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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Mandatory license and insurance for mobility scooters

192 replies

Auburngal · 30/06/2024 07:40

The thread of elderly people and driving has spurred this thread.

Mobility scooters have provided freedom for those who can’t walk far.

But I think based on my experiences of seeing mobility scooter users in my work, other shops and where I live, there should be a license and insurance.

I believe many didn’t drive a car prior so I have no concept of control and speed. Either their disability/health conditions or with women, their late husband did the driving and she never drove at all.

Some drive at the max speed in shops - it’s only 4mph is max speed inside and in busy areas. My colleague got run over by a mobility scooter user. She was caught by her work fleece which was fully unzipped as she was crouching to fill a shelf. She was dragged about 5m and shouting by at least 5 people didn’t do anything as the guy was deaf. She had massive bruises on her legs.

A few months ago I was topping up the bananas and a lady crashed into the back of my legs. No apologies.

About 7 years ago a man on his mobility scooter missed the corner and collided into the end of the aisle where we had promotional bottles of wine. About 30 bottles were smashed and he carried on.

There is an issue with many mobility scooters users oblivious to their actions and attitude problems.

I believe that sanctions of dangerous use of mobility scooters should be the same as using a car. Mobility scooters are not classed as vehicles in law.

There have been people who have died after being hit by mobility scooters like here www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-somerset-65383596.amp

OP posts:
Thread gallery
10
CraftyGoblin · 30/06/2024 13:57

allthemiddlechildrenoftheworld · 30/06/2024 13:49

@Auburngal the main problem is that the majority of mobility scooter user have never actually owned or even driven a car!! they have no idea of the highway code!! they should really have to pass a basic highway code test!! I have seen them absolutely flying down the pavements in our town and driving round roundabouts with the bigger engined ones! no one can see them because of the bushes on the roundabouts!!

The majority of scooter users? Fact or opinion? Because I disagree. We are pedestrians. Unless you're going to require testing for people walking down the street you're discriminating.

WiddlinDiddlin · 30/06/2024 14:09

What is necessary is to make the sellers of various scooters etc much more accountable for who they sell to and what they sell them.

They are supposed to assess a buyers ability to control the scooter/power chair etc, and they are not supposed to sell someone something that they cannot control... however, many absolutely will sell your blind Grandma who can't relax her grip without a letter in writing and three months prior notice, a scooter that will do 8mph (scooters stop when you let go. Most peoples reaction in a panic is to grip harder!)

They should also make you aware of your liability should you cause an accident.

For my power chairs..

NHS: had to demonstrate I could use it indoors in a brief session (most of which was covered by my use of my manual chair anyway)...

3 months later I did an outdoor test which was every bit equivalent to a driving test - use a pedestrian crossing, navigate uneven pavement, reverse park, reverse around a cone, circle around a cone forward, cross a steep hill, go up a small kerb, alter the speed setting appropriately for where I was, do a ramp.

Was not allowed to use it outside before passing that assessment.

Private chair, reputable manufacturer (not dealer): Very similar but a rural environment, down hills, tracks, tree roots, field, gates, tight turns etc.

No one I know (and that is quite a lot of people!) who has bought a scooter from a dealer, has had to do more than show they know it goes forward if you squeeze/twist one way, and stops if you let go, and where the button is to flick it from tortoise to hare mode.

As for going on the roads with them - damn near every trip out I make, I end up going on the road when I have no desire to do so. Twice in the last month I've had to go around a small roundabout, because I've been forced off the pavement by some inconsiderate car user, and without a dropped kerb before the roundabout, have been unable to get back on!

It is incredibly dangerous, I haven't the speed to get out of anyones way, nor the height/size to be particularly visible.

However drivers should be aware of what they may encounter on the road, and class 3 mobility vehicles ARE road legal, and many non-road users have to interact with roads regardless of whether they want to or not!

CraftyGoblin · 30/06/2024 14:12

Transport: Disability and Accessibility Statistics, England 2020

I think a few people could do some reading before they assert their opinions as facts. Especially when seeking to diminish the rights of others. The majority of disabled people can and do drive as their main mode of transport.

Sloejelly · 30/06/2024 14:28

CraftyGoblin · 30/06/2024 14:12

Transport: Disability and Accessibility Statistics, England 2020

I think a few people could do some reading before they assert their opinions as facts. Especially when seeking to diminish the rights of others. The majority of disabled people can and do drive as their main mode of transport.

