Adjustable Beds On Dla?

fifitrix123

My mate said today his mothers partner (who has never had a job and has claimed every benefit goingfor over 20 years, yet can walk when he wants to!!!) has got one of the double adjustable beds as he is on the high rate DLA and never had to pay for it?
Does anyone know of any help you can get with these apart from not paying VAT?
He has bought a mobility scooter with his mobility allowance so cannot have used that we don't think?
Anyone know of any help with these things please? (for someone who does need it!)

hilstep2000

You may be able to get one via your OT department. If you haven't got an Occ Therapist, ring Social Services and ask for an assessment of your needs. You can self-refer, or get your GP to do it for you.
They will come round and see what you need, and you may be able to get a Disabled Facilities Grant for one.
Otherwise, depending on your condition, the related charity may be able to help. Motor Neurone (for example) gives grants for rise and fall chairs, and adjustable beds.
Not trying to be funny, but your neighbour may have a condition like mine. I have Multiple Sclerosis. I have good and bad days. Some days I can cross the road for a paper, others I can't get out of bed. So just because he can walk sometimes, doesn't mean he hasn't got a problem.

Ames

He could have got a community care grant, I've just got one for a new orthopedic mattress.

trying-very-trying

It depends on what he grounds is claiming Dla. For example if he has something like ms, he could have applied to the ms society, and I'm sure that there are a whole heap of other specific condition charities.

MARTINS_DOLL

Our local Local Social Services Department do provide Disabled people with a special type of bed raise, which the user can control as to how high or low the top half of the bed needs to go for the user to get in or out of bed.

This is provided free depending on an assesment of your specific needs.

On the downside of these is that they do not go completely flat...

Unity

fifitrix123 wrote: »

My mate said today his mothers partner (who has never had a job and has claimed every benefit goingfor over 20 years, yet can walk when he wants to!!!) has got one of the double adjustable beds as he is on the high rate DLA and never had to pay for it?
Does anyone know of any help you can get with these apart from not paying VAT?
He has bought a mobility scooter with his mobility allowance so cannot have used that we don't think?
Anyone know of any help with these things please? (for someone who does need it!)

The only thing our Social Services would provide was a thing that raised the top half of the mattress to a sitting position. Unfortunately I was sleeping with my husband in a double bed - so this device used to sit him up at the same time, sleeping or not:rotfl: (like some surreal comedy to be honest:rolleyes:) and the noise of it could be heard by the next door neighbours :eek:. Matins' Doll is also correct, it doesn't go completely flat so in my case it actually caused more problems with my kn*ckered spine than I had already. It was just totally impractical. Our union stepped in and now I can raise and lower the top and bottom of the bed independently. It is wonderfully quiet and has a Tempur mattress. It has improved our lives no end.

Good luck, but unless you have an incredibly good Social Services Dept. you'll need to look elsewhere - sorry . Perhaps try your union. Ours contacted us to see if we needed anything when DH had to give up his career to look after me.

Ames

Blimey I wish my social services department were that good!

Unity

Ames wrote: »

Blimey I wish my social services department were that good!

You should be able to get some help surely via the Disabled Facilities Grant? It's worth a try.

Obviously it helps if you are referred by your hospital - my consultant referred me via the hospital OT who got in touch with the OT at Social Services. We had to pay quite a bit towards it, but we got wheelchair access through to the rear of the house, the conservatory floor was raised to allow access all on one level into the house and a stair-lift fitted. I decided to get a voucher towards the cost of the wheelchair as they couldn't provide a light-weight chair with a suspension which I was desperate for because the spinal injuries hurt a heck of a lot more if the chair jolts over uneven ground.

The union helped with both the bed and the wheelchair and I was very grateful for it.

I wish you luck - you've got the mattress, but one of those mattress raisers might help you more than it did me.

Best regards;)

D&DD

We have the bed raiser thingy that doesn't go flat too and to be honest for spinal problems it's not ideal..although it was the best thing we could find short of the proper bed.

fifitrix123

Thanks so much for your help and advice!

The chap I am on about does not have MS he just jumps from one benefit to another and has done for the 25 years I have known him. Even his GP has refused to medicate much anymore and told him to go get some exercise so it looks like they have grown wise to him.
He even boasts how much he has got out of the system, he had a wet room installed and a stairlift which he has never used as he says he can walk up the stairs quicker which means he has taken that money that could have been spent on someone who genuinly needs it!
He has an adopted son who has special needs but has to go out to work to support the family and when he had a moped accident and was off work he told me his mum and dad were going mad that he wasn't earning any money for them! He actually got a payment for the accident of a few thousand which the parents have had for themselves as he is not even allowed access to his own bank account or cards and they give him spending money. He is now overdrawn and in trouble as they have spent all him money bless him!

They even work on the side but always seem to get away with it, soz im ranting but people like that ruin it for genuine people!!!:mad:

Unity

fifitrix123 wrote: »

Thanks so much for your help and advice!

The chap I am on about does not have MS he just jumps from one benefit to another and has done for the 25 years I have known him. Even his GP has refused to medicate much anymore and told him to go get some exercise so it looks like they have grown wise to him.
He even boasts how much he has got out of the system, he had a wet room installed and a stairlift which he has never used as he says he can walk up the stairs quicker which means he has taken that money that could have been spent on someone who genuinly needs it!
He has an adopted son who has special needs but has to go out to work to support the family and when he had a moped accident and was off work he told me his mum and dad were going mad that he wasn't earning any money for them! He actually got a payment for the accident of a few thousand which the parents have had for themselves as he is not even allowed access to his own bank account or cards and they give him spending money. He is now overdrawn and in trouble as they have spent all him money bless him!

They even work on the side but always seem to get away with it, soz im ranting but people like that ruin it for genuine people!!!:mad:

It's a sad fact that there are people like this in the world - but thankfully they are in the minority. I feel so sorry for the adopted son - what a life, they should be ashamed :mad:, but I'll bet they aren't.