Parking in a disabled space when a car park is full

[borcy]

JimSuperSix said:

g3org3y said:

hyphen said:

g3org3y said:

Pica-Pica said:

Sheepshanks said:

Hol said:

meatballs said:

Best entertainment is when some doddery old gentleman, who probably can't even make out the markings, parks in the busy parent and child bays when the disabled bays are all free. Queue wrath of the mums.

Can’t say I have ever seen that occur in reality.

I did something like that - the P&C spaces looked normal size (I've looked on Google earth and they are) and I thought the signs must relate to spaces on the opposite side of the divide. I realised as soon as I was in the space and the grandma is the car next to us starting yelling, but couldn't get out as another car had stopped behind me, and the driver got out to ask if I was leaving. It got very shouty and I think the trolley lad probably saved my life.

Just to clarify, they are for drivers with children, they don’t have to be their parents. FTFE.

The actual spaces are the same size, it's the gaps around them between spaces that is the big help. Much much easier to get the baby seat in and out of the car

Tesco refer to them as 'Parent and Child' spaces.

Its a nice to have.

A 1st world/modern problem,

They didn't have these spaces when many grew up. And with 99% of supermarkets, if you go out of peak hours, you can park towards the end with space around you.

And as a parent, I can tell you that often the parent & child spaces are full (probably 7 in 10 visits to my local Tesco all would taken) and you get on with it just fine.

Should make them just for kids under 4.

Edited by hyphen on Saturday 14th December 16:42

TBF, cars are much larger now than they used to be. Trying to open a door fully to allow a baby seat to be put in or taken out is very difficult in the regular spaces with cars parked on either side.

I totally understand why supermarkets have them. Need to cater for your target market.

I wonder how many of these people would suddenly find they didn't really need that extra space after all if the spaces were not next to the door...

The nearest morrisons to me has them a reasonable distance from the front door ( P&C spaces that is) pretty much full all the time i visit there.

[Baldchap]

I love that all the parent and child spaces are close to the door.

It means when I park in the back corner of the car park, I shouldn't come back to find my door stoved in by a milk-brained mother with the spacial awareness of a brick.

[Sticks.]

fourstardan said:

I would never park in a disabled spot.

Parent child spots grind my gears and will quite happily park in those.

Where do you think the P&C users park when they're full?

Wacky Racer said:

I parked in a disabled space in a council run car park in Ashton under Lyne several years ago while we went to the pictures. There were eight empty spaces and it was seven o clock at night and dark. I figured I would be OK, but a £60 ticket awaited me when I returned at 10.30.

No excuses, I was banged to rights so be warned.

Fair enough. People seem to assume disabled people don't go out at night.

[DoubleD]

fourstardan said:

I would never park in a disabled spot.

Parent child spots grind my gears and will quite happily park in those.

Why do they grind your gears?

Is it so wrong that people who are struggling more than you should have a bit extra help?

If you saw someone struggling to open a building door because they had there hands full would you help them?
Of course you would, why, because its nice to help people who are struggling more than you are.

[anonymous-user]

Gad-Westy said:

JimSuperSix said:

DoubleD said:

trackdemon said:

DoubleD said:

trackdemon said:

Isn't it quite easy? If kids are a problem at the supermarket, don't take them. If you do, why should you get extra privilege because you procreated?

Yeah, just leave them at home on there own. Like you say, easy.

I bet your parents would have used a parent and child space if they had existed.

Where did I say on their own?

Neither of my parents drove.

Full of assumptions, aren't you

A bit like you assuming that its easy for people to leave kids behind.

Well I assume that if your parents were able to drive then I assume that they would of used a parent and child space if they existed.

Shop online and have it delivered then, much less hassle than dragging the children to the supermarket.

Does that apply to disabled too? Much less hassle after all.

Applies to everyone, disabled and those with kids included.

