A warning to all Blue Badge owners. Whilst chatting away to my niece yesterday I happened to mention that I thought my blue badge expires on my birthday next month I'd better check on that. Horror of horrors I found that my badge expired on 08/07/24 and I have been merrily parking all over the place confidently displaying my expired badge. I mistakenly thought that they sent out reminders as they do for road tax, but they must have made renewal so easy over the last 20 or more year that I had forgotten how I did it!
Applying for a brand new Blue Badge, which I am now expected to do, is an absolute nightmare. Without one the effort and cost of taxing, insuring and running my car is pretty much wasted. Having spoken to the local 'Blue Badge Team' it seems there is no other option but to rum the gauntlet. I wondering if this is a devious scheme to reduce the number of blue badges held by ancient drivers who haven't had the courtesy to kick the bucket.
STREWTH!! looking at 'related posts' healthunlocked.com/asthmalu... I did exactly the same 3 years ago! I suppose I deserve a good kicking after all. 😥
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Donald_1931
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Always some humour in your posts Don But seriously, it is a bit devious not informing Blue Badge holders of need to renew. I am surprised that you have not been caught out by over-enthusiastic traffic wardens. They are very strict around London , always generating revenues for a council I did not elect. To confuse people , they also have some Disabled bays that have a time limit and some bays that are limitless. Bats..t Bonkers Britain!
hi jj llive in a town on the east coast l can park in a council owned carpark indefinitely no time limit with my blue badge ...yes the renewable of bluebadge can be a nightmare and can take up to 12 wks to be sent out to you ......my husband also has a bluebadge and what had happened to don had happened to him last yr my husbands bluebadge was in expiry of 8 months ! fortunately he never got caught ...lesson learned always check the yr on it ..lol
Hi armstrong2. I am so pleased to hear he didn't get caught. 👏I guarantee he would have received a PCN in my area. If ever you drive to London (not recommended ;)), always display time and Blue Badge. Thanks for your message . JJ
I'll try and remedy that Donald. It's not that I don't want to. It's about converting my shorthand notes into a typed format and then presenting the encounters with different patients. Without notes, the stories are lost in the mists of memory. I do have a few stories I can bring to life again so watch the space. The story I will tell is of two weeks ago when I heard a female patient was celebrating 60 years of marriage.
That’s a real pain in the backside Don. Pete says he gets a reminder each time but I’m always checking the date anyway. Those over 90 and still driving deserve a reminder to save all the palaver you’re going through. Good luck to you. Xxxx💜❤️🥰
I can't believe how much I've deteriorated in these last three years. I appreciate my blue badge so much I can hardly believe I forgot to renew it on time. 🤔xx
This is such a pain and stress for you. Only upside is no one noticed when you parked up. I have to say I do think every three years without a reminder is not at all helpful. Wishing you a swift response from them and that all will be sorted easily. xx
I didn't notice ours had expired by 3years said to my hubby when do we have to renew thinking every 5 years so we had been driving/parking illegally for 5 years.
Marvellous isn’t it? You go to so much trouble to prove you need one and yet nobody checks it. Still the risk is always there. I believe in some areas they risk getting pinched.
They are hoping people who don't really need them will be less inclined to try and renew I think. Also they want your tax pounds, so they want to remind you of anything and everything you "owe" them. I have mine recorded in my digital diary so I won't forget. xx
oh bless. Mine expires in January but have just reapplied as there’s a 12 week backlog according to their website. It was just as bad as applying for pip! Letters from consultants etc, consent to contact dr. I only get issued a 3 yearly badge, they have to be applied for from scratch, there are badges that can automatically renew, but only if applied for at renewal date. My OA, RA and mobility worsens over the three years but I still don’t qualify for the ‘automatic’ renewal one despite 8/12 for mobility on pip application. I’m sure you know exactly what I’m on about. Take care 🦊x
I’ve just sent off my online application which was a bit of a struggle, but I have to admit the website is a masterpiece of programming. The problem lies in the amount of detail asked for again when a late renewal claim could be dealt with much simpler. My next problem will be to remember the new expiry date that my new badge will have, now that the old one is firmly embedded in my memory. 😂
My council emailed me a reminder in August. Mine runs out in November. I reapplied in September on line which took forever. I’ve not yet heard anything.
I had no idea there were ones which renew automatically. I’m certain that wasn’t an option when I first applied in 2021.
Hi, when my new badge comes, I put the date in my phone and reminder for 3 years time to remind me. But I also but a reminder in 3 months before the due date and filled the forms in then and send in, this way, they send it out just before it's due, so it's nearer out of date. Good luck.
I renewed mine last year, I got email notification 3 months before expiry date along with the links to reapply. They told me allow 12 weeks but it only took 8, however I did note it was not a straight renewal it was a treated as a new application.
I’m really surprised that someone over 90 and who has had a badge for over 20 years wouldn’t have one automatically issued with the payment of the appropriate fee. It seems crazy you have to go through the same thing as if you never had one.
