Motability or not?

Slosh
Slosh Member Posts: 3,194
Much to my surprise I have just been awarded enhanced rate for mobility (I had been reassessed and was hoping for standard rate). I currently drive a Ford Fiesta which is just under 2 years old. It's on a lease hire type scheme from Ford and it's at the stage in the agreement at which I can change it for a new car. The dealer I use does motability cars. My car is a standard automatic with rear parking sensors and I don't need any adjustments. The PIP payment will be about £30 less than my current monthly payments. Would I benefit from applying for a car under the scheme? It really isn't something I had given any thought to.
He did not say you will not be storm tossed, you will not be sore distressed, you will not be work weary. He said you will not be overcome.
Julian of Norwich

Comments

  • tkachev
    tkachev Member Posts: 8,332
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    First of all congratulations.
    I'm not knowledgeable about lease hire but usually its for a 3 years lease and you have to make another payment if you want to keep the car at the end of the 3 years?

    You can contribute the £57.45 award towards the cost of the current lease (or just keep it for yourself) and continue as you are or get a new car on the motability scheme but this would mean giving up the current lease. It all depends on what you would lose financially or any penalty you'd have to pay needs to be factored in.

    Do you have an end date for the PIP? This might have a bearing as you could be reassessed again soon (I know)! There can be a lot of uncertainty surrounding the motability scheme for this reason.

    My Son recently got enhanced mobility for 3 and a half years but we already have a car on the mobility scheme so are sticking to that but if I lose my car on the scheme I have the choice to get a new one with my Son.

    I think the peace of mind with the motability scheme, insurance is covered, RAC and new tyres is always in its favour.

    ps did your daily living award stay the same?

    Elizabeth
    Never be bullied into silence.
    Never allow yourself to be made a victim.
    Accept no ones definition of your life

    Define yourself........

    Harvey Fierstein
  • stickywicket
    stickywicket Member Posts: 27,697
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    I don't know if this will help, Slosh, but when I got my Motability car I'd never driven before and the idea was to give me independence since I could no longer walk far (obviously :roll: ). My younger son had just started school so I had a bit of freedom.

    Mr SW used our own car for work and we could never have afforded a second one. We'd never actually owned a new car so were used to things going wrong at very inconvenient times and MR SW spending half his spare time dangerously underneath ours. The idea of a new car, with not much to go wrong, regular free servicing and any problems dealt with free of charge were all immense draws for me.

    The servicing was a bit of a drag as it had to go back to a specific garage which was sometimes (It changed three times in the years I used Motability) a few miles away and with city traffic to negotiate.

    I used my Mobility Allowance to buy the last car I had from them. Here, the terms were different. I had to pay for servicing and repairs but at least I could take it to the lovely chap down the road who used to bring it back for me.

    It's really swings and roundabouts and a matter of personal choice and circumstances. Motability certainly gives you financial peace of mind but, essentially, you are hiring a car and it's maybe not the cheapest way of running one. Also your Mobility Allowance has to be offered for a period which covers the lease. It used to be 3-4 years depending on the make of car.
    If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving definitely isn't for you.
    Steven Wright
  • Slosh
    Slosh Member Posts: 3,194
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Thank you both for your replies. I will wait for my letter so that I know how long the award is for and in the meantime contact my local dealership to make initial enquiries. It's where I got my current car from and I know they do motability there, I can sort out my paperwork in regards of the car I have now and then decide.
    My daily living is the same which is what I expected, it was the mobility element that was the surprise.
    He did not say you will not be storm tossed, you will not be sore distressed, you will not be work weary. He said you will not be overcome.
    Julian of Norwich
  • dreamdaisy
    dreamdaisy Member Posts: 31,520
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    I am pleased you have been awarded this, that is a boon. I discussed my going on to Motability with a chap at the Citroen garage but he said (and he was right) that I didn't do the mileage to justify its cost to me. In November 2013 I bought my 'new' second hand car from him (a 12 reg in and ex-Motability) for around £10,00 with 6,400 miles on the clock. I traded her in in December, now three years old and I'd only added a further 7,000 miles in that time: they gave me £5,900. I will do the same again in three years.

