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

Come back.

I am a Asylum Seeker and got one automatically when l fell off the dinghy the minute l landed here because l suffer from anxiety.

So there!!

No they aren't trying to protect anyone's space,they are just trying to be RIGHT.

That is shocking @Lovelysausagedogscrumpy

Obviously the staff member was lacking in the independent thinking department.

Anyone who needs an accessible loo should not have to justify themselves, or have to speak to a store manager to access one. From hearing of the regular negative interactions my niece has with members of the public or staff it happens way to often.

Look, I get the point(s) being made here and empathise with those with disabilities BUT surely at least some of you can see how it can appear to other people when they see someone who "appears" to have no obvious physical disability preventing them from using non-disabled parking spaces?

Also, you are aware that there actually are people out there who,

a) just park in restricted parking spaces such as Disabled or "Married with Children" etc. spots because they simply "can't be arsed" and feel entitled to ignore "rules" that apply to "other people".

b) go so far as to use fake Blue Badges

c) have a valid Blue Badge entitling them to use it when driving a disabled person entitled to the permit, but who just use it anytime they want to.

Given the above then how would you suggest that they/we address those problems?

Posters have already patiently explained, if they have concerns, take the badge number, car plate etc, and contact the relevant authorities. Do not harangue people in the busy car-park, on the street, etc. It is not people's right to do so.

What a silly comment. You are never going to be able to magically know if someone is telling the truth about an invisible disability anyway, so what on earth is the point of appointing yourself as the blue badge police and upsetting people who genuinely do have an invisible disability?

@Shotokan101 - people need to learn that not all disabilities are visible, and that people with disabilities should not be aggressively challenged about their ‘right’ to a blue badge, or forced to give their private medical information to pushy strangers.

As @LadyKenya says, there is a proper process for dealing with these concerns - take the badge number and number plate and report the user. But as others have said, these blue badge police don’t want to do something quiet and unobtrusive - they want to parade themselves as community support heroes - ‘Look at me - I am such a good person, standing up for disabled people!!’

Yes, people do misuse disabled spaces and blue badges and some do obtain fake ones - but this does NOT justify people aggressively or forcefully challenging disabled people who are just trying to go about their daily lives. People with disabilities on this thread have said, over and again, that they don’t want the BBP patrolling the car parks and policing blue badge spaces in the way that they do. Why not listen to them?

Sorry.....you said you didn't know about the legalities, whereas I had already referred to the law as stated in the 2010 Equality Act in my post that you replied to.
But it looks like I've misunderstood.........I thought you thought I was condoning able-bodied people not giving preference to people with disabilities.
So I apologise for that.
Returning to some other points raised on this thread, the training course I was one was several years ago, so my memory isn't crystal clear.
The course was run by a law lecturer.
I seem to remember the law dealing mainly with the provision, siting, and construction of accessible loos.
I recall him saying that guidance on their use recommended that indeed anyone could use them, but priority should be given to disabled people.

It's not a failsafe, but do you have the passenger assistance app? You can use it (or ring up) to book assistance. If you tick "help finding seat" and "request priority seat" the staff should make sure you have somewhere to sit, they're usually quite good at making people move if necessary. You can also request help with luggage.

No, I'm not going to be grateful for you or anybody else acting like a dick to potentially vulnerable people because you're convinced you're some sort of knight in shining armour for the Disabled. But only those with the right kind of disability - the nicely visible ones - at that.

We're not helpless little noble cripples that need to be defended by brave normal people so we can swoon and go 'Oh, my Hero'. Surely at least you can see that it's intrusive, offensive, intimidating and patronising to use us as a shield for unacceptable behaviour towards others just so you get a buzz out of it?

Thank you, I’ll look at that.

You're welcome, hope it helps. I book assistance because I'm a wheelchair user, and 99% of journeys go smoothly (I travel by train fairly often, although not daily).

surely at least some of you can see how it can appear to other people when they see someone who "appears" to have no obvious physical disability preventing them from using non-disabled parking spaces?

And why exactly should people suffering from invisible disabilities feel they have to give a shit about how it appears to other people? Those other people could try minding their own business, perhaps?

How do you think it appears to those of us with the invisible disabilities? It's very intimidating being told by complete strangers that you're essentially in their eyes faking it based on no evidence whatsoever

I can only assume you're lucky enough to not have an invisible disability?

Maybe, just maybe, if disabled people didn't feel so persecuted, they'd be able to take this PoV. However, walk a mile in their shoes and see how feel about it.

Try not to let it get to you. I’m a wheelchair user so very obviously disabled and still get grief from the older generation. I’ve been told I should respect my elders and let them have the space (the woman in question said she was 86 and went on to put 3 bags of compost in her shopping trolley and walk around the store pushing it 😳)
Granted it was worse whilst I could still walk but it never goes away. You’ve just got to grow a thicker skin and have a come back or simply say, I’m aware thank you. It’s not right but it’s not going to change unfortunately.

We both know that such reports or complaints are pretty much going to end up in "the circular filing cabinet", and even if that wasn't standard practice, you'd have to be pretty intrusive to gather relevant "evidence" - photos of the car registration, person, badge etc. and for the scenario that it's a "designated driver" you'd have no way of getting evidence of a breach short of following them around and/or waiting, for possibly hours, for them to return without "the badge holder" in tow.

Even more reason for them to just mind their own business then, would you not agree? Nobody has to prove anything to anybody, when they have a badge displayed. The only person going to handle my badge, apart from myself, is a traffic warden, or the Police!

I am baffled by this TBH… Who genuinely has the time to stalk the disabled spaces in a car park to try and call out blue badge holders? The worlds gone mad!!!

Some people, who think that they are performing a civic service on behalf of disabled people. Maybe some of them might learn that they are not actually helping at all, if they read the thread, and take on what disabled people here, are saying.

When I’m told “you don’t look disabled”…I respond “you don’t look like an f*ing idiot but here you are” ☺️

Your question wasn't relevant.

If you can't understand the simple concept that if someone is displaying a blue badge, you leave them the fuck alone, then perhaps you shouldn't be leaving your house alone.

Id take a look around the back of them, look from side to side to try and see behind - then when they ask what you're doing - as they will

Say I was looking for the ventriloquist, as I thought you were the dummy but couldn't work out where they'd gone - did you escape

Ok, so given that we've established that blue badge vigilantes are extremely unlikely to achieve anything by either challenging blue badge holders or submitting an official complaint, what exactly is your justification for defending their behaviour?