Blind woman's anger over ticket

The tickets have an expiry date on one side and a photo on the other

A 91-year-old blind woman has been fined by a council for displaying her disabled badge the wrong way round.

Alice Barnes put the permit on the dashboard of her son's car in Blackpool with her photograph on display.

But she received a ticket and £30 fine because the side of the card with the date should have been shown.

The badges do not say how they should be displayed, but the council says a booklet which comes with the badges has clear instructions.

'Previous problems'

Speaking to BBC Radio Lancashire, Mrs Barnes, who comes from Blackpool, said: "I am absolutely disgusted with Blackpool and am telling everybody I know how unfair it is.

"And everybody I have spoken to is so disgusted about it."

She said she wanted to warn other disabled people to ensure they had the correct side of the card displayed.

A Blackpool Borough Council spokeswoman said they had spent "a lot of time and effort" informing residents of the correct way to display a blue disabled badge.

"We previously had problems with blue badge holders displaying the back of the permit - which includes the photo identity - facing upwards," she added.

"This means the front of the permit, which highlights the expiry date, is completely hidden from view.

"When this happens parking attendants have no idea whether the permit has expired or not, and therefore whether it's valid.

"We can only stress again the importance of people reading the guidelines issued with the permit. If they follow these carefully, there won't be a problem."