Named and shamed: Britain’s brazen blue badge parking cheats
THOUSANDS of callous motorists caught fraudulently using disabled parking permits are being named and shamed by councils.
Under the nationwide scheme, the disabled qualify for a blue pass that allows them to park on yellow lines and in specific bays placed closer to shops.
However, growing numbers of cheats are masquerading as disabled relatives by placing the ‘gold dust’ badges on their dashboard so they can park for free.
Many offenders are eminent members of the community, including doctors and lawyers, councils say.
Last week, Wandsworth Council emailed borough residents in South-West London the faces of six fraudsters convicted of using relatives’ passes – including two wo ba bank employees and a hospital worker – as a deterrent.
Ganett Phiri, 40, who works for London Underground, pleaded guilty to using a friend’s badge, and was told to pay £1,230 on top of the £165 cost to get his car back.
Bank employee Jashree Parmar was found to have been using her mother’s badge. The 61- year- old pleaded guilty and was ordered to pay £1,230 in fines and court costs, as well ll as a £165 tow fee. Barrington Fairman-Campbell, 58, also pleaded guilty to using his wife’s badge to park while he was at work at St George’s Hospital. He was made to pay fines and costs totalling £1,230, plus the £165 tow charge.
In one of the most brazen examples, a 37- year- old woman was caught using her father’s badge – despite him living in Northern Ireland. Angeli McDowall pleaded guilty and was ordered to pay £630 in fines and court costs.
Last night, councils demanded severer penalties to crack down on the abuse. A Wandsworth Council spokesman said: ‘We would very much welcome an increase to reflect the severity of the crime. Whether it should be £5,000, £4,000 or £3,000, it’s difficult to say. But this is serious fraud.
‘This is happening on an industrial scale. These blue badges are like gold dust because they allow you to park anywhere, from hospital parking bays to yellow lines.
‘What’s particularly saddening is a lot of the culprits are doctors and lawyers, the kind of people who should be examples of honesty.’
Last night, the Department for Transport, which manages the scheme, said: ‘There are already robust rules in place to ensure that blue badges are not misused, and they benefit those who need them.’