Edited

Indeed they do, but many disabled people are also banned from driving as a result of their disability. This is an example of lawful discrimination.

JenniferBooth · 30/06/2024 14:32

Housing associations targeted mobility scooter users saying it was dangerous to charge them inside. DH got threatened with having his mobility scooter taken and destroyed. This was Sanctuarys instant go to rather than come and discuss it with DH in a mature and adult way. DH now has his scooter along with its two 38 amp LEAD ACID batteries in a shed in front of the flat, He happily pays for the shed.

NOW i want to know whether housing associations are doing the same thing to electric bike and scooter users. Im damn sure i know the answer already though!!!!

Sloejelly · 30/06/2024 14:40

E-scooters are unlawful and police regularly go through campaigns of confiscating and destroying any being ridden on public roads.

EnglishBluebell · 30/06/2024 14:42

@PeppermintParty That's nonsense! Anyone can buy a mobility scooter. I didn't have to prove my disability when I bought mine

JenniferBooth · 30/06/2024 14:43

Hippywannabe · 30/06/2024 08:49

Has anyone got any recommendations for where to get insurance for this? DH has just got one and we finally can now go out again. I hadn't given insurance a thought.

DHs insurance is about £98 a year. That includes public liability. DHs older scooter was 4mph and he was able to put that on its contents insurance. His current one is 8mph and because of this it has to be registered with the DVLA and you should get a log book too.

DH does not go at 8mph The batteries would run out quicker

EnglishBluebell · 30/06/2024 14:46

@LauraNorda Sweetheart, if he has trouble breathing and is at the Cardio clinic then he likely has Congestive Heart Failure which causes you to put on weight and affects your mobility.

Emptying bins and chatting does NOT give you a medical degree. Ffs

EnglishBluebell · 30/06/2024 14:49

You are just one of those people that throw 'ists' around to get conversations and people cancelled.

Is this your stock response whenever anyone calls you out on your nonsense?!

JenniferBooth · 30/06/2024 14:49

Coolblur · 30/06/2024 09:28

A family member was knocked down and run over, ending up pinned against a wall underneath a mobility scooter driven by someone without a clue of how to safely operate it. Their injuries required time off work and exacerbated their own medical condition. They later got some compensation, not from the driver of the scooter, who apparently couldn't be held liabile for their actions, but from the supplier of the scooter who had failed to ensure the driver understood how to operate it.

I agree that more needs to be done to ensure the safety of both users of scooters and members of the public. The suitability of the mobility aid to the user should be regularly assessed by medical professionals. If there's any doubt about their ability/capacity to safely operate a scooter then they should not be permitted to use one, and alternatives considered.

Yeah? well as long as these so called fucking medicals are local and not miles away. When DH used to drive he had a Blue Badge , come renewal time they wanted him to travel to another town which his health didnt allow him to do He could only drive short distances then, So they stopped his Blue Badge because he wasnt well enough to attend. I do NOT TRUST the system if one were to be brought in for mobility scooter users. And i bet they wouldnt bring one in for e scooter users. The disabled are low hanging fruit as usual

EnglishBluebell · 30/06/2024 14:55

@LauraNorda Ohhh right so you're saying that if I just got on a bike and started riding, my DEGENERATIVE PARKINSONS (A fucking neurological disease!!!) would just disappear?!? Is that right? So that poor man you see who very clearly has Congestive Heart Failure (a condition I know well as my Dad had it all his adult life) could just magically it away, like "poof" and it would be gone? Wow who needs medical school when the cleaner knows best! 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

allthemiddlechildrenoftheworld · 30/06/2024 14:55

@Auburngal I dont think this is actually an anti disability thread!! this is an anti stupidity thread and unfortunately, you cannot fix stupid (of which there is an abundance)!!! I know people buy the scooters second hand and immediately use them without ever bothering about insurance!!

daffodilandtulip · 30/06/2024 14:56

There's a lady round here that has a little cage/roof on hers, with fairy lights and tinsel wrapped all around it. She drives in the middle of the road holding up all the traffic, and does whatever she wants with no checking. You have to just guess where she's going next!

Then there's two young lads who just use ? someone else's, to have races around the block.

Although to be fair, it's the deliveroo scooters that seem to be the most deadly around here so maybe it all needs an overhaul.

