Crackdown On Blue Badge Scheme

New measures to crack down on “blue badge” parking abuse are expected to be announced by ministers later.

The badges allow people with disabilities to park for free or on yellow lines, but the system has increasingly been open to abuse.

Critics say some local authorities give them out too easily and do not punish those who obtain them fraudulently or allow them to be misused.

One charity has called for consistency in how they are issued.

Blue badges are issued to people who are registered blind, receive a war pensioner’s mobility supplement or higher rate disability living allowance, and to other people with mobility problems who undergo an assessment.

But the number of badges has soared in recent years with an estimated 2.5 million now in circulation nationally.

Consistency

Helen Dolphin, who co-ordinates policy for the disabled motorists charity Mobilise, says there’s a need for much greater consistency with councils taking more care over who gets them.

And Ms Dolphin wants people to be educated about their proper use: “A lot of family members think they can use it even without the disabled person being in the car.

“There are many cases of carers thinking they can use it to park when they go shopping,” she said.

Paul Slowey, of Blue Badge Fraud Investigation Ltd, which investigates blue badge abuse on behalf of councils, says that in some city areas up to 50% of badges are being wrongly used.

He says the powers are there for local authorities to mount prosecutions for fraud when they detect misuse, but “historically enforcement has been dreadful”.

Mr Slowey points to the rail network where ticket fraud fell after companies introduced strict measures aimed at fare dodgers.

“If the use of blue badges is enforced properly then the scheme will function as it should,” he said.