Blue badge police again

[Rainburstflowers]

Name changes for this as I do every so often.
I have blue badge but my disability is not visible.
For the 3rs time in 2 weeks I have been challenged about not looking disabled and I am fed up of explaining myself

yesterday got out the car and this man came charging towards me shouting “oi you don’t have a blue badge”. I sighed and said “yes I do”. He then said “where did you nick that from?”
I said “I didn’t nick it from anyone I got it off eBay”
He then looked at me and said “oh right and walked off”
as if that was then ok!!!!
or it could be my built like a brick shithouse husband opened his door and got out the drivers seat.

I know I should not have said the eBay comment but I am fed up of explaining myself.

if anyone has any good comebacks please let me know

That's horrendous! A staff member 'heard rustling'? That could be anything, sanitary towel, tampon, even worse that it was your niece's medical equipment. Some people have too much time on their hands.

It comes under

• you are constantly a significant risk to yourself or others near vehicles, in traffic or car parks

The devil being in the detail, sometimes a LA will use the same criteria for a BB as for a Disabled Person's Freedom Pass, being sight of an audiogram showing 70-94 dB hearing loss (Severe - unable to hear somebody shouting) to >94 dB HL (Profound - unable to hear sounds that would be painful for somebody else to hear) in both ears.

Which is a bit shit when you might have a lesser degree of hearing loss but your particular flavour of Tinnitus frequency (and the intrinsic noise of the HA in the first place) obscures the sounds of vehicle engines or vehicles on tarmac, the wind blowing across your HA or one ear is slightly better but not enough to hear an electric vehicle being driven at speed in an noisy area because they're rushing for a parking space or to get to the next set of red lights as quickly as possible.

Other LAs are more sensitive to the realities of trying to navigate and stay in one piece in those situations and whilst there's no wriggle room in the Freedom Pass, there certainly is in BB criteria, especially, I suspect, where a senior decisionmaker is either d/Deaf, Hard of Hearing, has Tinnitus or has/had a relative in that situation.

Tell them their "diversity" score just went to zero and that there are training courses available to help them?
I'd just tell them to jog on, but I'm rude 😀

My best friend has a blue badge, I don’t. When we are out, often I’m the first out of the car as she is fiddling setting the time on the spinning disc thing. I get a lot of “you don’t look disabled” (obviously I’m not) so I quite often say “it’s a miracle! I’m cured! Hallelujah!”

then my friend gets out, or I help her out and the blue badge police shirk away.

Same place you got your medical degree!

Can they not see that the person doing the asking is trying to protect the blue badge holders right to that space?

No, because Blue Badge holders themselves know how difficult they are to get approved for, so would assume that everyone who has one is entitled to it 🙄. We don’t need social justice warriors taking up for us, and we especially don’t need quizzing on our medical conditions.

Fuck my life. Don't explain yourself, don't engage. You owe no explanation. Who are these freak shows?

Wow you sound lovely. And so well informed. Thank you for clarifying the situation for the rest of us. 🙄

I have a very obvious disability, which necessitates a wheelchair on a hoist in a top box on my car. I don’t look particularly disabled behind the wheel and the number of times I’ve been challenged even while the chair is descending to the driver’s door is beyond belief.

The blue badge police just can’t help themselves sometimes, and I really don’t buy into ‘they’re just doing their bit to protect disabled spaces’. In my experience they’re just nosy - why else would they demand to see and handle my badge and ask about my disability. I once had a woman yell at me that I was depriving someone really disabled of a parking space even when she had to step back to allow space for my wheelchair to descend - she then chased me into the store trying to apologise for her ‘mistake’.

OP you have to be thick skinned. ‘Fuck off and mind your own business is sometimes the only thing that works. People have no right to handle your blue badge. They have no right to see the reverse, where your personal details are given. And they have no right to ask about your disability or condition. If they don’t like the reply, tell them the registration of your car is there for all to see, and give them your badge number, and tell them they’re welcome to report you for not looking disabled enough. Twats.

Tell them you are registered blind

I have been the blue badge police, but legitimately.

I walked past a disabled bay and there was a blue badge in the car, but it looked wrong, so I looked more closely.

It had been doctored to run out in 20,011.

Not 2011.

20,011.

So I wrote a ticket.

Let the council sort it out then.

Not really the point. And this is not disabilty top trumps.

