Motability Disabled Car Scheme
Discussion
Good evening,
Im looking for some information and advice regarding this scheme. My father has been offered the scheme and i was looking to see if anyone had any advice of any useful information about the service and how it works.
I have read and understood all of the information that has been provided by them and it seems like a resonable deal. Up to now (for the last 3/4 years) i have almost become my fathers full time carer/driver, and the deals they offer will financially and generally solve alot of issues. But i dont want to jump on in to find some nasty horror storys.
In short they offer a car from a choice of 4000 brand new cars, they cover insurance,tax,mot,tyres and servicing and my fathers disability allowance pays the weekly rental. Its on a 3 year deal. (so basicly a 3 year rental).
Does anyone know how and what limitations are on upgrades when ordering, for example we are looking at the deal they have on a BMW 120D Coupe M-sport but would obviously want leather and a few addons to make it a comfy car for when im taking dad on longer trips.
Regards
Rob.
Im looking for some information and advice regarding this scheme. My father has been offered the scheme and i was looking to see if anyone had any advice of any useful information about the service and how it works.
I have read and understood all of the information that has been provided by them and it seems like a resonable deal. Up to now (for the last 3/4 years) i have almost become my fathers full time carer/driver, and the deals they offer will financially and generally solve alot of issues. But i dont want to jump on in to find some nasty horror storys.
In short they offer a car from a choice of 4000 brand new cars, they cover insurance,tax,mot,tyres and servicing and my fathers disability allowance pays the weekly rental. Its on a 3 year deal. (so basicly a 3 year rental).
Does anyone know how and what limitations are on upgrades when ordering, for example we are looking at the deal they have on a BMW 120D Coupe M-sport but would obviously want leather and a few addons to make it a comfy car for when im taking dad on longer trips.
Regards
Rob.
Your disabled Dad wants a little, low 1 Series coupe with rock hard M-Sport suspension for comfy long trips? 
Seriously though, my neighbour uses the scheme and it's very straightforward with no real pitfalls, but if you want extras that take it out of budget you have pay the extra. His is three year with a fixed annual mileage. He's on his fifth and hasn't had any problems.
Seriously though, my neighbour uses the scheme and it's very straightforward with no real pitfalls, but if you want extras that take it out of budget you have pay the extra. His is three year with a fixed annual mileage. He's on his fifth and hasn't had any problems.
My father had a few of these, and my sister in law currently has one.
In my very limited experience/knowledge the "experience" is down to the dealer.
I remember my father being given a hard time by a VW dealer who wanted him to pay quite a lot of money at "give back time", as his 3 year old 25,000 mile golf had stone chips !
On the other hand he had no problem with Ford, Vauxhall, or Renault dealers.
I believe you can spec up as much as you want, but you pay the extra, and get nothing back at the end.
In my very limited experience/knowledge the "experience" is down to the dealer.
I remember my father being given a hard time by a VW dealer who wanted him to pay quite a lot of money at "give back time", as his 3 year old 25,000 mile golf had stone chips !
On the other hand he had no problem with Ford, Vauxhall, or Renault dealers.
I believe you can spec up as much as you want, but you pay the extra, and get nothing back at the end.
Many thanks for the replys.
The BMW is just a option atm. So we are looking at a few other options.
Ye i guess my main issue is come hand back time. Im going to phone them on Monday to get the in's and out's. I may also pop over to BMW UK at Bracknell as its only 5 mins away and see what they say.
Is the 1 Series really that hard? I presume they come with Run-flats, im going to ask if the option to have non run flats is available.
The BMW is just a option atm. So we are looking at a few other options.
Ye i guess my main issue is come hand back time. Im going to phone them on Monday to get the in's and out's. I may also pop over to BMW UK at Bracknell as its only 5 mins away and see what they say.
Is the 1 Series really that hard? I presume they come with Run-flats, im going to ask if the option to have non run flats is available.
E36Rob said:
Many thanks for the replys.
The BMW is just a option atm. So we are looking at a few other options.
Ye i guess my main issue is come hand back time. Im going to phone them on Monday to get the in's and out's. I may also pop over to BMW UK at Bracknell as its only 5 mins away and see what they say.
