Motability Scheme / Vehicle For Disabled Person

JDaws

Okay, not sure if this is the place for this question, but I've had help with other benefit related things here, so it's worth a shot.

My 77 year-old mum is less than able when it comes to mobility, she's recovering from spinal fractures and has trouble with getting around in general, and public transport really isn't suitable, and using Ring & Ride services is rather hit and miss at times, so it was suggested that I look into getting a mobility car for her which I could drive to take her out to appointments etc

The problem is, the site I looked at (motability co uk) states that you need one of three or four benefits to qualify, none of which my mum has. She could quite easily qualify for the PIP Mobility aspect, however PIP doesn't apply to anyone over 65, and the Disability-Living-Allowance option for over 65's, which was one of the Mobility Scheme's acceptable qualifiers, is no longer in use, having been replaced by Attendance Allowance, which my mum does get.

Does anyone know if there are any other schemes, like the mobility one above, in use in Scotland, or if Attendance Allowance can be used as a qualifier in place of the DLA?

Thanks.

elsien

Attendance allowance won't count. It is assumed that mobility will increasingly get more difficult as people get older so attendance allowance doesn't have a mobility component.
It wouldn't be affordable to offer the motability scheme to the older population when so many people have age related difficulties.

poppy12345

JDaws wrote: »

Does anyone know if there are any other schemes, like the mobility one above, in use in Scotland, or if Attendance Allowance can be used as a qualifier in place of the DLA?

Thanks.

Unfortunately not. If you're not in receipt of any of the benefits listed on the mobility web site before you reach 65 then they aren't available after that age.

w06

Your Mum could though use the attendance allowance to buy or contract hire a car privately.

The Motability scheme means that effectively you pay £9000 (by your DLA or PIP mobility component being paid to Motability and not you) over 3 years to hire a car including it's maintenance and insurance. In some circumstances it is good, but in others it's an expensive way to have a vehicle and it comes with restrictions to use that make things difficult at times.

Don't get me wrong I had a Motability vehicle for 15 years, but for the last few years it was an expensive wheel chair store. I'm instead using my PIP mobility award to buy and convert an old van, works out cheaper, I can use it as I need to, I'll own it at the end of the 3 years (I took out a loan) and it's much more fun!

Peter6268

poppy12345 wrote: »

Unfortunately not. If you're not in receipt of any of the benefits listed on the mobility web site before you reach 65 then they aren't available after that age.

Not entirely correct Poppy,

A 'new' award of the War Pensioners Mobility Supplement (WPMS) or Armed Forces Independence Payment (AFIP) can be claimed at any age (providing the claimant meets the necessary criteria for the award).

I personally know of a War Pensioner who claimed WPMS at the age of 81 when he lost his leg which had shrapnel in it from many years back and which eventually became badly infected because of it and was amputated. Thus, he then met the criteria for a WPMS award.

It doesn't happen often, particularly in AFIP cases (not that many of senior age as yet) but could well in the future should ones Armed Forces Compensation Scheme Guaranteed Income Payment (GIP) be reviesed upwards to 50% or over following such as a late onset condition.

Peter

Cheeky_Monkey

Can you not take her in your own car that you have bought with your PIP backpay?