Is applying for a blue badge really that difficult??

[AuntieBiotics]

Inlaws are being very very difficult and intransigent about applying for a Blue Badge. Both are 82. MIL has osteoporosis, fell last year and broke her hip. Very little vision in one eye and lacking in confidence when walking. FIL the same age and has COPD.

We suggested they apply for a blue badge - they don't go anywhere much other than the supermarket and the doctor/hospital but it would make things so much easier parking at the door and FIL not having to leave MIL while he parks. My mum is younger (by a year) and has a blue badge - she was awarded it while waiting for a hip replacement but it was not me who did the application, it was my brother.

Inlaws say it's too hard, too many questions, have to be on benefits (I know this is rubbish), have to provide medical notes, get a letter from the GP. And besides, Marjory next door / the hairdresser's cousin / some man in the GP's waiting room applied and was turned down as not eligible and are far more disabled.

In England it's free to apply, if successful you have to pay c. £10 for the badge.

My parents were ok about badges, although one got approved and one rejected initially - typically, the less mobile one was rejected. They eventually (years) agreed to Attendance Allowance, which isn't means-tested, and as they only get small state pensions (not the full), it made a huge difference to their income level. Both now have blue badges, we were able to supply lots of consultant letters as supporting info.

In our neighbouring county almost all applicants have to attend an in person assessment in a building without parking so if you walk there rather than are dropped at the door it tells them you can walk further than claimed.

I did it for my mother:
It is quite a complex form
You have to attach a passport sized photo,
Proof of address
Possibly passport, can't remember
You have to detail their limitations exactly
I attached medical repprts/letters
Mother gets attendance allowance so included that

She wasn't in one of the automatic categories and looks OK for a 90 year old. For the assessed category her county was quoting 16 weeks. It came through in 8.

They will need help.

MIL (in England) gave the same excuses for years- too tricky to fill out, Barbara who is blind with no legs was refused one etc etc. Turned out she was worried that
-She'd need to do a driving test in front of someone
-They wouldn't think she was disabled enough
-Take her licence regardless!

Her GP surgery had a specific person to help fill it out. I don't think it was the practice nurse or Dr, but more admin support/HCA possibly, but someone that specifically helped fill in the form. That might be another option for them to try.

I helped my mum renew hers recently, which i am sure is easier than a first time application, but it was all of about 10 minutes in total. No need for passport photos as a digital photo could be uploaded. I would take a look at their local council rules and see what they need.

However, this does sound more as if it is about accepting their disability rather than the process. My mum was the same about AA, so I filled in the forms for her, and her inability to complete the paperwork became part of the narrative. Now she is getting the extra money, she is annoyed with herself for not doing it years ago!

I just filled my mum's in for her and it took me 2 hours to add all her medications and conditions, answer the questions about mobility, give details of her medical professionals etc. I was losing the will to live by the end. They've now replied asking for evidence from medical professionals and receipts for her mobility aids so we'll need to chase all that up as we only have appointment letters. I'd already sent a photo of her prescriptions. I'm finding it a flipping nightmare -can't believe everyone saying it's straightforward! Maybe it depends on your local authority. She'd already applied once through a council one stop shop but then they emailed asking for more evidence which she didn't return within the timeframe (as she found it too over-whelming) so they cancelled the application.

Shame they won’t do AA application. That can passport to other discounts and services

My experience was that it was really straightforward. I truthfully put that the main reason was ‘old age’ which meant my aged parent relies me to drive home to the docs and hospital appointments and he just can’t walk more than about 20 paces because of how incredibly old he is!

If you are on certain rates of PIP you get it automatically, this is how I got mine.

I tried to get one while I was still appealing my PIP decision (it took 18 months) and I was refused despite GP letters etc and an NHS wheelchair. It really can be a nightmare to get one if you are not on benefits. It does vary from place to place as each council have their own rules and decision makers.

I'd obtain the forms and do as much of the application for them if you can - having to write down exactly how broken you are into an application form is mentally a very rough thing to do and my DLA/PIP renewals always end up with me having a breakdown due to the stress of it all. I don't even claim for MH issues and it still affects me that deeply.

Contact your local AgeUK helpline ask for a their form filling service

Actually I think they hsve a team dedicated to blue badges tooo

I just did this for my elderly uncle. The form was straightforward. You do need to provide evidence - I had lots of hospital letters as evidence and the GP wrote me a letter too. Hardest thing was the proof of ID as (per lots of elderly people) he doesn’t have photo ID is a driving licence or passport and they wouldn’t accept a bus pass (even though they issued it!) Managed to get round it with his NI number being on a pensions letter. Process took about 3 months from start to finish. Has definitely made going to hospital appointments and doctor’s appointments a lot easier when I take him.

My mum should have a blue badge (she’s been eligible for ages but we haven’t got round to applying). When I looked into it last I think it was an application through a .gov website (which then gets passed across to the local authority to issue the blue badge) and required photo id in the form of a passport or driving licence. As she’s severely sight impaired her driving licence is long out of date and her last passport expired in the 1980s (the last time she went abroad was to Ireland and her Freedom Pass sufficed for that but it’s not enough, it seems, to get a blue badge). A new passport would be useful (and free, given her age) but applying for one means knowing where and when her parents were born and that’s lost in the mists of time. I know I should get my act together but somehow I never quite do.

My mum was like that - felt guilty applying for benefits, so she never did.

There comes a point when you realise you can’t make them, and they’re not going to change, so you just have to let them get on with their lives. And listen to the moaning about parking at the hospital WHEN IT’S SOMEONE ELSE WHO DRIVES YOU THERE AND YOU WON’T APPLY FOR A BLUE BADGE!!! 😁

Looking again, I think a birth certificate would also work as id. No idea where that is (she’s a hundred and hasn’t needed it in decades) but presumably we could apply for a copy so that might be the way to go.

In some ways that could be correct.

My DD was entitled to a blue badge automatically in Scotland, but isn’t in England as it’s slightly different.

This appeared while I was typing but the pension letter thing is interesting. That could save a lot of hassle!

That’s not correct everywhere in England. Here you have to pay £10 on application and it’s refunded if you are not successful

Northamptonshire is terrible. They seem to refuse everyone first time or if reapplying for an expired one.

But that is for old people and they are not old.

(I know, I know)

Since each council administers it differently, I stand corrected that some charge in advance.

I've just checked my council, and they're still pay if successful, so I guess it just depends where you live

Make sure they both apply if they go out independently.

I think it might vary between councils…. I am in England (south) and didn’t have to pay the £10 until such time as they’d accepted and confirmed he was eligible to have one (& jumped through photo ID hoops). They sent me an email when it had all been ironed out and then I had to pay. Badge arrived about 10 days later.

Please don’t assume we all get bamboozled. I’m 80, I have a blue badge, full knee replacement, neuropathy in my feet which affects my balance, etc., etc. I’ve just reapplied to have it renewed. Online. By myself. The online application is a bit time consuming, but it can be saved and returned to.

A family member clearly needed one, put off applying for a long time. Struggled with the forms but did recount the level of detail they put into it and supporting evidence they sent. Finally sent it off and to everyone’s disbelief it was refused straight away. They were blocked from reapplying for 6 months or something

A specialist support worker from an organisation that helps with their condition then filled it out (still to a few sessions and hours). This time, after a few months, they were approved!

Took a long time and things like this do feel much harder to do for a lot of people in the position where they need them.

I got one.

application process fairly easy, forms quite quick.

not in benefits or anything at the time (but had been in an accident and could not walk at all).

they did an in person assessment which was fine.