Is the 1 Series really that hard? I presume they come with Run-flats, im going to ask if the option to have non run flats is available.
I was only joking! It just sounds more like you're choosing what you fancy rather than your old man but if you're going to be driving it and your dad is cool with it, it's not a problem and you wouldn't be the first! The BMW is just a option atm. So we are looking at a few other options.
Ye i guess my main issue is come hand back time. Im going to phone them on Monday to get the in's and out's. I may also pop over to BMW UK at Bracknell as its only 5 mins away and see what they say.
Is the 1 Series really that hard? I presume they come with Run-flats, im going to ask if the option to have non run flats is available.
Just with the experience of my dad who is getting on a bit, getting in and out of something as low as a 1 series coupe can be a real pain, which is why when I drive my dad round I have the embarrassment of being seen in a diesel MPV with large wide opening doors and high comfy seats.
I think it is a pretty good scheme with a huge option of what to go for too. It might be worth thinking about going for something lower end so you don't need to pay much (if anything) up front.
Choose your car wisely as you might get other benefits from some cars like better MPG, which over 3 years will make a difference.
Any upgrades you will have to pay for up front (some disability enhancements are free to upgrade, like some steering aids etc.) and as said above you wont get anything back at the end of the 3 years.
Choose your car wisely as you might get other benefits from some cars like better MPG, which over 3 years will make a difference.
Any upgrades you will have to pay for up front (some disability enhancements are free to upgrade, like some steering aids etc.) and as said above you wont get anything back at the end of the 3 years.
J500ANT said:
I will point out they are strict on who uses the car, only 2 insured drivers (doesnt have to be the hirer/disabled person) BUT use has to be for the benefit of the disabled person.
Not true, they will add an additional driver for £75. Was going to get one for mum but cancelled in the end as we'd rather have the cash and drive an old snotter about, we don't do many miles.We'd ordered from volkswagen and were told that they expect fair wear and tear, which meant if you had a wheel chair dings and dents all up the drivers side and rips in the interior where the chair had been manhandled across them!! Dealers words not mine!
Providing you find a dealership with a handy Motability Specialist you may be able to wangle a couple of bits on the cheap but it is more than likely any extras you want will incur charges up front.
BMW are relatively new to the Motab scheme and so most of their specialists should have a fresh understanding of the rules.
Come handback time, some manufacturers can be proper
s when it comes to 'fair wear and tear' but I do recommend you pay £2-300 for paint protection, in a lot of cases if the car is in 'excellent condition' you will receive a £250 bonus from Motability.
A lot of the process relies on how efficient your specialist is, so make sure they know what they're doing and the whole thing should be pretty painless
BMW are relatively new to the Motab scheme and so most of their specialists should have a fresh understanding of the rules.
Come handback time, some manufacturers can be proper
s when it comes to 'fair wear and tear' but I do recommend you pay £2-300 for paint protection, in a lot of cases if the car is in 'excellent condition' you will receive a £250 bonus from Motability.A lot of the process relies on how efficient your specialist is, so make sure they know what they're doing and the whole thing should be pretty painless
Quinny said:
Nigel Worc's said:
I remember my father being given a hard time by a VW dealer who wanted him to pay quite a lot of money at "give back time", as his 3 year old 25,000 mile golf had stone chips !
Same thing happened with a fella I used to work with...A Polo that was 3 years old, less than 30k and pretty much mint.... VW said they wanted £750 to correct the paintwork...
It was nothing but fair wear & tear on a 3 year old car... He told them to claim on the Mobility insurance if it was that bad
Hmmmmmmmm.......that's very,very interesting.How recently was this?I was a motability specialist. When I did it, all I had to do was fill out a condition report when the car came back and then send it off Motab. If the car was in good condition, the customer got their bonus, if it wasn't they didn't. The only the time that the customer was penalised was if the car came back in with unreported major damage or in such a terrible condition it had to be written off or completely over hauled. For instance, if it was infected with lice or had evidence of human waste in it (yes really!!). However, repairing it was nothing we got involved with at all. No matter how bad it was, it was picked up by the auction company and we never saw it again, not our problem.
