Only 8 x arrested but at least a start to illegal badge use.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-20528815
Flagrant use of forged, stolen and "grandad's card" has gone on for decades, let's hope the punishment fits the srime
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From the article:
The charging of these eight individuals is a very satisfying conclusion to many months of painstaking investigation and intelligence gathering by the council's dedicated fraud prevention officer.
Many months? Wait for driver(s) to return to vehicle - request ID, If it tallies with the ID and photo on the back of the badge = OK. If not, an offence is being committed . A forged badge will be obvious.
How does this take months?
And being pedantic the article refers to "registered disabled" - twice.
There hasn't been any "register" of disabled people for years (since the Disability Discrimination Act 1995). The general acceptance of disability now is the receipt of DLA (Disability Living Allowance) which does automatically entitle a Blue Badge.
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Manchester has been running a scheme for years now and has caught, probably hundreds of abusers.
A team monitors suspect cars and if suspicious will approach the driver when he or she returns to the parking bay. If use is found to be fraudulent, the car is impounded, the user reported for prosecution and names/faces go in the evening paper
I've nor read about much forging of badges, it all seems to be people using elderly or dead relative's permits. I posted a couple of years ago about a warden ticketing my car because he thought my badge was forged......that little episode got quashed when I gave my badge details to the parking people.
What did annoy me at the time was that the letter they sent me told me they were quashing the fine but ' We may not be able to do this if it happens again ' !
All praise to the council for action against the cheats, though. It's not as though they can't find somewhere to park, city centre bays are rarely full.......it's just to save a couple of quid.....grrrrrr.
Ted
Last edited by: Ted on Thu 29 Nov 12 at 14:58
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I could've been in trouble when transporting the late MIL. I'd drop her as close as I could to where she wanted to be and if there were no disabled spaces, toddle off and park with her badge displayed.
I suppose it did look suspicious.
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my local council want to charge me for a new badge and the doctor wont sighn the form unless i hand over £50 for 10 secs work. not a high fee as such but when im ill and have spent a medium fortune on doctors bills
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The City council here have announced they will be charging for blue badges in future......only a tenner.
The evening paper ran this story and came up with an interview with some turnip in Wythenshawe who bleated that his li9fe was now going to be ruined. He would not be able to go anywhere, housebound with his ( presumably ) Motability car rotting into the driveway. There was no way he could afford a tenner from his pension/DLA/pension credit.
Might as well top himself, etc, etc.
There were a huge amount of letters in the postbag against this guy, pointing out that the money covered 3 years use...£3.33 a year for free, unlimited time parking in all council street bays and car parks in the City...and most elsewhere as well.
I use mine all the time, today while sorting a car out in one of our bays....conveniently close to a city centre greasy spoon where fried bread, bacon and tomatoes with a mug of tea helped combat the cold !
Ted
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>> im ill and have spent a medium fortune on doctors bills
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Why do you have to pay doctors bills? Do you not live in the UK and get it all done on the NHS?
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Edinburgh disabled badge clampdown - Jacks