My wife is registered disabled and we've had kids, didn't see the point in the P&C spaces then, don't now. It wasn't hard to remove an Isofix seat in any space, and once they're older you teach them how to open a door without smashing it into the next car, or just park further from the door where there are fewer cars, and use your legs for a few more seconds. Whereas watching my wife needing the door all the way open so she can awkwardly fall out of the Jeep and then hobble to the shop, yep I see the need for the extra space and it being closer.

I still get her to shop online whenever possible though.

[Hol]

Baldchap said:

I love that all the parent and child spaces are close to the door.

I stopped using them when my kids could hold my hand and walk confidently across a busy car park.

Before that point I would need to go to the entrance and get one of the trolleys and walk back to my car.
It would be lunacy for anyone to suggest I plonk that trolley in the roadway while I unstrapped a small child (or two) as that would not only be moronically dangerous, it would totally inconvenience anyone driving by.

Hence the spaces have a wide area between the cars and are often closer to the trollers.

That is, ...If you find one that isn’t already taken by some tt with a ‘me me me’ complex, or worse someone in a RRS or similar (me wagon) who thinks teenage kids still qualify for the special space.

Edited by Hol on Sunday 15th December 12:56

[sasha320]

What’s the score with disabled toilets?

Is the view that they take less time to use than car parking spaces, and therefore it may be appropriate that anybody can use a disabled toilet as long as the facility exists for the less able bodied when they need it?

The point being that an establishment needs to provide a disabled toilet facility but a disabled person does not necessarily get priority use of it.

Clearly if there is a queue of able bodied people waiting to use the disabled toilet then common sense should prevail and the disabled person gets priority. I guess there’s an assumption here that only a minority of disabled people are incontinent as well.

Anyway I don’t use disabled toilets but was wondering.

[FrenchCarFan]

sasha320 said:

What’s the score with disabled toilets?

Is the view that they take less time to use than car parking spaces, and therefore it may be appropriate that anybody can use a disabled toilet as long as the facility exists for the less able bodied when they need it?

The point being that an establishment needs to provide a disabled toilet facility but a disabled person does not necessarily get priority use of it.

Clearly if there is a queue of able bodied people waiting to use the disabled toilet then common sense should prevail and the disabled person gets priority. I guess there’s an assumption here that only a minority of disabled people are incontinent as well.

Anyway I don’t use disabled toilets but was wondering.

You mean the call for aid cord in them in case help is needed whilst using it through a mishap and the arm rest to help them get out of the wheelchair etc.

There is a reason many disabled toilets have a RADAR key lock fitted to them. I have genuinely never ever seen what looks to be a non disabled person using them.

[borcy]

sasha320 said:

What’s the score with disabled toilets?

Is the view that they take less time to use than car parking spaces, and therefore it may be appropriate that anybody can use a disabled toilet as long as the facility exists for the less able bodied when they need it?

The point being that an establishment needs to provide a disabled toilet facility but a disabled person does not necessarily get priority use of it.

Clearly if there is a queue of able bodied people waiting to use the disabled toilet then common sense should prevail and the disabled person gets priority. I guess there’s an assumption here that only a minority of disabled people are incontinent as well.

Anyway I don’t use disabled toilets but was wondering.

I've used them in the past with my kids when they were potty training age and suddenly need to go. I don't think that's unreasonable.

[meatballs]

sasha320 said:

What’s the score with disabled toilets?

Is the view that they take less time to use than car parking spaces, and therefore it may be appropriate that anybody can use a disabled toilet as long as the facility exists for the less able bodied when they need it?

The point being that an establishment needs to provide a disabled toilet facility but a disabled person does not necessarily get priority use of it.

Clearly if there is a queue of able bodied people waiting to use the disabled toilet then common sense should prevail and the disabled person gets priority. I guess there’s an assumption here that only a minority of disabled people are incontinent as well.

Anyway I don’t use disabled toilets but was wondering.

The danger with taking a disabled toilet is they may not have as much control if they need to wait.

However a lot of disabled toilets also double as nappy changing which can take a long time.

[nonsequitur]

DaveCWK said:

I used to live near an ASDA that had maybe 20 disabled spaces.

