MISUSE OF A BLUE BADGE IS A CRIMINAL OFFENCE
Important things to remember:
- You must be a passenger or driver of the vehicle at all times when a Blue Badge is displayed.
- Do not let someone else use your badge to get free or better parking.
- Carers, family or friends cannot use the badge even when carrying out business on your behalf.
- Do not use your badge when it is out of date.
- Do not use your badge when the information on it is wrong or illegible for example, if it has faded.
- Do not reproduce or allow anyone to reproduce your badge.
- Misuse of a Blue Badge by you or another person is a criminal offence, which can carry a fine of up to £1000 and the immediate withdrawal of the badge.
- Parking enforcement officers can confiscate a badge if they reasonably believe it is being misused or is a fake, has expired, has already been cancelled or should have been returned.
Reporting misuse of a Blue Badge
The new-style badges are linked to a UK database of eligible users. This makes it much easier for police, parking wardens and enforcement officers anywhere in the country to verify whether or not a badge is being used legitimately.
Please contact us to tell us about the misuse of a blue badge. All reports are treated confidentially. To be able to investigate try to get as many details as possible from the badge on display (serial number, expiry date, etc) to help us to investigate and take action if the badge is shown to have been misused.
To help you with your report there are a number of different types of blue badge fraud or misuse
Misuse by the badge holder
- Use of a badge that is no longer valid
- Use of a badge that has been reported lost or stolen
- Use of a badge which a Local Authority has requested be returned
- Letting a friend or relative use the badge
- Use of a copied badge
- Altering the details on the badge, for example, the expiry date
- Making a fraudulent application (providing false information on the application) or using a badge obtained fraudulently.
Misuse by a third party
- Using someone else’s badge (with or without the badge holder’s knowledge) without the badge holder being present
- Using a badge belonging to someone who has died
- Copying, altering or making badges
- Using a stolen badge
- Using a fake badge
