THOUSANDS of drivers in Oxford fraudulently using blue badges meant for genuinely disabled people have sparked a new crackdown.

The number of motorists being caught for blue badge fraud has spiralled over the past few years.

The new campaign came as disabled driver Simon Lock revealed he had been offered £2,000 for his blue badge – which originally cost him £2.

Mr Lock, 52, of Bourton Close, Witney, has to walk with a stick and drives a specially adapted car after he was hit by a car in 1996.

He said of abuse of the system: “It has got to stop as it is not fair on real disabled people.”

The badge allows disabled people to park on double yellow lines for up to three hours.

Last year, Oxfordshire County Council traffic wardens handed out 3,148 fines to motorists misusing the blue badge scheme in the city. The council collected £94,687 after issuing fines of up to £70 to people misusing the badges.

The previous year the council took £80,768 from 2,565 fines and from October 2008 to the end of March 2009 it collected £32,490 from 1,096 fines. Now the wardens have vowed to step up patrols and hand out more on-the-spot fines.

They will be helped by a database which is updated every time a blue badge is reported missing or an owner dies.

The wardens will also liaise with social services and police to bring fraudsters to justice.

Tim Cowen of NSL, the company which employs the wardens on behalf of the council, said: “Blue badge fraud ranges from the milder offences, such as someone borrowing a blue badge from a relative, to more serious matters such as using the badge of someone who has passed away, or even using a fake badge.

“This is a particularly sneaky crime.”

The county council believes between two and four per cent of badges are fake.

There are 29,405 blue badge holders in Oxfordshire.

Gwynneth Pedler, 85, chairman of Oxford City Access Forum, said cases of badge fraud could have risen because of the rise in the cost of parking.

She said: “If parking is expensive they will use a blue badge space.”

Mrs Pedler added: “I have seen people park in a blue badge spot and then jump out the car and run down the road.

“It is not fair that these people are using these spaces without suffering the pain and frustration of a disability. In Oxford we have notices that we put on cars that say ‘This space is for Blue Badge Holders only. If you want my space please have my disability’.”

Rodney Rose, cabinet member for transport, said: “This sort of fraud may seem like a trivial matter, but the reality is that it impacts directly on disabled people, restricting their ability to access shops and services or family and friends.”

THE RULES

A disabled parking badge must have the expiry date, serial number and issuing authority visible and facing upwards. The badge can only be used if the badge holder is using the vehicle. Badge holders can park on double yellow or single yellow lines for up to three hours – but must display a time clock showing when they parked. They can also park on street in pay and display bays for free. Blue Badge holders are not allowed to park in bus stops during operating hours, or in taxi ranks. Police officers, parking attendants and civil enforcement officers have the power to inspect blue badges.