Disabled Woman Was Fined Over Rs 94,000 For Using The Disabled Parking Space Outside

A woman who is disabled and uses a wheelchair was slapped with a fine of ?1,000 for using a disabled parking space at her flat - because it's only for visitors.

Disabled woman fined for parking in a disabled spot

34-year-old Cerys Gemma is unable to park in her allocated space because a pillar blocks access for her wheelchair. Instead of this, the woman has been parking in a disabled bay outside her waterside flat - so that she can get in and out of her car.

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Even though she has told the authorities about her plight, she has been hit with a string of fines. She has been told by the parking management company that the space is strictly for visitors only at the Prospect Place flats in Cardiff Bay, Wales.

Cerys said: "This has plagued me for two years and I just can't go on like this. I'm at breaking point and I've had conversations with people, and I've said this is the end, because I can't do this anymore - something has to change. I'm not willing to be pushed out of my home because I'm in a wheelchair."

Disability rights lawyer Chris Fry had a lot to say about this incident. He said: "The reality is that if the space allocated to her is inaccessible to her because of her disability, then they're under obligation to make a reasonable adjustment, to maybe move that space or change it to a closer spot to the front door. "If they don't, they're in breach of the Equality Act."

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What did the authorities say?

The parking management company which manages the bays for Prospect Place, said the rules were agreed upon when they were asked to manage the site. It said: "We want to make clear, if we allow one resident to utilise a disabled visitor space as their own, we would need to allow all requests from residents, which we have received over the years.

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Do you think this was the right decision?

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