Hi Donald I chuckled as soon as I saw your post headline why ? because 3 yr ago I parked up in our local parking area one I used regular came back after visiting shops to see a yellow parking ticket .I was gutted as my badge was visible I looked and my front tyre had gone over the line thinking I had been done for this of I didn't check my ticket before I got on my high horse .As it happened the attendant hadn't left so I collared him on his way out giving him some right verble for what I thought was a pretty petty offence .He slowly got out of his own and pointed to my blue badge when I looked it was 3 months out of date .Feeling embarrassed I apologised and rather sheeplesly got in my car and skulked off ,very costly hours parking which would have only cost me less than £1 if I'd paid learnt my lesson for the future.It is so easy not to check but don't agree with costly reminders as we are adult enough to really keep a check our selves .
Hi Donald, this happendto me a few years ago so now I put all renewal dates into the calendar on the iPad everything from driving licence to dental appointments to Birthdays with the alarm reminder set a hours,days or weeks before the event. These dates can be set years in advance with alarm reminders using the calendar app. Hope this helps for future renewals.
My problem was that the renewal date I had on my iPad changed three years ago and I hadn’t amended it. My dammed iPhone is chirping away all day long reminding me of things, as is my cat about meal times. I’m getting nagged to death in my old age! Good job we can still keep laughing without being reminded. 😂
I am the same about 'on-line' forms. I'm dreading next April when my bus pass runs out🤪. I rely totally on the bus as can no longer walk anywhere. Not sure if I'll manage renewing it. Don't know why we can't just go into the local post office, show them our old pass, give them the money and they do the paperwork. Bob's your uncle it's all sorted.
hi all blue badge folk .. I. Was sent an emil to renew my blue badge way back in July 2024 it ran out August . So I filled all the relavete forms down loaded ,all my medication ect.. sent it off . Got an email saying photo to old .so I sent them a new photo . Another email came in sufficient of my medical problems .. so I redone it again sent off ,another load of filling in ..then I get a phone call from someone saying I sent it to the wrong department of blue badge should of been norfolk county council ,so I asked where was all my info then he looked on the computer and said I will delete this and so you will now be dealing with Norfolk council …he sent me a link in an email. I said I had a lot to down load .oh there will be loads of room. Sent it off the main part of my illness.another email came turned me down..said I could put in for a badge in 6 months time .or write a complaint . So I did. .did not mince my words explained my medical reason ad that I had had a badge from. 2015..
So it was being looked at by a medical team .waited and waited . I got intouch with our local mp she got intouch straight away .and I had to send her all my reason ect..they got intouch to badge folk that day ..
I had then been given a phone assessment waited for the phone call nothing rang them up and all I’ll in the office !! Given another time . But the date and day was diffrent to a calendar day date .so rang them up again oh it’s definitely sat they will ring you.. so all booked for sat ..then I get another phone call .to say cancelled appoint would I like it I said yes it was Thursday .so had my assessment. Waited but lo and behold sat another person rang to assess me .. she actually rang my hubby .she could not understand for this was for a renewal of badge not a new application. Anys got an email to say I had been accepted plus sent £10.00 so I done that straight away .hip hip horray I got my badge a week later…
No apologies from them nothing.but they did send my local mp a email and said I would not have to go through all this next time …
So the moral of this lengthy email don’t give up fight it if you deserve your blue badge complain get mp involved too
3 years ago I had a face to face appointment to get a blue badge and was scrutinised badly ,3years later I've had to apply again but there is no change in my health condition ,a lot of people I know have never had a face to face ,how can that be ?.
Here in Wales, we get notified about 3 months before it expires, can renew on line, apply as if it's a new one. My husband renewed his on line this year in January, and then got an email from our council stating they would send his new blue badge around 10 days before the old one expired. Never been asked to go to a face to face, it's really very straightforward.
Oh, dear, Don! Reg understands what you're going through as he drove for 9 months with an expired driving licence! He felt really bad when he realised he'd missed the renewal date and envisaged having to re-take a test or having to stop driving until his licence was renewed. In the end, it was worry for no reason, but it puts the wind up you when you realise you've been driving illegally - or in your case, parking illegally. I'm glad no one caught you!
Thanks Moy, I managed to fill in most of the detailed information asked for on the online form, but some is historical now. I’ll just have to wait and see want happens; I’ve paid my £10. Of cause the posts on here and my past experience show that the chances of being caught with an expired blue badge are minuscule. But Sod’s Law says I will be next time I use it. Don xx (Given not much help from Smudge)
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But seriously, it is a bit devious not informing Blue Badge holders of need to renew. I am surprised that you have not been caught out by over-enthusiastic traffic wardens. They are very strict around London , always generating revenues for a council I did not elect. To confuse people , they also have some Disabled bays that have a time limit and some bays that are limitless. Bats..t Bonkers Britain!
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