Traffic wardens in Lincolnshire continue to receive ‘unacceptable’ abuse from public while at work

Figures have revealed hundreds of incidents of “unacceptable” abuse from members of the public against traffic wardens while working across Lincolnshire.

A Freedom of Information request submitted to Lincolnshire County Council by the Grantham Journal - the Mercury’s sister title – has shown that 475 incidents of abuse towards traffic wardens were reported from November 2021 to May 2023.

Around five per cent of the incidents required police involvement.

The incidents of abuse are split into three categories: Code Blue, Code Yellow and Code Red.

Code Blue is when an officer suffers from verbal abuse, which includes racist, homophobic and sexist language or anything that affects their mental health.

Code Yellow includes threats of violence, spitting, aggression, snatching at the officer’s handheld device or throwing the penalty charge notice at the officer.

Finally, Code Red offences refer to incidents of physical assault on wardens, for example, hits, kicks, punches, shoves or threats with weapons. They also include any instance where an officer sustains an injury.

Of the 475 total incidents reported between November 2021 and May 2023, 416 were Code Blues, while 35 were Code Reds. There were 24 Code Yellows.

Councillor Richard Davies, executive member for highways at LCC, said: “We take the well-being of all our enforcement officers very seriously and any abuse towards them is highly unacceptable.

“When this sort of thing happens, we liaise with our enforcement contractor to ensure the officer is okay and to offer any support necessary if the matter requires police involvement and a potential prosecution.

“We ask all members of the public to always treat our officers with respect.

“Being an enforcement officer is a difficult job that is never very popular.

“It’s also important to remember that these officers are simply enforcing the parking regulations set in place for the areas they patrol, which are very often a response to local concerns to ensure the safety of and ease of access for others within the community.”

In 2023, up to and including May, there have been nine recorded Code Red incidents in Lincolnshire.

In those five months a total of 157 incidents were reported, an average of 31.2 per month.

February 2023 saw the most incidents in a single month, with 42 Code Blues and one Code Red and Code Yellow each.

Last year, a total of 281 incidents were reported against wardens at an average of 23.4 per month.

LCC delivers its parking enforcement services through its private sector partner APCOA.