Purge on Blue Badge cheats

Deborah Linton

October 20, 2008

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TWO Greater Manchester councils will lead the country in a crackdown on blue badge cheats.

Manchester and Bolton have been hailed a joint centre of excellence in the north west under government plans announced today that will see £55m ploughed into the fight against disabled badge fraudsters over three years.

The two authorities, which regularly prosecute drivers who abuse the system, have been praised for their innovation in enforcing it and will now share good practice with other councils.

The M.E.N. also regularly names and shames blue badge abusers, publishing their details and pictures in the paper and online.

As part of the multi-million pound scheme - the biggest review of the blue badge system since it started in 1971 - the Transport Department is looking to give local authorities the power to confiscate stolen or forged badges on the spot.

Transport minister Paul Clark said it was time to `get tough' and added: "The Blue Badge provides a vital lifeline for more than 2.3 million disabled people in England. It helps them retain their independence by making it easier to access vital services, visit friends and family, as well as to seek work or education.

"That is why it is so important to make sure that it meets the needs of today's society."

Under the review legislation will extend the availability of blue badges to certain injured armed services personnel or veterans, people with the most severe mental impairments or disruptive behavioural problems, people with temporary mobility difficulties lasting at least a year and children under three with specific medical conditions. Eligibility assessments will be standardised across the country.

A £10m national data sharing system will be established to support on-the-spot confiscation of badges by councils.

The government also wants to make badges harder to forge.

Stolen badges are exchanging hands for up to £1,500 on the black market.

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Beaufort (20/10/2008 at 13:10)

These badge cheats annoy me. A mate of min was taking his family to a well known stately home recently nad borrowed a badge that his mate's son had one. This entitled them to free entry.

I used to watch this programme as a kid and won a competition winners badge (fir being runner) up but never got the full badge.

Black Flag (20/10/2008 at 13:35)

"Under the review legislation will extend the availability of blue badges to certain injured armed services personnel or veterans"

What possible justification is there for singling out ex-forces personnel? If somebody meets the qualifying criteria, they should get a badge, if not, they shouldn't. What job they did or didn't do should be irrelevant. If there is a need to compensate them for their suffering, it should be done through the normal channels, not by abusing the blue badge system to do it on the cheap.

thehorse (20/10/2008 at 13:37)

Until the Blue Badge shows the owners photograph on the side that is shown,there will always be abuse.I sit,waiting for my wife in the disabled bay and am amazed at the type of people who get out of stickered cars,I was under the impression they were issued to people with walking difficulties

Ace Shakespeare , manchester (20/10/2008 at 15:04)

Its time to clamp the cars of those with forged badges on,And very large fines for those using other peoples badges.But surely there should be a DATA BASE for all users so that parking wardens etc can check up on cars that display them.And those who use other peoples badges without the disabled people with them should face large fines.And stores and supermarkets should should have the right to give these people legal fines.

meldroo, Oldham (20/10/2008 at 15:35)

I agree with thehorse re the photo on the blue badge.However you cannot always tell if a person is disabled just by how they walk. My late wife who had terminal cancer, qualified for a blue badge as she was entitled to disability allowance because of her illness.Yes, she ended up in a wheelchair,but until then we were allowed to park in the disabled spaces and she could walk from the car. As she always said,"looking at her you would not think there was anything wrong with her".
The cheats should think themselves lucky that the are not entitled to the badge!

jj openminded (20/10/2008 at 17:44)

£55million to deal with blue badge cheats?.....I would've thought (in the current climate of things) saving peoples homes and helping vulnerable people/families with the sky rocketing fuel charges would be a better way to spend the money!!!!

I agree that these cheats need sorting...but £55million?

Tezza, Tyldesley (21/10/2008 at 08:11)

thehorse,

Why would you sit in a disabled bay waiting for your wife? Why not move into a normal bay once you have dropped her off and let someone who needs the bay use it?

meldroo, Oldham

Again if you did not need to park there while your wife could walk the short distance then why use a disabled bay?

I see many people parking in disabled bays who on the face of it don’t need to be there on that particular day (they may need it on other days) but lots seem to have the attitude that “I have a badge so I am going to park there”

And they don’t even seem to care about there fellow disabled drivers

irrelevant, Salford (21/10/2008 at 13:01)

thehorse, you are aware of course that remaining in the car is a breach of the rules of using the badge..

What annoys me more, however, is the abuse of the disabled, and parent-and-child spaces, in supermarket car parks. It seems that there is no way they can actually enforce these.

thehorse (21/10/2008 at 16:37)

to irrelevant tell me where your statement is in regulations the only one is as follows
If you are a badge holder, it can only be used for your benefit. If a trip is for someone else and you are a passenger and staying in the vehicle, you cannot use the badge simply to let them benefit from free parking

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