PeppermintParty · 30/06/2024 14:59

allthemiddlechildrenoftheworld · 30/06/2024 13:49

@Auburngal the main problem is that the majority of mobility scooter user have never actually owned or even driven a car!! they have no idea of the highway code!! they should really have to pass a basic highway code test!! I have seen them absolutely flying down the pavements in our town and driving round roundabouts with the bigger engined ones! no one can see them because of the bushes on the roundabouts!!

What makes you think the majority have never driven a car? Is this something you have made up? Most people I know with mobility scooters have driven previously.

JenniferBooth · 30/06/2024 15:05

GrumpyInsomniac · 30/06/2024 13:43

@CraftyGoblin on MN, like in wider society, people all too often seem to leave disability out of DE&I. But if people are prepared to say that Black Lives Matter or that women should have equal rights and pay, or that love is love, they should not need to be told that disabled people are human and their equals. Those of us with impaired mobility might move about the world differently to the majority, but we do so with a damn sight more care BECAUSE WE HAVE NO CHOICE. Our wheels are our legs. This thread is a disgrace.

Maybe nobody should be allowed to walk the pavements unattended without training or insurance, given that right now, the number of times you and I - for example - have injured other pedestrians is zero, versus countless times we’ve been injured and/or abused by other pedestrians. FFS.

Ah but disabled people arent as "trendy" a cause

LauraNorda · 30/06/2024 15:10

EnglishBluebell · 30/06/2024 14:55

@LauraNorda Ohhh right so you're saying that if I just got on a bike and started riding, my DEGENERATIVE PARKINSONS (A fucking neurological disease!!!) would just disappear?!? Is that right? So that poor man you see who very clearly has Congestive Heart Failure (a condition I know well as my Dad had it all his adult life) could just magically it away, like "poof" and it would be gone? Wow who needs medical school when the cleaner knows best! 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

Thats hilarious.

A man you have never seen or spoken to and you have diagnosed him, just because he has similar symptoms to your dad?

And you call me out, you hypocrite.

As for your Parkinsons, show me where I said that!

Obviously you want to score some internet points today.

Sloejelly · 30/06/2024 15:10

And i bet they wouldnt bring one in for e scooter users.

A medical for what purpose? To decide if they have capacity before prosecuting them for riding an e scooter on public land? Why do people keep comparing disability mobility aids/blue badges to vehicles that people commit a criminal offence if they ride them on the road/pavement/park/shop?

Sloejelly · 30/06/2024 15:13

allthemiddlechildrenoftheworld · 30/06/2024 14:55

@Auburngal I dont think this is actually an anti disability thread!! this is an anti stupidity thread and unfortunately, you cannot fix stupid (of which there is an abundance)!!! I know people buy the scooters second hand and immediately use them without ever bothering about insurance!!

Apart from anything else, they are not cheap if stolen

JenniferBooth · 30/06/2024 15:20

DH has had to claim on his insurance once. When his scooter was vandalized. Lights were smashed plus other damage Happened in town

Also had to pay £200 for the roof of the scooter shed to be fixed when druggies tried to break into it. No consequences or threats to destroy their stuff though

PeppermintParty · 30/06/2024 15:30

EnglishBluebell · 30/06/2024 14:42

@PeppermintParty That's nonsense! Anyone can buy a mobility scooter. I didn't have to prove my disability when I bought mine

I was only quoting from the gov.uk website. I wouldn't disagree that it's nonsense. That's why I said in the last line "But I expect that a lot of people disregard this anyway."

I do have a disability but the shop I bought mine from didn't ask for proof either.

Auburngal · 30/06/2024 15:42

Suhbataar · 30/06/2024 12:32

Maybe you missed it up thread but class 3 mobility scooters are road legal.

This was a small lightweight scooter - not a class 3 which look like quad bikes and some have reg plates too.

OP posts:
MotherFeministWoman · 30/06/2024 15:44

Bushmillsbabe · 30/06/2024 11:23

Anyone issued a powered wheelchair on the nhs has to undertake a 'driving test' to show they are safe and competent to drive it. They get approved for indoors only or indoors and outdoors. I have lots of children on my caseload who (quite rightly) were denied one as would have been unsafe for both them and others.
Parents can of course choose to purchase privately, and this is unregulated

Many people with electric wheelchairs don't get them through the NHS.