It's a version of the Nice Guy (TM), isn't it? Look at me, haranguing disabled women, children and men that don't look as though they'd be able to put me flat on my self righteous arse challenging potential fraudsters in defence of the poor little Disableds.

I have a radar key for toilets because my Ds1 who is now 14 has autism and sensory issues and he freaks out if people use hand dryers next to him. I mean- he is a danger to himself as he starts screaming and bangs his head against the floor or wall. He is taller than me and when he was 5 I could restrain him safely, but now cannot. It was actually a MN thread that helped me to realise this was a genuine need and i woukd not be taking the piss by getting one.

Does not stop the toilet police from coming after us though. Although one would think that seeing a teen coming out of the loo with his mother might indicate there is an issue.

I used to explain. Invariably, it's always an older person who challenges me. I now simply reply... fancy being jealous of cancer. Never had a reply to that one.

@Rainburstflowers or it could be my built like a brick shithouse husband opened his door and got out the drivers seat.

Men aren't intimidated by other men "built like a brick shithouse." Physical assault is illegal, so there's nothing that a "brick shithouse" man could ever do to me.

I think there's a real lack of maturity behind the idea that men are intimidated by bigger men. The size of men is something that never crosses my mind, and it makes no difference to me whether someone is massive or tiny.

The second sentance is absolute FACT. Well said. Presumably the BBP don't have need of a BB themselves, so why even notice who's parking in a disabled bay? It's not as if they themselves are being prevented use of that space if it's a full car park, is it!?

At a push, why can't those with nothing better to do (and want us to believe they're simply performing a civil duty on behalf of all genuine BB holders), just wander across to check ALL vehicles using the disabled bays in the carpark and note if each has a valid BB correctly displayed. If a vehicle does, then move along and leave whom ever is using that car alone. If, on the other hand they find a vehicle with no BB or an out dated BB displayed, then jot down the car details and visit the customer service desk or phone the carpark attendance's number and let them deal with it. But who can be really be that bothered? 🤦‍♀️

A friend of mine was parked in a disabled bay at a supermarket and we were stood chatting as she loaded the car. There was a woman impatiently looking and waiting for her to move so she could have the space. What she didn’t see was although she had her 4 kids with her and she, herself, is not classed as disabled, her eldest daughter has many less obvious issues and qualifies for a blue badge. As such, she was entitled to park in either a disabled bay or a parent child space but the other woman didn’t seem to give a hoot.

So you think people who can barely walk should park miles away from an entrance to pacify a group of nosey bastards?? Seriously, your solution is to scrap the scheme? You are obviously not disabled and are completely unable to put yourself in that position in your imagination for even a second 🤯 Despicable

The blue badge rules advise not displaying the badge until you park up - if you leave it in the car permanently you risk the car being broken into and it being stolen - there’s a huge market for stolen badges. Mine stays in my handbag until I need it, and I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve pulled up in a disabled space and been challenged before I can even get it out.

As long as you are using your own blue badge, then no one has any complaints. I certainly took issue with one bloke in a suit at Tesco. Expensive BMW. 'Hidden disabilities mate'. I said where is your blue badge then. 'I forget things'. I reported them. A month or so later his car was there again but parked further away as it was busy. There were plenty of disabled spaces.

There lies the problem. As long as people like him exist, you can expect people to question those who are visibly walking around unaided. Don't forget also that some are refused blue badges. My neighbour can hardly walk. They have all manner of issues. Blue badge refused. Their daughter does report anyone who has no blue badge displayed. You can understand why and those who walk fine and parked in a disabled spot.

Instead of questioning why some complain about you in a disabled spot, ask yourself why they are complaining.

I get dirty looks and nasty comments nearly every time l go out....My answer is, l would swop this tumour on my spine to be able to do normal things, just like you....soon shuts them up. I wish l was able-bodied, l give anything...

If somebody has genuine concerns about a person’s right to use a blue badge they can note the vehicle number plate and report it to the relevant authorities. If it’s found to be being used fraudulently it will be confiscated. Problem solved without having to shame somebody in public.

Blue badges are not just issued for physical disability.

If you are parked in a disabled spot with no badge, then you deserve to be challenged. If you are parked in a disabled spot with a legitimate blue badge then it’s absolutely no-one elses’ business why you have it, or how invisible your disability is. Blue badges are not just issued for those with walking or other physical disabilities. As a disabled person it’s not my problem if someone has a complaint with me parking in a disabled spot. The reason is between me, my GP and the issuing authority - no-one else.