In the news this week, Tesco have said that they will be rolling out their policy of fining childless customers who park in parent and child parking bays to their stores across the country after a trial in 81 areas went well.
One in ten people without children admit to using parent-child spaces.
These people are also known as ‘arseholes’.
Sadly for the beleaguered parents attempting their weekly shop with baby or toddler (or both) in tow, parking in the parent and child spaces sans kids is not illegal, and generally not enforced, so the worst the offenders have got to this point was a mouthful from a tired, pissed off mum and bad things wished upon them.
However now, people found misusing the spaces (i.e. parking there with invisible children) could be faced with a fine of £25.
Not a huge amount but enough, hopefully, to put them off.
As the spaces would have to be patrolled by the store staff who would have to catch them in the act of coming or going, whether it’s going to actually happen or not is up for debate – however (and I may have touched on this before) I make no apology for the fact that I would LOVE to see this happen.
On the occasions that I forget to put in my Ocado order on time, having baby and child parking has meant the difference between me popping to the local Sainsbury’s, which has none, nor any ‘far reaches’ of the car park guaranteed to be empty, and driving 15-20 minutes to the much less local Asda or Tesco to do my shopping there.
Having parked, I just have the actual hell that is doing the supermarket shop and the inevitable tantrums that come with it to face.
It makes life easier, and I’m all for it.
The people in the comments though…
You’ve never met a load of more self entitled, bitter people in your life. I haven’t linked to the article in the S*n for obvious reasons… but bloody hell.
This happens time and again, whenever this issue comes up. It’s like a broken record.
The comments come under the following categories;
1) They chose to have children
Ergo, they chose all the hardships that came with it. Every sodding night waking and obnoxiously early morning, every explosive poo, every vomity all-nighter. Chose it.
God forbid that we try and make life just that little bit easier for anyone. That would be just awful. People need to suffer to know they’re alive and taking small children to the supermarket just isn’t hard enough in my opinion.
I’ll give these people the benefit of the doubt and assume that they aren’t parents and they just don’t realise what a pain in the arse it is to get small children in and out of the car safely. They may find out one day, although if they’re spending their spare time spitting bile in the comments of right wing newspapers then maybe best not eh.
2) In my day, we didn’t have baby parking AND WE WERE JUST FINE
Mothers these days don’t know they’re alive with their tumble dryers and their CBeebies, do they? Where is the suffering?!
I mean you probably just strapped your kids to the top of the car too?
3) I’m a parent and do without them, I don’t get the fuss
Oh, bully for you. Here’s your medal.
4) I’m fat/old/have a dodgy knee, where is MY parking space?
See the classic Daily Mail reader logic of ‘if I’m not entitled to [insert benefit here] then no one should have it’.
To be fair if you are pregnant/fat/can’t walk or whatever then use them, I for one am not going to complain if your need is greater than mine. But if you’re an able bodied 20-something in a BMW popping in to buy beer then for god’s sake just park elsewhere.
5) It’s just laziness
Parents are allowed to be lazy because they didn’t get a lie in this morning, or yesterday, or the day before that. Etc. But the point is moot when the spaces aren’t actually the closest to the shop, which is FINE. It’s all about the space so that you can actually get the baby strapped in, and the toddler can open the doors without smacking the paintwork off the Mazda parked next door, not the distance.
You, on the other hand, with your no children and your fully working legs can get to the back of the queue.
6) Women should learn to park
Ughgghghgh. Don’t even.
Even against these carefully considered arguments, I for one am happy that Tesco are going to be putting fines in place.
Anything that makes life a little easier for anyone that needs it is A Good Thing. Give parents a break, don’t begrudge them this one little thing.
If you are ever out, and you don’t have children with you, and you are considering parking in one of these spaces…just don’t. Have a word with yourself.
My only worry with these if for parents with a ‘click out’ car seat and an infant – I almost got fined by a childless attendant – this was in a shopping centre – who had no idea that ‘no car seat’ (didn’t know what a base looked like) doesn’t mean ‘no baby’ and that I had clicked my sleeping baby’s seat into the pram base.
The back seat had blankets, toys etc. It was pretty obvious.
Oh goodness! That is very keen of them seeing as they don’t bother in most places!
One of my pet hates!!! Don’t ‘these peope’ get that it’s also not just about being close to the supermarket door… try getting a car seat or child out of a car that’s any bigger than a smart car in a regular car parking space! It’s physically impossible. There have been occasions where I have had to safely park the buggy and reverse the car out just to get my son back in! So stressful.
That opens a can of worms! Only the police and council have the legal authority to issue ‘fines’. Tesco will be using one of these private cowboy parking companies who already prey on motorists in free parking areas and hospital car parks. The best they can do is offer you a ‘contract’ which you accept by reading their notice boards and then parking. Park outside of their ‘rules’ and they can ‘invoice’ you, chasing you in court if you decline to pay. This will end badly for Tesco because the cowboys couldn’t care less who they fine, it’s all revenue to them.
I have a 1 yo and a 3 yo, and a disabled boyfriend. Our state here doesn’t consider his illness a disability, so no placard for him. We don’t have parent parking here, so we have to park wherever we can find a spot. Even if just one of us has to take the boys shopping, it’s not that hard. The 1yo is fussy as all hell, yet we’ve done this magically thing called “teaching” that allowed us to get the 3yo out first and have him stand next to us with his hands on the car while we get his brother out. Then we either grab a cart or carry the 1yo while the older one holds our hand/cart. It’s almost as if teaching your children how to behave in a parking lot negates the need for a parent spot at all!
And please, if you’re pregnant, get a disability placard. They literally have temp ones meant for that. Every time I see a parent bitching about wanting a parent parking spot, I hear my kids during one of their tantrums.
This drives me mad, people are so selfish and think they are the exception to the rule. At my local Tesco they also park at the lay-by at the front hanging out and blocking the road, but no does anything.nits a shame but you can’t rely on people to do the right thing without enforcement.
You’re very lucky! Most stores in the US don’t have that. I usually just park next to the cart return.
I can’t stand the mentality of “it was hard on me, so it can be hard on them.” No! I’m glad my daughter never has to have chicken pox because there’s a vaccine now. I’m glad kids can look on wikipedia for homework help. Why be bitter? Every generation has its unique struggles.