To think that mobility scooters are bloody dangerous and there should be more regulation of their use?

[JellyDiamond]

I've just nearly run over a man on a disability scooter. I was driving along at 30mph, when he pulled off the kerb right in front of me. He didn't look anyway but when he realised I was coming towards him he didn't seem to know how to stop it and carried on. Had I been going any faster I would have hit him, had another car been behind me they'd have crashed into me...

I appreciate elderly and disabled people need to get about, but many of them don't seem to know how to use these scooters. There's an old chap near me who uses and one and drives along in the middle of the road, holding up traffic and refusing to pull over to let anyone pass. I've nearly been run over myself by them on pavements, in shops, in supermarkets and I've heard of people who have actually been bit and injured by them.

Surely there should be some kind of course and test for users before allowing them lose on the public? Maybe even an assessment to see who actually needs them rather than just giving them out willy billy to any OAP over the age of 70 wants one?

Happy, you are damned if you do support and damned if you don't, it seems!

You can say that again Annie. I also got a tad fed up of people (well one certain person) just assuming things instead of asking. I don't mind mumu asking me "do you do any volunteer work on behalf of the disabled" but to just assume I don't is quite rude. And that from the very person who harped on continually about the poor "tone" of us on the side of supporting regulation.

My DP is a roadworker and he drives gritters in winter. Not last winter, but the one before. He was gritting down a narrow country lane in the middle of the night and came round a bend and had to slam his brakes on because an old man on a scooter in the middle of the road with no lights on or anything just tootling down the road!

LadySybilLikesCake thankyou did't mean to waffle on! I have a lovely bf but i hate feeling like hes my carer :-( he didn't sign to looking after me.think I'm just very down seem to be getting more things wrong with me. I just want to have a pain free day and go back to work! Im only young.

But anyway yes regulate. If i was unable to use one then i shouldn't be able to have one either. I'd hate to injure someone! I wouldn't want to inflict pain on someonelse.

You'll find a way to get your life back, I'm sure of it. It helps to be adaptable though. Going with the flo seems to help here

I use a powerchair. I’ve used one for about 16 years and am in my thirties. Even though my supplier has known me for most of that time and know I’m fine, each time I replace my chair they insist on me trialing a demo one and proving I can use it. And when they deliver it they take me for my first trip out in it, reiterate that the top speed of the chair is 6mph but legally I can’t drive it on the pavement that fast, the maximum is 4mph. (I drive it at 4mph on the pavement, slower in crowds)

In all that time, I’ve had one serious collision with an able-bodied pedestrian, earlier this year who walked into the side of me. She readily admitted she was on her phone, hadn’t seen me.

She fell. No obvious injuries, I expect she was very bruised though.I was coming up to a crossing, she was crossing from the opposite side and cut the corner off, hitting me at a right angle. I had seen her but expected her to rejoin the path by the traffic lights not where she did.

I must have prevented hundred of other people from doing similar over the years.

I only read the first few posts before realising it was a zombie thread but on the basis of the ablist and ageist OP alone I can't understand why this thread wasn't removed long ago.

I was once standing in the street, texting a friend and minding my own business. A woman on a motability scooter driver into the back of me and yelled ‘get out of the way you fucking bitch’. Just for reference, the street was about 25 feet wide and not particularly busy so plenty of room. I was very shaken and badly bruised.

As a mobility scooter user (41 and paid for the hideously expensive thing all by myself!), I’ll tell you about my perspective. I’m a sensible user; I don’t speed, I don’t run randomly into the road (I’m also a driver so I’m quite capable of looking for cars), and I try really hard to avoid running over peoples toes. However, I also seem to become completely invisible as soon as I get on it. The only feet I’ve run over belong to people who just don’t see me and walk straight in front of me. On a day out last year, ds kept count and 72 people stopped dead/walked directly in my path, or, on a couple of occasions, stepped over me!

Yes, there are inconsiderate users out there, much like there are inconsiderate drivers, but there’s also a hell of a lot of inconsiderate pedestrians, plus the downright rude ones who think it’s ok to lean on the back of my scooter/spit as they walk past/let go of their cigarette end into my face. I turn into Mrs Angry when I’m using my scooter, as I find it frustrating and downright bloody humiliating most of the time, trying to navigate through crowds of people who don’t even notice I exist!

Also just realised this is a zombie thread!