Have you experienced an accessibility nightmare?

Firstly, that story about the placard and being trapped by the woman was shocking! I can't believe a cop would ever do anything like that. Glad he got suspended!!

Anyways, I've never had anything quite that bad, although we have been abused several times for being parked in an accessible parking space (with parking permit on display) because I've got out of the car first and been attacked because I'm not disabled. I'm walking around to the back of my hatchback to get the wheelchair out for my partner, then to lift him out of the car!

I have two stories that I can remember at the moment (but trust me, there have been many more!!) - one was a nightmare, the other was not too bad but still not great.

The nightmare happened when we went to Bondi Beach for lunch on my birthday a few years ago. I had driven down in my car (was driving a 2 door sedan at that stage). The wheelchair accessible parking space (there was only one, unbelievably) was taken, so I had to park perpendicular to a 'normal' space and get my partner out into his chair, then move him up onto the footpath and park my car in the parking space. That was fine, we went and had lunch.

When we came back, I left him on the footpath, got the car out of the parking space and parked perpendicular across the space again. I leaned over from the passenger's side, put my handbag on the driver's seat and then locked the driver's door. As my car had central locking, that meant it locked the passenger door and the boot at the same time. I put my keys up on the dash board as I had no pocket, and proceeded to put him back in the car. I then closed the passenger door, went to the back and put the wheelchair in, then closed the boot.

I went back around to the driver's door, went to open it, remembered I had locked it, then realised that the keys were on the dash board. I remember what was going through my head, and I can't repeat it here.

I had just locked my partner, keys, phone and purse in the car!

To make things worse, one of the people whose car I had parked across came back and wanted to leave. My poor boyfriend had to try and unwind his (thankfully manual winding) window open enough for me to get my hand through and onto the keys. It took him about 10 minutes, and a great deal of difficulty (he has not a lot of strength in his arms and not much dexterity in his hands) but he got it open enough.

Another time we went into the city on New Year's Eve (as you imagine Sydney gets pretty busy on New Year's) and they had a whole lot of barricades up, and a pathway you had to follow to get where we wanted to go near the Opera House. Well we followed the path, but what they didn't realise was that they had barricaded off EVERY single ramp that we needed to get there. We had to make a lot of noise to get through!!

Then the carpark we were at shutted at 1am (which is ridiculous on NYE) so after the fireworks, as we had driven in in three cars, the three drivers had to run back (me in stilettos mind you) to the cars to get them out of the carpark before they got locked in. Then we had to wait for the other 6 people to come back (including 2 wheelies).

This year we went into the city again, booked a taxi to come home, and no wheelchair accessible taxis were available, despite the fact that we booked well in advance. We ended up having to take a normal taxi but make sure it had enough room in it for wheelchair and the 4 passengers!!

've got one. A few years ago my 14-year-old son and I went to New York City. (we don't live very far) I wanted to stay overnight and since hotel rooms there are very expensive, I thought I'd try the YMCA. It was not that inexpensive- about $100. The room was much smaller than it looked in the picture and the beds were uncomfortable. But that was not the accessibility problem. It was the bathroom. The rooms don't have private bathrooms. There is a bathroom on the hall that you share with everyone. But that is not accessible. There is a separate bathroom on the hall that is accessible. Unfortunately, it was locked. The front desk sent someone with a key to open it. The key did not work. They looked for other keys and could not find one that would open it. I managed to use the toilet in the non-accessible bathroom. But in the morning I wanted to use an accessible bathroom because I needed to take a BM and would have been dfficult to do that in the semi-accessible bathroom being used by others - because this can take me a long time as I have a spinal cord injury. Again, no key could be found to open the bathroom. They finally got a key that would open an accessible bathroom on another floor (after about 45 minutes). So I used it. The toilet did not flush properly and the water in the sink only came out a trickle. I needed a shower. They had a roll-in shower. I can't shower in my regular wheelchair. I need a shower chair of bench. The only chair to use for the shower was a regular plastic chair. I used it but unfortunately fell getting out of it because it was slippery. I had locked the door from the inside. There was no safety bell. I put on my clothes, dragged myself to the door and had to bang and call out for about 20 minutes before a guy sleepng across the hall heard me (this was about 5 or 6 am) and people came to rescue me. When I was checking out, I told the person at the desk about this and they were not the least bit concerned or apologetic. They just said it was not their fault I fell and I should not have used the chair in the shower. Nothing about how they should have a key to open all the wheelchair accessible bathrooms and keep them in working order, too.

