Blue Badge warning could see Brits issued with £150 fine in parking crackdown

The fig of Blue Badges successful usage crossed the UK has soared to a grounds precocious bringing with it a caller informing to each drivers. But a informing has been issued to those utilizing spaces without permission

The bluish badge strategy has deed an all-time peak, with a whopping 2.84 cardinal present successful circulation arsenic of March past twelvemonth – a hefty 10.5 per cent leap from 2023 to 2024.

The UK colonisation present sees 4.9 per cent holding the permit. Director astatine RAC Foundation, Steve Gooding, had a connection of caution for abstraction snatchers: "With parking spaces often astatine a premium successful places similar retail parks and supermarkets it mightiness beryllium tempting to inhabit a disabled bay – possibly conscionable for a fewer minutes.

"But we should punctual ourselves that 1 time we could beryllium the ones reliant connected the easier entree that bluish badges are determination to provide." Following this, figures from the Department for Transport person emerged showing a hefty 1,600 reports of stolen Blue Badges past year.

Blue Badges indispensable beryllium renewed each 3 years and tin beryllium utilized to assistance radical with disabilities oregon wellness conditions parkland person to their destination. Depending connected the location, drivers tin parkland for escaped successful wage and show bays, and for up to 3 hours connected azygous and treble yellowish lines. In London, Blue Badge holders are exempt from having to wage the £15 regular Congestion Charge which could prevention drivers £2,500 per year, reports Birmingham Live.

Unmesh Desai, London Assembly Labour spokesperson for policing and crime, delivered a stark informing that Blue Badge theft is "not a victimless crime". He said: "Behind each of these numbers is Londoners robbed of their quality to unrecorded and question independently – and a transgression utilizing their badge to debar parking fines and efficaciously defraud taxpayers.

"With the close funding, grooming and information sharing to assistance support disabled drivers from being targeted by criminals, we tin tackle this problem. I besides promote Blue Badge holders to fell their badges overnight oregon acquisition a Blue Badge Protector."

Paul Slowey, the laminitis of BBFI, told GB News: " The courts instrumentality a precise dim presumption of drivers who usage stolen badges. Someone erstwhile said 'the existent measurement of immoderate nine tin beryllium recovered successful however it treats its astir susceptible members.' These statistic are a bittersweet reflection connected London successful 2024."