A MOTORIST used her dead mother’s blue badge to park her car illegally in disabled bays.

Beverly Bryant, 55, of Georgian Walk, St Leonards, admitted the charge when she appeared at Eastbourne Magistrates Court.

She was fined £250 and ordered to pay £491 costs.

Nicola Pantry, 48, of Hestingas Plat, Ebenezer Road, Hastings, admitted doctoring her permit’s expiry date from2014 to 2016 when she appeared at the same court.

She was fined £120 and ordered to pay £150 costs.

The pair had both been caught by enforcement officers who were carrying out routine checks for East Sussex County Council.

The council’s lead member for transport and environment, Carl Maynard, said: “These latest prosecutions send a clear message to those motorists who continue to fraudulently use a blue badge.

“We will not hesitate to bring to justice those people who continue to commit these crimes and abuse the system.

“This is not a victimless crime. These motorists are using spaces required by people who have a genuine need – those who have severe mobility problems or are registered blind.

“Every fraudulent blue badge is also costing the taxpayer up to £5,000 in lost parking revenue and the cost of installing more disabled bays.”

Last December the council teamed up with Brighton and Hove City Council and Sussex Police to launch Operation Bluebird, an initiative to crackdown on the misuse of blue badges.

Government funding enabled the partners to invest in dedicated officers to investigate and take any action needed.

In June, the county council offered motorists in possession of fraudulent blue badges the chance to hand them over and avoid further action as part of an amnesty and 36 permits were surrendered.

Coun Maynard said: “We have given people every opportunity to hand in any illegally held blue badges.

“We will continue to carry out regular checks on drivers using these permits and will take action against those who continue to flout the law.”

Bryant and Pantry were in court on August 7.