Sounds to me like that dealer was trying to get some extra cash out of some very vunerable people and as such is despicable.
If this was recently I would check the small print, ring motability to check and then let them know. I think you'll find that if this is the case that dealer and possibly the entire dealer group will lose their motability franchise very, very quickly.
Anyway back to OP. If you are looking at a Motab deal, certainly with the franchise that I used to sell you had to have fixed specification vehicles. Taking a base model and then loading it up with extras couldn't be done. You just had to have an S,SE,Sport etc. as Motab like to keep things simple.
Is it worth it? If the deposit doesn't exceed what you would have to pay on personal contract hire then yes. Some of the deposits are huge and you would be better off going to dealer for a PCP. But to have all the insurance, servicing and rfl costs included is a major bonus and another less thing to worry about.
Finally, some of the people who you had to deal with broke your heart. The young woman with terminal cancer who said "this will be the last car I will have and I wanted to get something nice,". The man whose son was very seriously disabled, who asked me not tell any of his relatives who might pop in that he had ordered one because they were jealous he got a 'free car'.
Then there were the total and complete scumbags who were working the system & whose only disability seemed to be the fact that they couldn't walk past a Mcdonalds. These people were such mouth breathing bottom feeders that I think the only reason they had got Motab in the first place was that their doctors just wanted the lazy, benefit cheating, smelly feckers out of their surgeries.
freecar said:
J500ANT said:
I will point out they are strict on who uses the car, only 2 insured drivers (doesnt have to be the hirer/disabled person) BUT use has to be for the benefit of the disabled person.
Not true, they will add an additional driver for £75. Was going to get one for mum but cancelled in the end as we'd rather have the cash and drive an old snotter about, we don't do many miles.We'd ordered from volkswagen and were told that they expect fair wear and tear, which meant if you had a wheel chair dings and dents all up the drivers side and rips in the interior where the chair had been manhandled across them!! Dealers words not mine!
- I'm not saying thats the case for the OP, just pointing it out.
The MDP (Motability Dealer Partnership) revised the rules with regards to VCD (Vehicle Condition Description) on handback. Nowadays, most items are fair wear and tear and only if it needs to go to a bodyshop will you get hit for the cost of the repair, you will also loose your £200 condition bonus.
The scheme is an excellent idea, in exchange for the Higher Rate Mobility Component of your fathers Disability Living Allowance, which I think is £50.90 at the moment you get the following:
:: Brand new car from a massive range of manufacturers.
:: Insurance for 3 years provided by Royal Sun Alliance Motability. If you have younger drivers in mind, beware, because RSAM will not insure an under 25 on anything above group 8. RSAM also seam to get 6 & 8 confused often!
:: All servicing and mechanical repair even if its outside of warranty.
:: All tyres, unless you have a tyre inflation kit, If you use the foam you pay to replace it.
:: 3 years RAC, the top level, if you phone them and give them your reg you go right to the top of the list, above "Lone woman in trouble"
:: They deal with Taxing the car.
If you want any options on the car, they are at your cost, and you dont get anything back for them at the end of the agreement.
The car needs to be used mainly for the benifit of the claimant, which if you are the primary carer should not be an issue.
If your father is wanting to drive the car aswell, there are a number of adaptations which motability will fully fund for you. Things like Push Pull hand controls, steering balls and that sort of thing. They will also help towards costs on other adaptations like Wheelchair hoists.
On the whole its a fantastic scheme to the people who use it. If you would rather, you can also use the allowance to pay for Motability Hire Purchase. This is a standard HP deal, where you own the car at the end of the term. You pay for all the benifits detailed above, but if you are looking at a car which is very strong on residuals, or that you may want to keep past 3yrs then it makes sense. MHP is not credit checked, if he gets the HMRCDLA then he gets the credit, but pick your car well because Motability Operations will not fund a penny above Glasses Guide Retal price.
Hope it helps.
Nick
Motability Specialist.
The scheme is an excellent idea, in exchange for the Higher Rate Mobility Component of your fathers Disability Living Allowance, which I think is £50.90 at the moment you get the following:
:: Brand new car from a massive range of manufacturers.
