To think that people who use parent and child spaces without children are selfish *****

[hotcheeto]

Fill in the starred swear word as applicable.

I've only started truly noticing how many idiots do this since I had my baby 4 months ago. I can't believe how many people I've seen do it. And yes I always call them out and have had some pretty disturbing abuse thrown back.

I have also always reported to the shop staff to be told it isn't illegal and there's nothing they can do bar having a parking attendant out constantly which isn't possible (I know this isn't the shop staff's fault).

No disabled spaces? Fair enough, crack on. But this isn't the case 99% of the time. People use them because they are close to the entrance. I would rather the spaces be far away from the entrance with a small trolley park nearby with car seat/child seat trolleys.

Yesterday I purposefully parked straight down the middle of two normal spaces because I didn't want to risk having to reverse out just to get my baby's car seat back in. As I was walking in I witnessed 3 separate very able bodied people walk back to their cars without children.

Just really pees me off 😒

I keep a blanket in my car for the baby seat. You really do need a car seat though in that in-between stage where your baby can sit up enough to hurt themselves in the lying down one, but not enough to go in the sitting one.
Still need more room to get baby and toddler out both sides though. I think you found all the selfish cunts who think it's fine to make your life more difficult. Wish I could give them a slap with a Tesco value going off that day home delivered fish.

I wouldn't mind people with mobility issues who are not entitled to a blue badge using them. Lots of people are on very long waiting lists for hip and knee surgery just now.

My dad wouldn't have been able to get in the car in a lot of normal spaces if someone parked close to him as he had to swing his hips into the seat and needed a decent space to be able to do that. Plus he couldn't walk far. He did eventually get a blue badge but that was only due to heart failure rather than needing hip surgery again (that he was too ill to have).

You took up two parking spaces. for your own convenience.
People park in P&C for their convenience.
People are selfish aren’t they….

Just park at the far ends 😂that’s what I do and walk further.

Not really. As long as you can fit your top half in the car. Plus humans are squishier and more bendy than car seats. It's much easier when baby is rear facing as well as the widest door gap is at the right side of the seat.

Those spinning car seats are a godsend

And yes again I don't have magical powers that allow me to detect disability. But I assume a majority of people with disabilities that require a closer spot to the entrance would have a blue badge.

You are clearly very very naive! Severely autistic teen here. No road sense, severe learning difficulties. She outruns me. We have been turned down twice for a BB.

But then at some point you would appear with your mother not park run in and run out with a shop get in car and drive off which i have seen happen. If mum is not with you at any point you didn't need to park in that bay and could have gone in from a normal one rather than prevent someone else from shopping at all. Some people will use the well I've left her at home excuse when challenged and that is utter crap.

what crap unless your a size 8 or deliberately dent your neighbors car with a normal non spinning seat its not easy if the car next door only allows you to open the door 5 inches even with out kids I'm often holding my door trying to squeeze into my car because the one next door is too near. Maybe the spaces are bigger where you live.

I think you’ve had a rough time here op. If I can’t get parked in a baby space then I try hard to get an end space which is usually unlikely. I then park at the back but even then, like you say it’s hard to make sure someone won’t park next to you!

I don’t take the car seat in anymore but being a small mum I find it hard to lift my dd into her car seat without the door open wide. I’ve had to move my car so many times because people have parked over the line or inconsiderably meaning I can’t open the door to get my baby in. This shouldn’t be an argument about invisible disabilities but a place for people to vent about how annoying it is because in reality there are a lot of people who do just park there for convenience or because they don’t want their ‘nice’ cars to get damaged.

I think it depends though as for hidden disabilities sometimes it’s hard to get evidence, we are ok at min as sent sons ehcp and risk assessment from school but when he’s older and left we won’t have anything to send as for autism most ppl are discharged from nhs on diagnosis

@Morph22010 a copy of your diagnosis letter is considered proof for blue badge purposes. It is what I have been asked to send for applications as well as renewals. Pretty much, because once you are diagnosed you are discharged from that specific service and it just becomes part of routine / GP management.

Not crap at all.
I had a silver cross none spinning car seat, am a size 14, 5"2 and drove a focus. Hardly ever had trouble getting baby in and out of car and never dented the car next to me.

Sure it was loads easier when I did have space next to me and required less contorting on my part, I would always choose to have the space over not having it, but just giving my not "utter crap" personal experiences

I am disabled. I am not disabled enough for a blue badge. But there have been months at a time where parking in the vast swathes of parent and child parking occupying all space anywhere near the supermarket entrance were the only way I could make it into the shop at all.

