The group which manages New Zealand's mobility parking scheme says half the cars in the spots shouldn't be there.
Saturday is International Disability Day, but Disability Action's latest research shows mobility park abuse hasn't improved in the past decade.
More than 130,000 New Zealanders are permitted to use disabled parks, but not having a permit doesn't stop thousands of others using them.
While 17 percent of respondents to a new survey admit to using the spaces without a permit, observations taken across the country in October show there's only a 50 percent chance a car parked in a disabled space actually belongs to a person with a disability.
Some of the excuses given by respondents include "it's okay to use them if it's only for a short period of time" and "if it's at a quiet time of the day, it's okay".
"It is never okay to use one of the mobility parks without a permit," says Mr Wilson.
"Just like every other citizen in New Zealand, disabled people just want to get on with their lives," spokesman Peter Wilson told Newshub.
"When people use a mobility park when they shouldn't, they're just taking that fair go opportunity away."
The new survey is the first on mobility parking abuse undertaken in a decade.
Newshub.