Wheelchair user 'sickened' after she was told to pay £1,800 for parking in disabled bay

A wheelchair user feels "sickened" after she was told to pay more than £1,800 for parking in a disabled bay.

Cerys Gemma, 34, said her allocated parking spot at her apartment complex in Cardiff Bay's Prospect Place makes it impossible for her to get her wheelchair out of the car.

Instead of the "tiny" space, Cerys has instead been using one of the disabled bays, which New Generation Parking Management say are for visitors only.

A series of £100 tickets, each rising to £160 because Cerys refused to pay them, were issued.

New Generation have since made a claim through the County Court Business Centre over five unpaid fines amounting to £800, whilst demanding £1,036 for interest and legal costs, bringing the total bill to more than £1,800.

Cerys, who lost use of her legs aged 17 in a car accident, said she had been experiencing panic attacks and had to seek counselling following the ordeal.

She has accused New Generation of disability discrimination.

"The prospect of going to court makes me feel physically sick," she said.

"I think to put somebody in that position in 2022 in a developed country, it is disgusting."

Moving into the flat in 2013, Cerys explained how she used to park in the disabled spot and never had a problem previously.

She said: "I always parked in the disabled space – I would put my blue badge in and have no issues at all."

But it was not until July 2020 when the charity operations manager began receiving penalties.

Disabled visitors who are allowed to use the space need a 24 hour ticket but cannot return for 48 hours after it expires.

Cerys explained: "I went through a phase of parking in the disabled space and putting tickets in the car but it was exhausting and very anxiety-provoking. I was constantly thinking about it.

"Since being disabled I get ill regularly and I'm at home recovering for longer than most people. If I'm sick or unable to put a ticket in my car I would get a fine.

"In the end I stopped putting tickets in due to the stress it was causing.

"I'm still parking in the disabled space because I have no other option. It’s impossible to use my space because it's too narrow. My driver door has to open far enough so I can lift the wheelchair over myself and get it out."

Cerys complained to New Generation but the company threatened her with legal action, replying: "You have given us misleading information claiming that you need the disabled bay because of your disability. When in fact your allocated bay is a lot closer to the entrance of your building.

"We would also like to inform you that the terms and conditions for parking have already been agreed and we have the absolute right to determine who is in breach of those terms and conditions... Now that you have been armed with all the relevant information we will not be entering into any further correspondence with you regarding this matter."

The dispute has taken a "major toll" on Cerys' mental health which she fears will worsen if she attends court.

"I've been in a wheelchair since I was 17 and I've never had anyone speak to me like that. Generally people have always had some level of consideration and grace. It's like the company is not speaking to a human being."

"We are astounded to be accused of disability discrimination."

A New Generation spokesperson said: "Miss Cerys Gemma was informed August 2020 via email: 'We are conscious that it is your intention to continue using the disabled visitors bay as your own personal space. However we have to make it absolutely clear that there are financial consequences to ignoring the terms and conditions that are set out on the contractual signage located at the disabled bays. Additionally we need to also make it clear that it is not your allocated bay and is for the use of all disabled visitors.'

"There are just under 1,000 flats located within Prospect Place, each one with allocated parking of which Cerys would have been made aware of before she decided to move into the property. There is limited space available for visitor parking and six visitor disabled bays.

"In addition to this, parking is currently limited due to ongoing cladding works. It is simply not viable to give special permission to residents to allow them to use visitor spaces or visitor disabled bays as their own personal bay.

"It would further limit the accessibility and availability for visitors who need these spaces.

"We are astounded to be accused of disability discrimination when we have communicated with Cerys exactly what the rules are and why they are in place. While we sympathise with Cerys we do not have the power to move her parking space which she agreed to when entering into the lease agreement.

"The disabled bays will continue to be for the use of visitors only as changing this rule for one resident would mean we would need to change it for everyone. There are limited options available to disabled visitors and we refuse to limit these even more.

"We will continue to ensure that to the best of our ability the visitor spaces are fair and available for all visitors, including disabled drivers."

Cerys expects to find out the next step after she responds to New Generation's claim form with her defence.