Adjustable beds - couple of questions.

pipkin71

Hi, I've a couple of things to ask about buying an adjustable bed.

I've recently decided to purchase one of these as my disability is affecting how I sleep. I'm due an OT assessment shortly - hopefully before the end of March and I've been told I can get help from the OT unit in getting a bed. Does anyone know what sort of help this is please? I was thinking it was that they can advise what would be more suited to my needs - it was suggested by the OT team to speak to the physio on their next visit as they could advise, but someone has said [and I have read] that they can order these for you if you meet the criteria - critical or substantial needs. Does anyone know which is correct?

The second question, I've heard that you can claim back the VAT when purchasing this item as it's specifically for disability. How do I go about doing that please? I can apply for a grant to cover some of the cost so if I claim back the VAT, do I just claim it back on the money I have paid, or is the VAT reclaimable on the whole amount?

Thanks for any advice :beer:

somebody_else

pipkin71 wrote: »

Hi, I've a couple of things to ask about buying an adjustable bed.

The second question, I've heard that you can claim back the VAT when purchasing this item as it's specifically for disability. How do I go about doing that please? I can apply for a grant to cover some of the cost so if I claim back the VAT, do I just claim it back on the money I have paid, or is the VAT reclaimable on the whole amount?

Thanks for any advice :beer:

Pipkin, I can't help you with your first question, because I bought my own bed a couple of months ago. With regard to your second question, unless you have adaptations made to the bed with regard to your disablility, you don't qualify for the VAT exemption. I looked into it on the HMRC website at the time I bought my bed. Sorry. (Actually, I've yet to find anything I've bought to help with my disability that has qualified me for the VAT excemption on disability grounds.)

tenacioust123

Hi
Yes you are VAT exempt on a bed as long as it fulfils certain critrea it must be an electrically or mechanically adjustable bed designed for invalids. For a bed to be eligible for relief it must clearly stand out as being something specialised for the use of invalids. As well as being electrically or mechanically adjustable, it should additionally have specific design features which distinguish it from a standard bed.

Hope this helps

pipkin71

Thanks for the replies guys :beer:

I've been looking at a few sites that sell the beds and many have a form to download if you think you're exempt from the VAT, so I suppose I will fill one in once I know where I'm going to purchase the bed from and see what happens.

If you don't mind somebody_else, can I ask where you purchased your bed from?

allydowd

It works like this:

When you've chosen a bed ask the supplier for a VAT exemption form. You complete the form which is usually just a couple of tick boxes and give this to the supplier.

The supplier doesn't charge you any VAT on the bed.

Simples!

somebody_else

Okay, I've just spoken to HMRC (did you know they have a helpline specifically for clarifying this sort of issue? I didn't, 'til about 5 minutes ago).

The short (and apparently accurate answer) is this: Adjustable beds are not automatically eligible for tax relief - what you need to do is contact who-ever you're planning to buy the bed from and ask has the manufacturer specified that the bed is for disabled use. If they haven't then you can't claim the tax relief. If they have, then according to the woman I spoke to, the shop-owner can sell you the bed minus VAT as long as you can prove that it's being bought specifically for a disabled person to use.

This is the link to relevelant page of HMRC with the contact number for anyone who wants to contact them about disabled tax relief. Be warned - they take a hell of a long time to answer the phone.

http://search2.hmrc.gov.uk/kbroker/hmrc/contactus/search.ladv?sr=0&as=1&cs=ISO-8859-1&sc=hmrc&sf=&sm=0&nh=50&ha=34&tx0=849521&fl0=__dsid:&tx1=2037&raction=view

somebody_else

pipkin71 wrote: »

If you don't mind somebody_else, can I ask where you purchased your bed from?

I bought from a local independant trader - I know that the bed I bought was quite a bit cheaper than one bought from a company that specialises in goods for disabled people. That being the case, I shan't bother trying to reclaim the VAT on it.