    A friend of mine clocks up around 60,000 miles in his three years so for him it's worthwhile. As he has never worked he has all the time in the world for gallivanting and does. DD
    Have you got the despatches? No, I always walk like this. Eddie Braben
  • Slosh
    Slosh Member Posts: 3,194
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Thank you DD, apart from the money it means I can get the council to lower the kerb outside my house to make it easier to access my off street parking, my house is a semi so I can usually reverse in using the driveway but if cars are parked badly in the road it can be tricky. I have decided to contact my local Ford dealership where I got my current car from to see if I can get out of that contract early, so hopefully I will get a call back tomorrow. I thought as it wasn't a straight forward query to email first.
    He did not say you will not be storm tossed, you will not be sore distressed, you will not be work weary. He said you will not be overcome.
    Julian of Norwich
  • dreamdaisy
    dreamdaisy Member Posts: 31,520
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    In my cheaper neck of the woods it costs the householder £1,200 pounds for the council to lower the kerb so there may well be a cost involved for you - bear that in mind with your calculations! DD
    Have you got the despatches? No, I always walk like this. Eddie Braben
  • Slosh
    Slosh Member Posts: 3,194
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    I can apply to have it done for free now that I have the mobility payment, the cost is why I haven't had it done previously. The other option would be to apply for a disabled space but as I spent the money to get my front made into parking, and spaces are such a premium down my road that it seems mean to do that when I don't need it and wouldn't use it.
    He did not say you will not be storm tossed, you will not be sore distressed, you will not be work weary. He said you will not be overcome.
    Julian of Norwich
  • dreamdaisy
    dreamdaisy Member Posts: 31,520
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    You must have a good local council: I applied to mine a few years ago to have white lines put across the drive at our old house (I was forever being blocked in by motorists visiting the dive shop opposite) and was graciously informed that that would cost me around £600 - they ignored my BB. Maybe things have changed but I guess we all assume that what applies to us applies to others. I hope it's done soon for you! DD
    Have you got the despatches? No, I always walk like this. Eddie Braben
  • Slosh
    Slosh Member Posts: 3,194
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    They are pretty good, I can use my BB almost anywhere including residents parking zones and for free in council carparks or areas with time restrictions all day and I successfully applied for my wheelie bins to be put back after emptying. On a negative they are a bit obsessed at present with "Mini Holland" schemes which close roads to drivers, limit parking and cause some accessibility issues. These have caused a lot of controversy not just from drivers but from small businesses, residents and the disabled. Swings and roundabouts!
    He did not say you will not be storm tossed, you will not be sore distressed, you will not be work weary. He said you will not be overcome.
    Julian of Norwich
  • bubbles
    bubbles Member Posts: 6,508
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    good to hear a success from the DWP decision makers. So many go through hoops and then some.

    We would not be without our motability car, it is quite a large car / mpv, so I have the room to stretch out in the front. There is no way we would have afforded to buy one. We did pay for both seats to be multi way electric adjustments, but that was well worth it. We change it this year. It is lovely not to have to worry about servicing, breakdown, tyres, insurance........
    We have changed it mid lease, which they don't mind, if your condition has changed and you need a larger car, for wheelchairs, buggies and different adaptations etc.
    I say we change it this year, depending on PIP, my current awards are indefinite but that is on the old DLA scheme, which is being phased out, so, we will see. xx Bubbles
    XX Aidan (still known as Bubbles).
  • Slosh
    Slosh Member Posts: 3,194
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Thank you. I do feel very lucky. I should be getting my car soon, the only thing I didn't consider, because I wasn't really thinking things through is that I should have gone for something a bit larger than a fiesta.
    He did not say you will not be storm tossed, you will not be sore distressed, you will not be work weary. He said you will not be overcome.
    Julian of Norwich