I have not personally had a problem with accessibility but a friend and I were going a course together. The night before we were due to start the course, Ian got a phone call saying that they did not have a lift for him, and there was no way of getting him up the stairs, so he would be refunded his money.

He rang me and two of his friends early the next morning, telling us that he was not going to attend the course. He'd had arranged for his friends to carry him up the stairs and I was going to get his wheel chair up stairs for him. But this company refused stating that it was "not safe for us to lift or carry anything up the stairs".

They offered my friend to either do the course else where and they would make up the difference in the cost or he wait until they had a more accessible venue.

This training body had a mission statement, that they were an "Equal opportunity business and accessible to all community members". Needles to say Ian, myself and the two other men used their mission statement against them, saying they are NOT equal or accessible service, as stated in their missions statement.

Within in three months the company had moved to a more accessible venue, and they changed their mission statement.

I also know of another person who had booked a room at what was meant to be wheel chair friendly, this person had purposely asked if they could have room on ground level and told them she was in a wheel chair, she was told that they were a wheel chair friendly building, and that she would have a ground base room. When she got there they had given her room up stairs, no lift, and when her hubby went to look at the room it was not even remotely wheel chair friendly, so they went back to reception and asked for their money back, her hubby had to make it clear they need a room which his wife could move around the room and a bathroom, this motel/hotel initially refused to pay them their money back. The hubby threatened them with a full front page story about how they had been treated. they got their money back. But they had to drive around to find a wheel chair friendly accommodation.

I cut and copied this from one of my past questions.

I just experienced something and want to know who is correct? Would it be worth it to fight it or just pay the?

fine and get it done with.

I use a walker to help me walk and I keep my disabled parking placard in it in the basket part of it. My walker usually goes in the back of the van or in a trunk of a car.

My dad and I were parking in a handicapped place. My dad got out of the car to get my placard when a car comes up and stops just inches away from the back of the car so my dad can't get to it. The person in the car says she called the police on us for parking in a handicapped space with out the placard and rolls up her window and refuses to look at us. So he can't explain.

I call the police on my cell phone and explain what is going on and they say they are sending an officer out. When the police get there my dad tries explaining his side of the story. The officer slaps my dad with the $250 fine and tells us to leave the premises or he will arrest my dad. So my dad leaves and takes me home. We are both very angry at the way we were trapped.

I want to know what the law is regarding this. I recorded the whole thing on my cellphone accidentally. Can we use the recording in court if we decide to sue the person and the officers.

Most importantly do I have to keep my placard with me. It is so much easier to keep it in my walker. I am always afraid I will lose it and I will with all the different cars I travel in.

I live in Illinois.

Also what will be involved in fighting it like would I need a lawyer and stuff like that.

If you could give me web sites that would help me and my dad, that would be great.

6 months ago

Additional Details

When my dad saw he was getting nowhere with the woman, he came and sat in the car till the police got there. When the officer arrived he was so rude to us. He didn't even give us a chance to explain or get out of the car to get the placard. He said " Here is your ticket" handing my dad the ticket "now leave or I will arrest you both". He had this look on his face like he was going to beat us up if we didn't do what he said. So we did it.

My dad and I fought it and we won the court case. The officer was suspended. The woman disappeared so nothing could be done with her.

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