Fraudulant use of Motability car?

Ames

FBaby wrote: »

The truth, however you are trying to fudge it is that you want to drive a nice new car without having to pay extra for it. That whole 'well I work and bring an income so it benefits the claimant' is a joke. Why not go to the extreme of saying 'if driving a brand new car makes me happy, then my wife is happy too so it benefits her'.

The way people try to twist entitlements to make them suits them is exactly what is the making of benefit bashers. It's reading posts like this that makes people shout that motability should be abolished, and however much I think that it was initially released with the best attention, I think too many people (even if still a minority) are seeing it as a benefit to them rather than to the disabled person.

But that's abuse of the disabled person not of motability - the couple would get the money instead of the car so the cost to the public purse is exactly the same.

sleepymans

oP, why don't you get your disabled partner to give you lifts (including to and from work)in the car as part of their daily social and domestic journeys?
Just a thought.....

tomtom256

sleepymans wrote: »

oP, why don't you get your disabled partner to give you lifts (including to and from work)in the car as part of their daily social and domestic journeys?
Just a thought.....

It wouldn't be a social or domestic journey though would it.

However here is a simple thought, the disabled person could just drive them to and from work leaving the vehicle free to be used all day by the disabled person if needed and solve the problem raised by the OP in the first place, however highly unlikely a disabled person would want to do this daily or else they would just go to work themselves.

sdfdsfsadas

FBaby wrote: »

The truth, however you are trying to fudge it is that you want to drive a nice new car without having to pay extra for it. That whole 'well I work and bring an income so it benefits the claimant' is a joke. Why not go to the extreme of saying 'if driving a brand new car makes me happy, then my wife is happy too so it benefits her'.

The way people try to twist entitlements to make them suits them is exactly what is the making of benefit bashers. It's reading posts like this that makes people shout that motability should be abolished, and however much I think that it was initially released with the best attention, I think too many people (even if still a minority) are seeing it as a benefit to them rather than to the disabled person.

I think you've either not read my posts, or completely mis-understood what I'm asking here. I've made myself quite clear already. Or you're just using this to get on your high horse and are deliberately mis-interpreting what I mean to go on a rant about benefit claimants.

As people have suggested, we could take the money instead of using a Motability car, and use that for a "nice new car". I'm personally not even bothered about the car itself - I'm not even that fussed about getting a new car or even an old one.

The suggestion that my partner makes a daily commute with me as a passenger kind of highlights the bizarre nature of this issue. He would personally much rather break the law. I certainly would not.

We're also totally missing the original question here too.

Poppie68

How would your partner get out and about when you are at work, do they drive?

sdfdsfsadas

Poppie68 wrote: »

How would your partner get out and about when you are at work, do they drive?

Yes, he drives, but not very often, and not normally without me there as well. I am encouraging him to drive more often to retain his independence, especially if something unthinkable happened to me (none of us are getting any younger).

He was the one who suggested a Motability car, and is the one saying I'm just making a load of fuss over nothing with this. He personally couldn't care less - he'd gladly see me speeding around the countryside pulling handbrake turns like we did in our youth.

pathtofreedom

Could you get the same car that could be adapted for your partners needs just not through motorbility, then you won't have that worry all the time in the back of your mind when you're driving it that you're doing something wrong.

I know they have started putting those gps black boxes, the ones some people use to reduce insurance, in some mobility cars too, so if yours ended up with one of those, it would be pretty obvious I'd think you're using it for commuting.

Poppie68

sdfdsfsadas wrote: »

Yes, he drives, but not very often, and not normally without me there as well. I am encouraging him to drive more often to retain his independence, especially if something unthinkable happened to me (none of us are getting any younger).

He was the one who suggested a Motability car, and is the one saying I'm just making a load of fuss over nothing with this. He personally couldn't care less - he'd gladly see me speeding around the countryside pulling handbrake turns like we did in our youth.

As he is capable of driving even if a little reluctant the car needs to be left in his possession.
The motability element is solely for his benefit so it maybe makes more sense to forgo the car and he can use the money for taxis etc.


