Advice please regarding Mobility Scooters

Magenta

Hi all,
I'm not sure if this is the right place to post this!
Anyway via PIP I qualify to be be able to lease a car or mobility scooter.  I have never taken this up before but would like to do so. At the moment with lockdown it's probably not feasible but I would like to know exactly how do you go about getting a mobility scooter!
I have no idea at all where to start or what to do to start the process so would really appreciate any information or suggestions on how to do this.
I would prefer to lease a car but this would have to have some adaptations, also it's quite a while since I drove a car. (I have no idea about getting this either)
I would be grateful for any help. 
Thank you  😊

poppy12345

Motability have a website with all the details on there. https://www.motability.co.uk/products/scooters-and-powered-wheelchairs/

Allthough my personal opinion on the scooters is you'll very likely be able to buy one yourself for so much cheaper than leasing one with motability. If i were you i'd have a look on the internet to see what's available.

I have a car through motability and it suits me fine but a mobility scooter i wouldn't even consider one through these purely because of the cost.

A mobililty car can be adapted to your needs, although this may cost but it will depend what adaptions you'll need. You can visit a dealer of your choice (after lockdown) and talk to a motability adviser who will be happy to talk you through all you need to know.

There's huge selections of vehicles, some need advance payments but it does depend what exactly you want and what spec. Everything you need to know is also on the link i posted above.

Magenta

poppy12345 said:

Motability have a website with all the details on there. https://www.motability.co.uk/products/scooters-and-powered-wheelchairs/

Allthough my personal opinion on the scooters is you'll very likely be able to buy one yourself for so much cheaper than leasing one with motability. If i were you i'd have a look on the internet to see what's available.

I have a car through motability and it suits me fine but a mobility scooter i wouldn't even consider one through these purely because of the cost.

A mobililty car can be adapted to your needs, although this may cost but it will depend what adaptions you'll need. You can visit a dealer of your choice (after lockdown) and talk to a motability adviser who will be happy to talk you through all you need to know.

There's huge selections of vehicles, some need advance payments but it does depend what exactly you want and what spec. Everything you need to know is also on the link i posted above.

Thanks for your advice Poppy and for the link. That's a great help. 

wild666

You can get a basic scooter that will do up to 12 miles on a full charge, depending on the weight of the person. If you want one for everyday use then consider paying around £1000 plus for one on Amazon, just type mobility scooters into the search bar on Amazon. 
Mine is a ZT500 and costs £1100 it has lights and indicators plus mirrors and has a basket on the back, I took mine off and replaced it with a bag. It claims to do 45 miles on a full charge depending on the weight it's carrying it's a 3 wheeler but it's stable enough. It has forward and reverse plus a 3-speed selector but it has been restricted to two speeds 4 & 8 mph I reckon it will do about 14 miles at 8 mph. It came with the charger plus a cover for storage. The only extra you will need is a cover for yourself if using it in the rain.

Robin9

I used to maintain mobility scooters.  The firm used to encourage potential buyers to borrow second hand ones - then they could see how suitable they we and see how well they met your needs. 

born_again

If looking at a a scooter. Try calling into a local shop. We used CareCo & wife had a good trial round shop (very good as it showed she could handle in tight places).
Ended up with one that cost £700 does 4 mph and about 11 miles (more than enough) Has even been used off road while on holiday on rough woodland tracks & comes into bits to go into the back of the car (not light though) Can get a hoist to lift into car if needed.
I would say you need somewhere safe to store & charge, our is on the charger 24/7 so ours is in the garage safe & dry.

I would echo @poppy12345 with Motability and costs. Car via them is a very good deal, scooter not so much given the cost you can buy one for.
A lot depends on your actual mobility, if you can walk safely a reasonable distance, then car as scooters do have some drawbacks especially round towns.

Magenta

born_again said:

If looking at a a scooter. Try calling into a local shop. We used CareCo & wife had a good trial round shop (very good as it showed she could handle in tight places).
Ended up with one that cost £700 does 4 mph and about 11 miles (more than enough) Has even been used off road while on holiday on rough woodland tracks & comes into bits to go into the back of the car (not light though) Can get a hoist to lift into car if needed.
I would say you need somewhere safe to store & charge, our is on the charger 24/7 so ours is in the garage safe & dry.