If you did happen to visit when the rest of the carpark was full & by some fluke of local demographics absolutely none of the 20 disabled bays were in use, I really can't see anything morally wrong with using one for a few minutes.

'A few minutes'. The bad parkers mantra. The few minutes quickly extend to 20 30 40.....

[Pooh]

This sort of stuff comes up fairly frequently with people trying to justify parking where they shouldn’t and it really is quite simple. If you park in a space where you shouldn’t whether it is a disabled, parent and child, electric car charging bay or whatever, you are a self centred thoughtless tt.

[Sticks.]

meatballs said:

The danger with taking a disabled toilet is they may not have as much control if they need to wait.

However a lot of disabled toilets also double as nappy changing which can take a long time.

My local Waitrose just has accessible/baby changing male and female toilets.

JimSuperSix said:

Applies to everyone, disabled and those with kids included.

My wife is registered disabled.... yep I see the need for the extra space and it being closer.

I still get her to shop online whenever possible though.

Minor, but there's no such thing as registered disabled in the UK any more. Agreed about the space, and online shopping. Supermarket car park threads are a regular on PH and I don't get why people don't shop online more. I know Stuart said earlier about getting out and seeing people but I'd have thought there were far better places to do that.

[stuartmmcfc]

Sticks. said:

I know Stuart said earlier about getting out and seeing people but I'd have thought there were far better places to do that.

Yes there are but it makes a necessary evil quite pleasant especially when the weathers warm and i hang around the freezer isle

Incidentally I’ve just completed my online Tesco order and you’d be surprised how much stuff is “currently unavailable”. Today it was bean sprouts. I bet if I went to the store they’d be some.

[Sticks.]

stuartmmcfc said:

Yes there are but it makes a necessary evil quite pleasant especially when the weathers warm and i hang around the freezer isle

Incidentally I’ve just completed my online Tesco order and you’d be surprised how much stuff is “currently unavailable”. Today it was bean sprouts. I bet if I went to the store they’d be some.

Maybe but I'd still rather be at the coast. Yes, true about availability, but my nearest store is 10 miles and always short dates. Bagless is a PITA too. Ocado doing a year's free delivery, most now 'import your favourites' to make it easier..

mumsnetmodeoff

[WJNB]

Cannot believe that the question was even asked - and all because of some cheap beer which does explain a lot I fear.

[Pica-Pica]

Sticks. said:

meatballs said:

The danger with taking a disabled toilet is they may not have as much control if they need to wait.

However a lot of disabled toilets also double as nappy changing which can take a long time.

My local Waitrose just has accessible/baby changing male and female toilets.

JimSuperSix said:

Applies to everyone, disabled and those with kids included.

My wife is registered disabled.... yep I see the need for the extra space and it being closer.

I still get her to shop online whenever possible though.

Minor, but there's no such thing as registered disabled in the UK any more. Agreed about the space, and online shopping. Supermarket car park threads are a regular on PH and I don't get why people don't shop online more. I know Stuart said earlier about getting out and seeing people but I'd have thought there were far better places to do that.

There are no ‘disabled’ toilets. There are toilets adapted to accommodate less able people, and as such they are available for ALL to use.

[nonsequitur]

Sticks. said:

Fair enough. People seem to assume disabled people don't go out at night.

Yes. Not all disability is related to mobility.

[carparkno1]

I'll tell you my experience of people saying "your kid ain't disabled".

They look like that. Normally in a 4x4, and I'm not generalising, I'm referring to experience. So when I see it on here, I take a wild stab at the nature of those who say "what if there legs work they don't need it eh bruv"

And to clarify, I'm a white guy who is carrying too much timber. I'm not out for a row here, but I wish people would realise every day is a struggle when you have disability in your immediate life. Parking shouldn't be part of the strife. It all adds up.

Edited by carparkno1 on Sunday 15th December 14:42

[anonymous-user]

Sticks. said:

Minor, but there's no such thing as registered disabled in the UK any more

Whatever, you knew what I meant.