Six ways drivers can automatically qualify for a Blue Badge

The badges help people with disabilities park closer to their destination

Blue Badges give access to disabled bays and permission to park on yellow lines

In the UK, many people are eligible for a Blue Badge, which allows motorists to park closer to the place they’re visiting. You can apply for a badge for yourself, on behalf of someone else, or an organisation that transports people who require a Blue Badge.

A Blue Badge costs £10 in England and £20 in Scotland, but it’s free in Wales. Regardless of where you apply from, the badges typically last for three years. According to Government guidance, there are six ways a person will automatically qualify for a Blue Badge – provided they are at least three years old. These include:

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you receive the higher rate of the mobility component of the Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
you receive a Personal Independence Payment (PIP) because you can’t walk more than 50 metres (a score of 8 points or more under the ‘moving around’ activity of the mobility component)
you are registered blind (severely sight impaired)
you receive a War Pensioners’ Mobility Supplement
you have received a lump sum benefit within tariff levels 1 to 8 of the Armed Forces and Reserve Forces (Compensation) Scheme and have been certified as having a permanent and substantial disability that causes inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking
you receive the mobility component of PIP and have obtained 10 points specifically for descriptor E under the ‘planning and following journeys’ activity, because you are unable to undertake any journey because it would cause you overwhelming psychological distress

People may also be eligible for a badge if one or more of the following applies:

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you cannot walk at all
you cannot walk without help from someone else or using mobility aids
you find walking very difficult due to pain, breathlessness or the time it takes
walking is dangerous to your health and safety
you have a life-limiting illness, which means you cannot walk or find walking very difficult and have a SR1 form
you have a severe disability in both arms and drive regularly, but cannot operate pay-and-display parking machines
you have a child under the age of 3 with a medical condition that means the child always needs to be accompanied by bulky medical equipment
you have a child under the age of 3 with a medical condition that means the child must always be kept near a vehicle in case they need emergency medical treatment
you are constantly a significant risk to yourself or others near vehicles, in traffic or car parks
you struggle severely to plan or follow a journey
you find it difficult or impossible to control your actions and lack awareness of the impact you could have on others
you regularly have intense and overwhelming responses to situations causing temporary loss of behavioural control
you frequently become extremely anxious or fearful of public/open spaces