That’s just not true. I have a diagnosed disability and I don’t qualify for a blue badge. It wouldn’t matter how many hospital letters I sent them. You’re lumping all disabilities in the same basket.

Our council require a full form detailing how the child is a danger in traffic with someone else who is not your GP to fill it out. I don't have anyone to fill it out because as you say, once diagnosed you are left to it. It's about 12 questions long. We don't have anyone to fill it out do DD can't get a BB.

I can't get one because I don't score the right points in the right place.

You keep suggesting it's easy, but you don't have experience of every council BB service.

It's fucking hard here.

No, I couldn't have got a car seat out of the gap I needed, it was no more than I'd need to get in and out myself.

very able bodied I was going to say YANBU until I read this bit. Have you thought it being an assessor for ESA work capability assessments or something? Seem as you magically know who is genuine and who isn't ! 🙄

In pretty sure that is their assessment method to be fair... 🤣

Certainly it is very hit and miss!

I COMPLETELY agree with you OP. I am 9 months pregnant with a two year old and generally struggle now to get my DD out the car in a normal space. Its sad some of these responses how awful people can be. Such a sad world we live in tbh. It clearly states there for parents and children but people are so entitled and lazy. They are as you rightly put it *** but I try not to let it ruin my day as there isn’t much you can do.

Absolutely agree with you!!!! Each time when we come over for food shopping I ALWAYS see EMPTY disabled car parking spaces but NEVER enough for parents, parents parking there for a reason that obviously lots of people ignore or don't care about until their car get scratched because you're struggling to put car seat in or putting a little child into car seat ... It's bloody annoys me!
Last time we've been to shopping for groceries as usual parking for disabled were available everywhere, but parents parking all taken up, so we had to park in normal bay with still empty bays by the sides, but when we returned 2 cars parked tightly by our car (I mean tightly enough where we couldn't open child car seat wide enough... at least I was with my husband, and whilst I held our child he reversed backwards for us to get in, I don't know what I'd do if I were in situation with little child by myself... Only because someone lazy took a parent car parking bay , no respect whatsoever...

Yesterday I purposefully parked straight down the middle of two normal spaces because I didn't want to risk having to reverse out just to get my baby's car seat back in.

Selfish or what???? And you accuse others of being twats or whatever.

I’ll tell you why a lot of people use them. Normal parking spaces are way too small these days. When I don’t have my kids with me I use a regular space. I try for an end if I can to get out the drivers side into space. I also try for an empty space that has spaces on each side but often these are taken when I return. I frequently struggle to get into my car and I’m only a size 12. Genuinely don’t know how some larger people manage. Also getting in and out of the spaces is getting harder these days as not everyone parks well and the are you reverse into often is right as well. If I have my disabled mum with me and there’s no disabled spaces I often drop her and then park as she struggles to get in and out of the spaces. I’ve never parked in a parent space with her blue badge even though I know I could.

Also, single parents sometimes need the space for half their time. I’ve dropped my kids off before and needed a space to get them out. Often if I’ve met their dad in the supermarket or something. But then on return it looks like I don’t have any kids. Same for when I’ve collected as well.

I have called people out though and complained. Worse was when I parked on the end in a regular space so I could get baby seat out. The spaces were unusually set out and when I came back someone had parked with their boot right up to my car side that I needed the space on. Couldn’t get it in the other side either as another car was parked next door to me too close to get the seat in but enough to get a small person in. I left a really stroppy note.

When I was a new parent it made me really cross. I’d never used them prior to having a baby. It really made me mad every time I went out. Our local Aldi is the worst. Usually dad and kids sitting the car whilst mum dashed out for the shopping, or some random person sitting in the car waiting for someone else with no kids. Definitely lots of elderly without blue badges. And definitely lots of white vans.

Wow the ableism on this thread is disgusting.
yes having a baby/small child is hard, but being jealous because blue badge bays are enforced is awful.
your hard time parking will e over once your kids are walking.
for some of us that is never going to happen.
threads like this make me want to park in p&c bays with my adult on walking dc just to annoy.

There should always be disabled spaces left (in reality that is rarely the case) because without them many blue badge holders would have no choice but to turn around and go home. For most it would make their trip out even harder than it needs to be and could have a knock on for hours or even day when it comes to pain and comfort.