Motorists are being warned not to misuse disabled parking bays as new figures reveal councils are taking firm action against drivers who park in them without displaying a valid Blue Badge.

A Freedom of Information (FOI) request submitted by YourParkingSpace to councils across England found that, even with stretched budgets, disabled bay enforcement is still being taken seriously. Across the five-year period, councils recorded 19,660 investigations, leading to 14,154 penalty charge notices and 1,954 prosecutions.

That means 82 percent of investigations resulted in some form of enforcement – usually a fine, but in more severe cases the matter ended up in court. Averaged across the full dataset, that’s around 76 investigations, 54 fines and 8 prosecutions every week.

While prosecutions are less common, they are far from rare, with roughly 1-in-7 serious cases ending up before a magistrate.

Alongside that, the data highlights a wider trend: ‘bay enforcement’ – not just for Blue Badge bays but for EV chargers and parent-and-child spaces – is becoming a growing priority for car park owners, many of whom are turning to tech-based systems to prevent misuse.

The councils in the FOI cover a combined population of more than four million people, giving a clear and reliable picture of how disabled bay misuse is being handled in major urban areas.

Larne O’Donoghue, spokesperson for YourParkingSpace, said: “Even with tight resources, our research makes it very clear that councils are still cracking down on anyone misusing disabled bays. Taking a space that isn’t yours can ruin someone’s day – and the likelihood of being fined or prosecuted is much higher than most people think.

“We’re also hearing from car parks across the UK that misuse is becoming a growing problem – whether it’s disabled bays, EV chargers or other marked spaces. It leads to stress and complaints from customers, so many sites are now taking stronger action to stop it.”

Meanwhile, a YourParkingSpace survey of 2,000 motorists also revealed that more than two-thirds have witnessed drivers parking in a disabled bay without a valid badge.

Larne added: “While parking in a disabled bay without permission is never acceptable, we know that many drivers end up in the wrong space because they’re stressed, in a rush or simply can’t find anywhere else to park. Pre-booking a space removes that pressure and stops people making poor decisions in the moment.”

YourParkingSpace allows motorists to pre-book and guarantee a parking space online, reducing the temptation to rush into the wrong bay or take an unauthorised space when car parks are busy.To find out more, visit www.yourparkingspace.co.uk