Callous thieves are increasingly targeting blue badges left in cars - which can fetch up to £5,000 on the black market, it is claimed.
Recent figures revealed there were more than 6,400 thefts of blue badges across the capital last year alone. And one disabled wheelchair user is now calling for blue badges to be updated after having his stolen from his car four times in the past decade. Mik Scarlet, 58, now padlocks his disabled parking badge to the steering wheel of his car after having it stolen so many times.
He says the badges - the thefts of which have soared in recent years - can sell for as much as £5,000 each. Charity CEO Mr Scarlet, from Camden in north London, believes the rise in thefts reflects a change in the public's attitude towards disabled people in recent years.
Figures recently released by Unmesh Desai, a Labour member of the London Assembly, show the number of blue badges stolen across the capital quadrupled from 1,230 in 2014 to 6,415 in 2023. Mr Scarlet, who has been a full-time wheelchair user since he was just 15 after being treated for a rare cancer at birth, last had his badge stolen around five years ago - when thieves smashed his windscreen open to grab it.
Mik is a wheelchair user (Mik Scarlet/SWNS)To add insult to injury, he was issued with a parking ticket for using the disabled spot without a badge, though it was later cancelled when he challenged it. He and many other blue badge holders have now resorted to padlocking their badges to their steering wheels. "I didn't realise it was as rife as it is," he said.
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"What's funny is I have people say to me, 'It's really good to see you bringing this up - my husband or brother or auntie etc has had their badge stolen'. I wonder if the number is actually higher than reported because it seems everyone has a blue badge around here...
"It's just ridiculous, but when you see how much they're going for, I am not surprised." Mr Scarlet says he has heard of valid, current badges going for more than £5,000, with as much as £2,000 offered for out-of-date badges. "What's bizarre is that they steal them and sell them, when what would be more sensible would be to scan them and print more out," Mr Scarlet continued.
He added that other drivers can easily use the badges as the badge holder's photo, name and details are not visible from outside the car. "There's a picture, my name and details... but they're all on the back, so you can't see who the badge belongs to through the window," he said. "I don't expect many traffic wardens even understand the information on the front.
Mik Scarlet, 58, with wife Diane Scarlet Wallace (Mik Scarlet/SWNS)"Without a picture on the front, you can get away with using a badge - it's not that difficult. The last time I had a badge stolen was about five years ago. They all happened in quite close succession, and there's nothing like the feeling of finding it gone again. Last time they smashed my windscreen, but normally they smash my window, and I found I had been given a parking ticket."
Added to the stress of applying for a temporary pass from police - which ironically works better than a normal blue badge - Mr Scarlet has to fork out £10 to get a new badge, and another £50 for the padlock he now uses. But Mr Scarlet, an ex-TV presenter and co-CEO of national disabled charity Phab, says the non-financial stresses of being unable to drive to work and park close to buildings wreak far more havoc on his life.
There were an estimated 2.35 million blue badge users in the UK as of 2021, according to the Blue Badge Digital Service (BBDS) - amounting to around 4.2 per cent of the total population. Mr Scarlet said that though the number of badges stolen was a drop in the ocean when put in the context of the total, those using them fraudulently made it far more difficult for legitimate wheelchair users such as himself to park close to their destination.
"It's not the problem people think it is," he said. "If you use a badge fraudulently, is anyone prepared to challenge you? I have always had one, and when I was young people would say, 'You've stolen that, you can't park here'. If you use a badge fraudulently you are denying another person a space that should be theirs.
Mik is now calling for blue badges to be updated (Mik Scarlet/SWNS)"They are there for people like myself or people with disabled children. Driving is the usually the only choice I have." Mr Scarlet believes the rise in badge thefts, including those of his own in the past ten years, are indicative of a recent 'shift in society' in relation to disabled people.
He said: "I got a blue badge when I was 16 - but I didn't get one stolen until recently. Gradually we have this new attitude of, 'It's alright for you, with your free parking'. This 'aren't you lucky' attitude about disabilities is new. It's mythical that disabled people are raking it in from the state."
Mr Scarlet believes the blue badge system needs updating to make it more difficult for others to fraudulently use them. He suggested a numberplate recognition system, similar to those for the London congestion zone charge and Ulez zones, could offer a simpler and more up-to-date alternative to the current system.
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"It's a really poor system that I think needs an overhaul," Mr Scarlet said. "I think putting a photo on the front would be a step in the right direction, but I wonder if there's a better system - something online or via an app, or something like the congestion charge system.
"Just have the ability to take a car you're in out of the parking system so no ticket could be awarded. It might take some thought but there has to be a better way to do it in the 21st Century."
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