I was slapped with £105 fine for parking on double lines even though I have a Blue Badge – the council changed the rules
A PENSIONER was slapped with a £105 fine for parking on double yellow lines - even though he has a Blue Badge.
Keith Perry, 78, has the badge as he struggles to walk, and on the day he was ticketed he was rushing to an appointment.
The Lancashire man said all the disabled bays were full, so he made the decision to park on double yellow lines on a nearby street.
The Government website states: "Badge holders may park on single or double yellow lines for up to three hours" but there may be restrictions."
But Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council has said the street Keith parked on is actually a restricted parking area, meaning no one - not even badge holders - can park there.
The council said yesterday that it will drop the ticket from £105 back to £35 "as a gesture of goodwill" if he pays soon.
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But Keith has said he will go to court to fight his case rather than pay the "heartless" ticket.
The pensioner was on his way to get a Covid-19 vaccination in Blackburn on April 29 when he was ticketed.
He told the : “I had driven around the town centre and in Darwen Street and could not find any spots.
“I needed to get to my appointment and decided to park in Cardwell Place on double yellow lines. It meant I could make my way to get the Covid jab. Even this was with great difficulty.
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“I can’t walk that far so needed to park somewhere close by. I had not parked in a loading bay.”
Keith's fine would have been £35 if he paid it within 14 days, but after that, it increased to £70.
The fine, which is the first parking ticket he's had in his 60 years of driving, then tripled to £105.
Keith added: “The whole decision to chase me for the money is ridiculous and heartless.
“I am going to carry on fighting this and refuse to pay this. They are wasting their time with this.
I can’t walk that far so needed to park somewhere close by.
Keith Perry
“The process has caused me so much stress and anxiety. The ticket should be rescinded, and it is a complete waste of time and resources. I will go to court if I have to."
A letter sent to Keith from the council said there was a "large entry sign" on the street that said ‘Restricted Parking Zone At Any Time’ with ‘No Loading at any Time’, which he said he did not see.
The council's strategic director of environment and operations, Martin Eden, said the council had reviewed Keith's appeal, and it had been rejected.
Martin told The Sun Online: "This vehicle was parked on double yellow lines with a blip in a restricted parking area, this means no-one, not even Blue Badge holders, are able to park on the street.
"Blue Badge holders must still obey the rules of the road which includes not parking in restricted bays.
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“Mr Perry parked on Cardwell Place which is extremely close to two council owned car parks on Feilden Street and Barton Street – both of which contain disabled bays and could have been used free of charge in this instance.
"However, the council will, as a gesture of goodwill, reduce the fine back to £35 for a short time to enable Mr Perry to pay the fine at the original amount.”