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We have the opportunity to have a motability car if we want it. I haven't looked into it a great length but it seems that for nil or small deposit I can run a car for my dla payments for three years and 45000 miles. Cars available include a new Zafira, an Almera, Megane and tantilisingly a Mazda MX5! All for no advance. Must be a catch!
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Dodo,
Go for it.
The only catch is not on you - it is on the punters paying tax to finance these deals....I discovered this some time ago when my brother in law could not park outside his house until his two motability neighbours moved thier two cars to go to line dancing classes.
Matt35.
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I was once told that Motability had the second largest vehicle fleet in the world - the first being the Red Army's. The scheme's growth rate has just been too large to keep up with the investigation of fraud.
Motability are starting to realise that this was jepardising the scheme for the majority of genuine claimants so they are taking it more seriously. In 2001 they wrote to every scheme member in Northern Ireland warning them that the scheme may be withdrawn if the levels of fraud were to continue
It is very hard to judge on people's disabilities - some people may look OK at first sight, but may have serious medical problems.
If anyone in the back room genuinely thinks that they know of someone who is misuing the scheme, they can report them to Mobility, there is even a web form on their site. Doing so ensures that the people who need it get the freedom they need.
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I don't think that the vast majority of this is actually Motability's problem, and so I think that you are being a little unfair on them here.
My understanding is that to benefit from Motability deals you have to benefit from the higher mobility rate of the Disability Living Allowance administered by the Department of Work and Pensions. That is where the major fraud takes place.
The fraud on Mobility is at a lower lever and involves the use of the vehicle outside its intended purpose, or lending it to unapproved drivers and similar such abuse. However from a taxpayer's point of view the rightful recipient of the car has handed back their DLA to obtain the car.
So the real question is how you stop abuse of the DLA scheme? Now anyone with the answer to that would be Gordon Brown's best friend.
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hxj,
"So the real question is how you stop abuse of the DLA scheme? Now anyone with the answer to that would be Gordon Brown's best friend."
Did you mean best or only?
Dodo - I hope my post did not offend, I completely support the scheme for genuine applicants,
Matt35.
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I am sure that he has lots of friends :-), but politics gets frowned upon so I won't elaborate!
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it to unapproved drivers and similar such abuse. However from a taxpayer's point of view the rightful recipient of the car has handed back their DLA to obtain the car.
As I understand it, as Motability are a registered charity there is an additional cost to the exchequer; through reduced tax revenues.
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My wife has had 3 Motability cars in the past:
To qualify you must either be on a war pension or the higher rate disability benefit.
The level of deposit required for the car depends on the expected depreciation of that car - e.g. for a Clio Auto with aircon and other stuff it was GBP300 (sorry not pound symbol on this keyboard). For a Mitusbishi Colt it was GBP1500
Whats the catches:
12,000 miles per year limit, checked every year. The fees for going over this are pretty steep.
All servicing by the main dealer.
The insurance is via Motability which means you don't accrue any NCD.
Stiff penalties if the car is returned before its contracted return date.
Sometimes pretty slack response from the dealers as they don't value Motability customers (no profit in it).
I think you automatic membership of the AA with full cover.
There's probably a whole load of other stuff to discuss, but my wife dropped out of the scheme nearly 2 years ago and my memory is pretty ropey.
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Whats the catches: 12,000 miles per year limit, checked every year. The fees for going over this are pretty steep.
As used car prices have fallen over the last few years it has made it difficult to run the scheme economically so the cars need to be passed out of the scheme in good nick; they can quite stringent over the overall condition when you return it.
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My son is severely disabled but rather than having a mobility vehicle we bought a converted vehicle outright using the allownce towards a loan. Our vehicle has to have wheelchair ramp and a clamping system and as we can only go on holiday by using a caravan needs to be a good tow vehicle.
my wife has an aquaintace whode husband became "disabled" due to throwing himself out of a flat window in a fit of anger. He now can have a car on mobility. I wish I could afford to watch Sky television whist quaffinfg cans of lager at 10am as I have seen this guy regularly do.
Beefing over if mobility is for you and you accept the restrictiond regarding milage do it. If not remember your mobility allowance can always be used for a mobility loan or prrsonal loan if you want to own the vehicle outright.
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I once sold a new Lada Samara to a motability customer on H.P, not contract hire, and in three years he covered about 100,000 miles in it. Turned out he was using it as a taxi!
Roger.
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AND he was the nastiest customer we ever had, too! Always swearing at our staff and being generally unpleasant.
I also recall I sold a Riva 1300 to a lady who regularly went to bowling matches as a player, despite having the Motability allowance for BACK problems. Hmmmmmmmmmmmm!
Roger.
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One has to wonder what the rate of abuse of this system would be if the only choice of vehicle available was a three wheeled turquoise coloured one...
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Now I'm confused. Surely the mileage rate is 15000 per year? Is the scheme sponsored by the Government? Our daughter is 14 and has been disabled since birth - I wish she could bowl or become a taxi driver but she can't. I really dont think suggesting a regression to an unsafe three wheeler in turquoise demonstrates much understanding!
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Pretty sure its 12K a year, at least this was the limit in 2000/2001.
Regarding your daughter - I'm sure that you can apply to Motability on her behalf and get a car that way. However the car can ONLY be used in connection with your daughter, .e.g taking her to school, playground, etc. You can't go shopping in it unless she is with you at the time.
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Right so when she's in hospital and we need to get a taxi to go to see her. Great system. Think I'll pass.
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No need to get stroppy :)
Instead of making assumptions and going solely on my possibly mis-informed view, why not ring Motability and ask them?
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Why not, you're wrong. If you're giving advice why not do it properly?
Provided that the car is not used for an improper purpose then any of the named drivers can use it.
Personally given the new 45000 mile three year contracts and a 5p/mile excess mileage charge I would bite their hands off!
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and AFAIK an "improper purpose", as far as Motability is concerned, is using the car not in connection with the disabled person that is subsidising it.
The reason I keep on about that point is that I remember reading it in the contract my wife had with Motability.
And I do agree with you, I think the scheme was VERY good and my wife used it for her first 3 cars, all I'm saying is find out what the restrictions are.
Visiting the daughter in hospital is a proper use, taking your mates to Wales for a jolly probably isn't.
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There is no point in trying to put a stop to, in my opinion the worst kind of benefit frauds....career cripples. These are people who have made it their job to con as much as they can out of the system by faking it. Take my neighbour for example she has a motability car, which her husband uses every day to go to work in, she walks to the other side of our town to pick her grandson up and walks back to her house pushing his pushchair. Access to her house is easy with the pushchair though because the council has just fitted a new UPVC door which opens outwards and a ramp. The council has also built her an extension at the back of her house, a downstairs bedroom and bathroom, because she is too ill to walk upstairs !!! Funny that I've seen her upstairs washing her windows. I was so annoyed about this that I filmed her cleaning her mobility car and walking down the street and rang up the fraud line who said that they would look into it, but never have. I gave them my name and offered to send the video evidence but they said no thanks!!!! She's been claiming for at least 8 years and one of her kids gets carers for looking after her, so she must be getting the middle or higher rate of DLA carers allowance. Does anyone else think that this is out of order, or is it just me?
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