:: Insurance for 3 years provided by Royal Sun Alliance Motability. If you have younger drivers in mind, beware, because RSAM will not insure an under 25 on anything above group 8. RSAM also seam to get 6 & 8 confused often!
:: All servicing and mechanical repair even if its outside of warranty.
:: All tyres, unless you have a tyre inflation kit, If you use the foam you pay to replace it.
:: 3 years RAC, the top level, if you phone them and give them your reg you go right to the top of the list, above "Lone woman in trouble"
:: They deal with Taxing the car.
If you want any options on the car, they are at your cost, and you dont get anything back for them at the end of the agreement.
The car needs to be used mainly for the benifit of the claimant, which if you are the primary carer should not be an issue.
If your father is wanting to drive the car aswell, there are a number of adaptations which motability will fully fund for you. Things like Push Pull hand controls, steering balls and that sort of thing. They will also help towards costs on other adaptations like Wheelchair hoists.
On the whole its a fantastic scheme to the people who use it. If you would rather, you can also use the allowance to pay for Motability Hire Purchase. This is a standard HP deal, where you own the car at the end of the term. You pay for all the benifits detailed above, but if you are looking at a car which is very strong on residuals, or that you may want to keep past 3yrs then it makes sense. MHP is not credit checked, if he gets the HMRCDLA then he gets the credit, but pick your car well because Motability Operations will not fund a penny above Glasses Guide Retal price.
Hope it helps.
Nick
Motability Specialist.
Its a great scheme for people in genuine need. You wont be able to drive a new car cheaper and with less hassle than via MFL.
Any extra's you pay for will be lost after three years. Choose wisely it maybe nice to drive a sporty car for a few months but your Dads condition may deteriorate and be stuck in something unsuitable thats hes paying for.
A good specialist should be able to give you the full run down and make sure your dad will feel comfortable in the vehicle.
Any other questions ask away please.
Any extra's you pay for will be lost after three years. Choose wisely it maybe nice to drive a sporty car for a few months but your Dads condition may deteriorate and be stuck in something unsuitable thats hes paying for.
A good specialist should be able to give you the full run down and make sure your dad will feel comfortable in the vehicle.
Any other questions ask away please.
E36Rob said:
Does anyone know how and what limitations are on upgrades when ordering, for example we are looking at the deal they have on a BMW 120D Coupe M-sport but would obviously want leather and a few addons to make it a comfy car for when im taking dad on longer trips.
lol, It's a mobility car dude, leather isn't any more comfortable. As others have pointed out, I think a car with softer suspension and better accessibility would be a better idea. Many thanks for the wide range of replys, some extreamly helpful.
As it has been said a few times here about the reference of the car for me. Yes and no, Yes i will be driving it taking dad out, to the shops, to the bank, to the holiday home etc. Am i picking the car with just me in mind, no.
We have both agreed that we wanted a slightly smaller car than whats being driven now, and just from a quick browse through the lists we came back with a short list of Audi A3, VW Golf and BMW 1 Series, we looked at many more on the list but my dad said to me that he wouldnt mind something "quite smart".
We have talked long and hard about this so far, just to get to the point of lets look abit further into it. Im going to be selling one of my cars to fund this because of the situation we have been through. (basicly we lost my father 3 times in hospital just 8 weeks ago due to bowel cancer). But he has proved how strong he is so we want him to have a nice last how ever long. He has always been a secret car fan although never in a position to own anything nice.
Out of the short list the BMW was very well priced (im guessing its one of the deals) when looked at against the other cars, that and i have BMW expeience as i own a 3 series and have used a local BMW garage in the past and only had good service.
I wasnt aware that the ride was so uncomfortable, and this is one of many things we will check out. Aswell as ease of access to the car for my father etc.
At the end of the day i have my own cars to drive, 1 being far to hard ride the other far to juicy for the miles that my dad has me driving around for him. Yes my dad is a very active OAP! He loves being out and about. He eventually wants to drive some time again once he has recovered from everything thats gone on, but until then i will continue to be his full time driver and carer.
Again,
Thank you for all the feedback, ive made notes of every useful point thats been said and will be sure to check out and follow each one up before jumping into it.
