You will most likely get a $1,800 fine if you misuse a disabled placard in San Francisco.
People who break disabled placard laws in California are routinely getting $1,800 fines. In San Francisco, with more disabled placards issued then parking spots available, this has become a big problem for the task force that finds and catches violators. According to Kron 4’s Stanley Roberts in the latest crackdown on these violators and his special report posted up by KRON 4 news earlier today (Mar. 14,2018) not only did he document numerous violators in action but witnessed one man receive that infamous $1,800 fine. Check out the video from Kron 4 below!
According to the San Francisco Municipal Transportation and in accordance with the California vehicle code that states that misuse of disabled placards results in a fine not exceeding $1,000, SF’s fine is $875. So how did I end up with $1,800? It’s another $875 if you park in a disabled parking spot without a disabled placard. Combine those two fines and you’ll end up with a total fine (plus fees) in the neighborhood of $1,800.
The first example from Stanley Roberts illustrates that quite succinctly. The task force finds a man parked in a disabled parking spot with an expired disabled parking placard. With a bag covering the expiration date, he thought he could fool the task force into letting him slide by on a technicality but the task force routinely waits for the offender to return to his vehicle to confirm who the placard belongs to. In the end, as mentioned, he received an $875 fine for using an expired disabled placard (misuse of a placard) and another $875 for parking in a disabled spot without a valid placard on him.
The second guy that got caught in the video was using a disabled placard that should’ve been surrendered. Oftentimes people who legally have disabled placards are coerced by a friend, family member or by their own decision, to report their placard stolen. By getting a replacement in the mail, they’ll technically have two, although the “stolen” one will be marked as “surrendered” AKA it shouldn’t be in use. If you DO display a surrendered placard, that counts as placard abuse and results in a (you guessed it) $875 fine. He also got slapped with an additional $73 fine for an overtime meter, but that’s a different story.
Getting free parking by using a disabled placard sounds tempting to pull off if you can and it oftentimes goes unpunished. But do know that task forces are out their and there’s a hefty fine that’ll surely put a dent in your budget.
