ONE blue badge has been confiscated and two on-the-spot fines issued following a ‘day of action’ in York to crack down on blue badge cheats – people using badges when they have no right to do so.

Council parking officers teamed up with fraud investigators from Veritau – which investigates fraud on the council’s behalf – for the day of action on June 2.

It was part of a national day of action designed to check the use of blue badges and ensure disabled parking spaces were being used correctly.

The York team checked 84 blue badges across the city.

“Two penalty charge notices were issued and a badge was confiscated because the blue badges were being used by people who weren’t badge holders or who weren’t supporting the badge holder,” a council spokesperson said.

The blue badge scheme is designed to help disabled people park closer to the city centre, or wherever they happen to be going.

“A blue badge must only be used when the owner is present, or the driver is parking specifically to pick them up or drop them off,” the council spokesperson said.

“Although almost all blue badges are used correctly, there is a small minority who fraudulently use other people’s badges, either to save money by parking in disabled bays or who just want to park closer to their destination.

It’s an offence to misuse a blue badge, with offenders facing possible prosecution and a fine of up to £1,000.”

Earlier this year, magistrates fined visitor Thomas Prior, 68, of Waterside Road, Barton-upon-Humber, for misusing a dead family member’s blue badge in York in August last year.

Veritau investigated following a report from a civil enforcement officer, who had noticed that the expiry date on the blue badge had been altered to make it seem still valid.

Mr Prior submitted a postal guilty plea. He was ordered to pay £1,652.67 which included a fine of £600, costs of £812.67 and a court surcharge of £240.

Pauline Stuchfield, director of customer and communities at the council, said more than 7,200 blue badges were held in York.

“We know that fraudulent use of them is a concern for the disabled community,” she said.

But she urged people not to directly challenge people they suspected of using a blue badge illegitimately.

“Not all disabilities are visible,” she said. “To avoid causing any unnecessary stress for a genuine blue badge owner, please report any suspected misuse of a blue badge to Veritau rather than challenge an individual directly.”

Disability rights campaigner Flick Williams said she welcomed the day of action, and ‘absolutely’ supported efforts to stop people using blue badges inappropriately.

But she pointed out that the fact that just three of the blue badges checked on the day of action were being used incorrectly demonstrated that the vast majority were being used as they should be.

Neil Ferris, director of place at City of York Council, said: “The misuse of blue badges has the added consequence of depriving disabled people of facilities specifically provided to meet their needs. The day of action aims to support disabled people’s continued access to services, employment and activities.”

Anyone concerned about blue badges being used inapproriately can call Veritau’s hotline on 0800 9179 247, or email fraud@york.gov.uk. The call can be anonymous.