Regards
Rob.
As it has been said a few times here about the reference of the car for me. Yes and no, Yes i will be driving it taking dad out, to the shops, to the bank, to the holiday home etc. Am i picking the car with just me in mind, no.
We have both agreed that we wanted a slightly smaller car than whats being driven now, and just from a quick browse through the lists we came back with a short list of Audi A3, VW Golf and BMW 1 Series, we looked at many more on the list but my dad said to me that he wouldnt mind something "quite smart".
We have talked long and hard about this so far, just to get to the point of lets look abit further into it. Im going to be selling one of my cars to fund this because of the situation we have been through. (basicly we lost my father 3 times in hospital just 8 weeks ago due to bowel cancer). But he has proved how strong he is so we want him to have a nice last how ever long. He has always been a secret car fan although never in a position to own anything nice.
Out of the short list the BMW was very well priced (im guessing its one of the deals) when looked at against the other cars, that and i have BMW expeience as i own a 3 series and have used a local BMW garage in the past and only had good service.
I wasnt aware that the ride was so uncomfortable, and this is one of many things we will check out. Aswell as ease of access to the car for my father etc.
At the end of the day i have my own cars to drive, 1 being far to hard ride the other far to juicy for the miles that my dad has me driving around for him. Yes my dad is a very active OAP! He loves being out and about. He eventually wants to drive some time again once he has recovered from everything thats gone on, but until then i will continue to be his full time driver and carer.
Again,
Thank you for all the feedback, ive made notes of every useful point thats been said and will be sure to check out and follow each one up before jumping into it.
Regards
Rob.
Right, please forgive my ignorance because I'm not fully familiar with Motability, but on the assumption that this is I think partly taxpayer and partly charity funded I don't understand how the OP thinks this "seems like a good deal". Let's talk straight-it's a great deal-a car (correct me if I'm wrong) you don't have to pay for.
I also understand that it's not means tested.
I do however accept the principle that disabled people should be able to be mobile and enjoy the aspects of life that brings.
What I can't get my head around is the availability of BMW 123d M Sport coupes on it?? Is this with some sort of top up? It's a premium, desirable (ok, to many) car that is out of reach of most of the adult population unless they have access to a company car.
I also understand that it's not means tested.
I do however accept the principle that disabled people should be able to be mobile and enjoy the aspects of life that brings.
What I can't get my head around is the availability of BMW 123d M Sport coupes on it?? Is this with some sort of top up? It's a premium, desirable (ok, to many) car that is out of reach of most of the adult population unless they have access to a company car.
swindler said:
Right, please forgive my ignorance because I'm not fully familiar with Motability, but on the assumption that this is I think partly taxpayer and partly charity funded I don't understand how the OP thinks this "seems like a good deal". Let's talk straight-it's a great deal-a car (correct me if I'm wrong) you don't have to pay for.
I also understand that it's not means tested.
I do however accept the principle that disabled people should be able to be mobile and enjoy the aspects of life that brings.
What I can't get my head around is the availability of BMW 123d M Sport coupes on it?? Is this with some sort of top up? It's a premium, desirable (ok, to many) car that is out of reach of most of the adult population unless they have access to a company car.
Yes the BMW does require a 1 off fee at the begining. I also understand that it's not means tested.
I do however accept the principle that disabled people should be able to be mobile and enjoy the aspects of life that brings.
What I can't get my head around is the availability of BMW 123d M Sport coupes on it?? Is this with some sort of top up? It's a premium, desirable (ok, to many) car that is out of reach of most of the adult population unless they have access to a company car.
The BMW is quite a "cheap" car compared to many others on the list, for example Range Rover Sports, Audi A5, A6, 5 Series, 3 Series (coupe/saloon/vert), Merc's etc.
Why would it seem like a bad deal? My father is disabled and has been offered a car which yes is partly paid by taxpayers of which he has been paying for 50 years. The weekly rental fee is almost a flat rate across all the cars, being a micra or a range rover. Its just the inital fee you pay that defines what sort of car you want.
Edited by E36Rob on Sunday 15th November 11:53
Gassing Station | General Gassing [Archive] | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff