Hartlepool Borough Council apologises to blue badge holders over parking payment error

As part of the budget for 2022-23, Hartlepool Borough Council chiefs voted to bring in charges for blue badge holders parking in local authority car parks, which came into force in April this year.

However, at Hartlepool’s latest full council meeting, Labour’s Councillor Ben Clayton questioned whether the local authority was breaching national legislation by also charging blue badge holders to park in on-street bays.

Council chiefs, following investigations from legal officers, have confirmed he was correct and that signs for on-street meters had incorrectly stated blue badge holders had to pay to park in the spaces.

Hartlepool Borough Council bosses have apologised over the issue and said they will be taking immediate action to correct the signs and investigate what happened.

A council spokesman said: “It appears that when the decision to charge blue badge holders in council-owned off-street car parks was made last year, officers were under the impression that the decision to charge applied to all blue badge parking.

“This resulted in the parking meter signage being changed on all meters rather than just the off-street parking meters.

“We apologise for this mistake and are looking into how this happened.

“We are taking immediate action to rectify the situation, with work commencing as a matter of priority to change the meter signage.”

Council chiefs confirmed “no tickets have been issued to anyone displaying a blue badge who was parked in an on-street pay and display bay without paying”.

The blue badge scheme, in place across the country, aims to help those with disabilities park closer to their destination, either as a passenger or driver.

Blue badge holders parking in on-street bays are exempt from charges by virtue of the exemptions included in the Local Authorities Traffic Orders (Exemptions for Disabled Persons) (England) Regulations 2000.

However councils and other organisations can charge blue badge holders to park in off-street car parks.

Conservative Councillor Tom Cassidy, chair of neighbourhood services, previously said other local authorities have already introduced similar blue badge parking charges for council car parks and that more are considering it.

Council reports from December stated there were around 6,000 blue badge holders in Hartlepool.