Avoid Builders Selling Blue Badge Tips, tricks and information on how to spot rogue and cowboy builders and also a platform for you to post and warn others of cowboy builders you may have encountered and help to spread the word of their dodgy dealings

[doorwins]

Hi, we recently encountered something called a ''Blue Card'' for all traders, when i glimpsed online it seemed liable but after when we tried to contact the company the issued it there was nothing about them anywere, although the paperwork looked legit.

So, we are double glazing firm so not sure about what a construction site contractor would need to enter building sites. Anyway, we had a fitting job in central london and were at the site relatively early. The site was a construction site with cranes etc etc, at the front gates were 2 smartly dressed fellows with high viz that stated to my fitters ''do you have blue cards (or blue badge)'' or something like that. They explained that London City construction sites required these cards to go onsite and to cut a long story short we forked out £400 for 2 fitters to enter the site and any site for 6months.

I feel like a wally but be aware of these scammers and please could someone explain either here or to our email ''what is a blue card''?

thanks in advance

[Hugh Schkok]

I have a Blue Badge and it is because I am registered disabled. The law has tightened up considerably for those that abuse the privileges that such a badge affords and highlights very quickly those able bodied people abusing disabled parking spaces. These are not for preferential or titled people nor are they for able bodied people. If my wife can't park close enough to a supermarket door because some ignorant SOAB is parked in a bay then I simply can not go into the store. I have however heard of these badges being used for free access to country fairs and even charity events.

It is debilitating enough to have to accept that you no longer have the mobility you once had without the blue badges being abused. I think these con men used the importance of the term 'Blue Badge' to con people into having them pay up. If your challenged again I suggest that you take a piccy of them. If they are legitimate they wont mind if not they will be deeply offended. It is not illegal to photograph anyone or anything openly available in the public domain.

Just a little add on. We had just parked in a supermarket disabled bay and were sorting our stuff out. Suddenly a pickup truck pulled into the disability bay directly behind us and three fit looking builder like guys lept out and trotted in to the store. A man came upto us and asked if we were leaving. I said we had just arrived and our Blue Badge in our window showed our status he said the truck behind hasn't got a badge on display and at that he raised his trousers and showed us a false lower leg on both sides. I was furious. I called the police who were literally minutes away. They came over and radioed a tow truck who again arrived in minutes. The tow truck hooked up their pick up and was in the process of dragging it out of the bay to ultimately crane it onto the back of the truck and take it into the pound.

The three unwise monkeys reappeared again this time running to stop their truck from being towed. Too late it by then was 1 metre off the ground and rising. The police officer cautioned them and said that it was being impounded and they could reclaim it tomorrow. The release cost plus the tow would be at lest £450 and he said it maybe more. Also they had to take with them all appropriate documentation otherwise it will remain in the pound for at least three more days over the weekend and their bill would raise to a meteoric rate *I laughed aloud inside, naughty I know but that's how it goes sometimes). He then issued them a ticket to appear in court for illegally parking in a disabled bay. That had a minimum charge of around £150. By then I was out of our car and propped up with my stick and turned to this disabled war vet and said "there you go. All you have to do is ask". We shook hands and saw these idiots walking away across the car park shouting and waving their arms at each other. One was on his cell phone and kept looking back ay the 'crime' and saying what sounded like "they sucking towed it the custards" I waited for him to park and he thanked me again and said I hope we meet up again sometime. Secretly, I did too it's great to meet someone who is not a gutless worm like so many people are.