Legal Use Of A Handicap Placard

By Amy E. Feldman

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - A British doctor was busted for fraudulently using a handicap placard to park his Mercedes in a handicap spot. The spot was at the courthouse where he was fighting a ticket for fraudulently parking in a handicap spot. Apparently in England, a complete lack of common sense is not a handicap. Or at least not one that will get you a good parking spot.

What is the requirement for using a handicap placard?

Each state has its own Department of Motor Vehicles regulation but, in general, you need a doctor's certification to show that you have lost the use of legs or hands, or have a heart, lung, or circulatory disease, or mental or other physical health issues including age that make it difficult or impossible to walk two blocks. And then the placard that is issued is to be used only by the disabled person or by a person who is transporting the disabled person at the time the placard is being used.

If you're a bystander, remember that just because someone looks healthy doesn't mean he is; it's not your job to shame someone. That's for the police who can issue tickets up to $1000 for misuse, and as the British doctor found, for international tabloids to decide.