I would echo @poppy12345 with Motability and costs. Car via them is a very good deal, scooter not so much given the cost you can buy one for.
A lot depends on your actual mobility, if you can walk safely a reasonable distance, then car as scooters do have some drawbacks especially round towns.

Thanks for the information. 
Unfortunately I can actually only walk a few steps and that is by using elbow crutches so I am fairly limited and having to rethink my options.  Is CareCo the name of a shop?
Many thanks 

born_again

Magenta said:

born_again said:

If looking at a a scooter. Try calling into a local shop. We used CareCo & wife had a good trial round shop (very good as it showed she could handle in tight places).
Ended up with one that cost £700 does 4 mph and about 11 miles (more than enough) Has even been used off road while on holiday on rough woodland tracks & comes into bits to go into the back of the car (not light though) Can get a hoist to lift into car if needed.
I would say you need somewhere safe to store & charge, our is on the charger 24/7 so ours is in the garage safe & dry.

I would echo @poppy12345 with Motability and costs. Car via them is a very good deal, scooter not so much given the cost you can buy one for.
A lot depends on your actual mobility, if you can walk safely a reasonable distance, then car as scooters do have some drawbacks especially round towns.

Thanks for the information. 
Unfortunately I can actually only walk a few steps and that is by using elbow crutches so I am fairly limited and having to rethink my options.  Is CareCo the name of a shop?
Many thanks 

Yes, They are a national chain. We found them to be a lot cheaper than the local shop.

 https://www.careco.co.uk

Magenta

born_again said:

Magenta said:

born_again said:

If looking at a a scooter. Try calling into a local shop. We used CareCo & wife had a good trial round shop (very good as it showed she could handle in tight places).
Ended up with one that cost £700 does 4 mph and about 11 miles (more than enough) Has even been used off road while on holiday on rough woodland tracks & comes into bits to go into the back of the car (not light though) Can get a hoist to lift into car if needed.
I would say you need somewhere safe to store & charge, our is on the charger 24/7 so ours is in the garage safe & dry.

I would echo @poppy12345 with Motability and costs. Car via them is a very good deal, scooter not so much given the cost you can buy one for.
A lot depends on your actual mobility, if you can walk safely a reasonable distance, then car as scooters do have some drawbacks especially round towns.

Thanks for the information. 
Unfortunately I can actually only walk a few steps and that is by using elbow crutches so I am fairly limited and having to rethink my options.  Is CareCo the name of a shop?
Many thanks 

Yes, They are a national chain. We found them to be a lot cheaper than the local shop.

 https://www.careco.co.uk

@bornagain
Thanks very much for the link, l have sent for a brochure. It's definitely less expensive than other places l have bought products from.
Magenta 

Whirleybird_2

 Buy your own scooter, don’t use PIP to lease one, it’s way too expensive. Also, think about buying your own car, instead of using Motability - they’re a con. They are set up as a charity, the CEO pays himself an exorbitant salary, and the only benefit you get from using Motability is the free repairs. They take all of your Mobility element for your car - you could buy one on HP for much less from a dealership (either a new one or a second hand one), you receive free car tax if you have the enhanced rate for mobility anyway, and only need to pay half your car tax if you’re on the standard rate, and you have to pay for your car’s adaptations, anyway. 

I have bought my own scooter for £700, it does 13 miles to the charge, comes apart for loading it into the boot, and it’s battery comes out for charging. I can’t take it apart or put it together, though, so I’ve bought a hoist for my car boot. That wasn’t cheap, though, it was almost £2,000 supplied and fitted - worth it, though, to me, as I can go out in my car on my own.

Bonniepurple

I went to my local mobility shop and tried out scooters!  What looks good on paper may not be practical.  After being on a couple of scooters I realised that I needed suspension.  I also needed a lightweight one to get into the car boot.  I bought one for approx £800 - expensive but so worth it.

CareCo is good.  My local shop is Ableworld, and I bought my scooter from Access Able in Bristol.
Re Motability vehicles, I’ve never been keen. I don’t qualify, but, even if I did, it’s not right for me.  You lose your NCB and there are restrictions on use (so I would need to get authority to use it for by DH’s business (he has his own vehicle but there are times I need to drive him/help out - and I can’t drive a manual anymore).  I also like the knowledge that my bangers are mine and if they end up dented/scraped then it’s only me that’s annoyed!