Prosecutions by English councils for abuse of disabled parking badges rose by 84% last year.
Figures published by the Department for Transport (DfT) show that councils prosecuted 935 people for misuse of blue badges in 2014-15, compared with 535 in 2013-14.
The DfT figures only show the number of prosecutions, rather than convictions, although the DfT has consulted councils on whether they would be able to provide outcome data in future.
Four councils – Hammersmith and Fulham Council, Leeds City Council, Waltham Forest Council and Newcastle City Council – were responsible for more than half of the total in 2014-15.
Hammersmith and Fulham prosecuted 190 people, up from 154 the previous year, while prosecutions by Waltham Forest Council, which launched a specialist team in September 2012, rose from 16 to 120 in a year.
Many councils reported that they had brought no prosecutions during the year.
Cllr Wesley Harcourt, Hammersmith and Fulham Council's cabinet member for environment, transport and eesidents' services said: 'We have a zero tolerance stance when it comes to misuse of disabled blue badges.
‘This abuse frustrates and is unfair on genuine badge holders, so we work hard to stamp it out through joint operations with the police in target areas, particularly around shopping centres and our three football grounds.’
The vast majority of prosecutions nationally (951) were targeted at non-badge holders using someone else’s badge. Only 28 blue badge holders were prosecuted during the year.