I have read that the RSA have been known to refuse insurance claims when it's deemed some users of the scheme have been found to of been abusing the scheme.

I know at one time it was acceptable in some rare cases for the car to be allowed for the claimants partner to use for commuting...My father in law sought permission many many years ago but there were extenuating circumstances...The circumstances have changed in the last few months and after calling for advice they told him it's use had to go back to the normal contract conditions...

Richie-from-the-Boro

This whole thread is deliberately confused between Motability and the law. The Motability car has a VED and its a criminal act to use it fraudulently. Its also illegal to use or even have a vehicle on a public road without insurance and facing court not to mention hefty legal bills, medical bills, vehicle repair or replacement costs and compensation to any victim. In some cases you may even find yourself the subject of a civil claim from anyone injured in an accident and in the case that they are fatally injured or are unable to work, their families etc.

There are many GOV pages warning about the misuse of a Motability car - there are no GOV pages - not one - not a single one telling people its ok for someone else to use for 'commuting' - grow up !

The UK generally still have compassion for the 10 million+ disabled, 2013:

38% of people believe disabled people are a burden on society
28% of people believe there is Ill feeling around the perceived extra support given to disabled people
27% of people think disabled people are treated differently because there is a lack of knowledge around disability
65% of people have admitted they avoid disabled people because they don't know how to act around them
50% of people assume disabilities are physical
7% of people would consider mental disability when told that a person is disabled
26% of people class facial disfigurement as a disability
34% of people don't consider hearing loss to be a disability
180+ disability hate crimes are committed every day in this country
1.86+ million people in the UK with sight loss
1 in 7 people are Deaf or hard of hearing
77% able work 47% disabled work
Disabled people are four times more likely to be unemployed than non-disabled people
Only 1% of all children in England are in special schools and 17% of disabled pupils attend special schools
6 million disabled people receive disability related benefits, much lower than the 11 million disabled people in the UK
At 30%, the poverty rate for disabled adults in the UK is twice that for non-disabled adults

The 'we are all in this together’ from the current GOV and the coalition before it it is a con, we have been forced to watch the systematic slashing of our welfare state, policy after relentless policy cutting souncil tax support, bedroom tax, the abolition of DLA and the ILF then ESA etc, but worse, a climate has been orchestated that says its entitrely right to do so. 'Poverty !!!!!!’ on the TV every night including tonights Jaywick.

One 'big mover' in this has been the stigmatisation of people needing benefits, divide & conquer, a manipulation of truth in an attempt to make the public see things in terms of workers versus claimants. But the facts show this is an entirely false division. A job market characterised by unstable hours and low wages has pushed working people towards benefits. Housing benefit figures alone show the number of people in work needing help to pay the rent has increased by almost 60% since the election of the CONDEMS. Yet there remains a core of people who are not yet anti disabled.

LocoLoco

OP, we are in a somewhat similar situation (although in our case the disabled person is my son, not a partner). I looked into it all and decided the best thing for us to do is to carry on using our own vehicle and to keep paying the tax on it ourselves rather than getting a vehicle via the Motability Scheme. My understanding of the situation was that taxing it as disabled exempt (ie not paying for tax) but then using it yourself was an offence and that doing the same with a Motability vehicle meant that Motability could take the vehicle back as the terms had been broken? I was also under the impression that it caused problems with the insurance if it's a Motability car and it's being used by someone else (as in, if you're using it and you shouldn't be, then your insurance isn't valid, and I think that's an offence as well?). The DVLA were very helpful when I was looking into it all, as were the people on this board.

So all in all that for me seemed like a difficult situation to juggle and I like to keep things simple; I'm the only person that drives so to keep a car for my personal use and to have a Motability one seemed silly (not to mention being expensive) so we've kept our battered old van and the extra money (via the higher DLA award) is going into my son's savings account and I will use it help for days out (ie paying someone to come with us or to take him out for me). That seemed to me the easiest solution; I'm a worrier too and I don't want to be fretting about something as basic (and necessary, in our case) as driving, I just want to get in and go without worrying that I'm doing something I shouldn't be