying disabled spaced further away

You know YABU. put your child's car seat behind your seat and then park passenger side as close to the white line as you can, leaving space your side to get in and out. It's not that hard.

If you can’t park your car in a normal space and get your small child out then you either need to buy a smaller car or have some more driving lessons.

Oh god you remind me of my mate who went mad when she realised that all p&c spaces were gone and lots of blue badge spaces were available and she didn’t want to get her precious new car marked.
Last time I went anywhere with her.

Disabled spaces are a legal requirement and for disabled people. With blue badges. The end.

All they'd need to do is swap a couple of disabled with a couple of P&C - that way there's the same number of disabled spaces but there's a couple of P&C outside the barrier.

Are you deliberately trying to provoke hostile responses?

Swapping blue badge spots for p and c spots so disabled people have to travel further to the shop? Really?

It’s a tough one

It's really not. Don't park in BB spaces without a badge

All they'd need to do is swap a couple of disabled with a couple of P&C - that way there's the same number of disabled spaces but there's a couple of P&C outside the barrier.

No they really don't need to.

Shop after 8am. Problem solved.

😂 gave me a laugh while I wait for the toast to pop up. YABVU

Yabu! Just park in a standard bay. I agree with pp, if you can't get child out, you need a smaller car or more driving lessons.

How do you manage in car parks without p&c spaces?

If you can’t park your car in a normal space and get your small child out then you either need to buy a smaller car or have some more driving lessons

It's like all those people who buy tanks then kick off when they need to collapse these heavy buggies.

Never any thought to the life style and location when choosing cars.

If you live rurally or go caravaning then you do need a bigger car or 4x4.

If all you do is the school run , weekly trip to asda and you can never find a space to Park or Have to go home minus food, may be invest in a yaris instead.

• Are you deliberately trying to provoke hostile responses?

Swapping blue badge spots for p and c spots so disabled people have to travel further to the shop? Really?*

Appreciate it probably looks that way but I'm really not. The disabled and P&C run in two rows at 90 degrees to the shop. Swap the top two P&C and the bottom two disabled about and you would be putting the latter closer to the store.

As I say I'm just ranting as there is a total lack of parking at this store anyway when the barriers are down, which makes the usual options impossible. I don't drive a particularly big car and I am a decent driver but the normal spaces are tight - they've never been made bigger despite the average car size growing (though that could be said of a lot of car parking spaces).

I opened the thread expecting to read that you currently have two broken legs or something. But it's even worse than that. You have a CHILD, you poor thing. How do you cope

🙄

yeah you knew you were. are. you can't actually do that.

@StarfishSandwich
No - it really isn’t a tough one! If you don’t have a disability parking permit, DON’T park in a BB space. Very simple.

OP - IF the staff member told you to park in a BB space without a permit, they have no idea what they are talking about. It is illegal to park in a BB space without a permit, and that advice is not only illegal but also immoral.

If you have such a problem with entering/exiting your car when you can’t get a P&C space either:
A) don’t go at that time
B) practice getting baby in and out of a normal space
C) park elsewhere and walk
D) speak to the staff and get them to remove the barriers at shop opening time to permit use of the P&C spaces.*

• this would probably be a good option.

Please do not use BB spaces without a permit, do not ask for BB spaces to be moved, or proceed with any other action that impacts on BB badge holders.

Even if they swapped 2 BB spots for P&C someone might still get there before you and have already taken them. Leaving you still looking for an appropriate space round the rest of the car park.
Probably won't even be people with kids in those spaces but there's not a lot that can be done about that.
You'll just have to make do as if the store never had any P&C spaces.

O would like it noted that I HAVE NOT and WOULD NOT park in a disabled space. It was more of a rant.

I'm parked as far out as I can go, with my mid-sized estate (needed for caravan towing and rural living with three Labradors) as close to the line of the small space as possible. However I am very likely to find someone next to me on my return as the car park is reduced to about a quarter of its full size by the barriers and is currently mainly filled with staff cars.

YABVU

Still small enough to be in a car seat, so under 135cm. How old is he?

Depends. Do you expect 10 diasbled customers to rock up?

How do you manage getting your son in and out in car parks with no p&c spaces?

Well YABU as you know and you've said you didn't feel is right.

However I do think you need to write to the supermarket and highlight the problems. For example highlight the ratio of spaces open.

I've written to my local supermarket to ask why the PC spaces are closer to the door than the disabled and the disabled guests have to cross over the 'road'

Depends. Do you expect 10 diasbled customers to rock up?

It does not “depend”. Ffs. Those spaces are legally protected.