To buy my son a mobility scooter for Christmas?

[Christmasstockingsbythefire]

Would I be unreasonable to buy my son a mobility scooter for Christmas?

To give you abit of background my son has autism and for the past 5 years on birthdays and Christmas' he has only been asking for a mobilty scooter and nothing else .. hasn't yet got one, this means every birthday and Christmas he gets disappointed and doesn't show any interest in any of the gifts he does receive . We decided against a mobility scooter in the past because we thought it was just something he would get bored of within a few days, people's views and we were worried he was too young. My son is now nine years old and is still asking for a mobility scooter, he enjoys visiting the mobility scooter showroom that is local to us and loves exploring and looking at his grandparents scooters.. After this many years I am starting to think he must feel very strongly about his wish.

He would ride the scooter up to the family farm to help collect the eggs etc and also use it to deliver eggs around our local neighbourhood, as he often has to make two trips as he cannot carry everything on his own.

If you were in my shoes would you buy him a mobility scooter? Or wouldn't it be acceptable? It doesn't need to be an expensive one, he just wants one he can ride and with a basket.

I also had a look online and cant find one for less than about £700

I cant believe anyone would consider that sort of money for a 9 yo who doesnt need it.

Well thought OP. Good luck with finding a suitable alternative that will capture your DSs interest.

It's a bit like telling my very dyslexic DS to stop listening to audio books and spend the time learning to read instead. After all he is not blind.

Not remotely the same thing, and nor is this about not considering autism a 'proper' disability.
The clue is in the name; they're mobility scooters, for people with limited mobility only.

OP, if you're still reading and you're considering a trike, I would second LemonyPea's recommendation of the Concept Trimantis trike. My 11 year old has issues with strength, stamina, coordination, and balance, but she does really well on this and the basket on the back is huge and awesome. I think riding the trike has really boosted her confidence, improved her road awareness and her spatial awareness. It also meant she could join in bikeability training at school which wouldn't have been an option otherwise.

If you do still think a mobility scooter would be helpful for him, now or in the future, why not seek advice from an OT? They will understand the issues and perhaps be able to recommend an approach to it.

It's not about invisible disability vs visible one. Not all disabilities are the same - many people with autism also have mobility problems but some do not. Assuming that the above law applies to people with all types of disability is as harmful as assuming people with invisible disabilities are not disabled - and implies that all people with disabilities are one homogenous category.

I think that, in the case of sensory issues a mobility aid used as an anxiety-reducing tool is perfectly acceptable, but I find for the most part, encouraging fixations on things isn't helpful when the fixations are socially unacceptable, illegal or unreasonable. There are plenty of other ways that you can encourage interest in mobility scooters - see pps for these

Please please please do it and get him one

I hope he has a fabulously Happy Christmas xxxx