Motability advance payment

[MrsGrumpy]

My motability car is coming up for renewal so started the dreaded trawl round looking for a new one. OMG the advance payments have rocketed! Can't believe how much they have gone up. Problem is I have to drive an automatic because of my disability which adds to the price considerably, and also need a high, larger car. Have found huge differences in what I would pay if I could have a manual to the cost because I need the automatic, eg the Nissan Qashqai can be got with an advance payment of £499 for the manual, but goes up to £2149 for the automatic :angry:.

The motability lady in the Nissan showroom was very helpful and said to try for a grant from Motability for the extra costs involved, wondered if anybody had been successful in doing this?

[lausan]

Yes we have had a grant we now have an Automatic VW Transporter with tail Lift we are the Drivers for My Niece but i have Arthritis in both hands so needed automatic so i got a drs letter and we got the grant

From Motorbility Site

Motability may be able to offer financial help towards the cost of a suitable car, adaptations, driving lessons or a Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle. During 2007/08, we awarded grants totalling over £18 million to help over 5,000 customers with their mobility needs.

Charitable Grants

Funding for charitable grants comes from our fundraising activities and the Motability Tenth Anniversary Trust, to provide help towards:

Advance Payments: on standard production cars.
Adaptations: such as hand controls, swivel seats, wheelchair hoists and other adaptations.
Driving Lessons: if aged between 16 and 24, and in receipt of the Higher Rate Mobility Component, you may be eligible for help towards the cost of driving lessons.
Government Grants

Motability also administers funds on behalf of the Government for people who need a heavily adapted car, often a Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle.

The Specialised Vehicles Fund: for people who need a Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle, either as a driver or passenger.
War Pensioners: if you receive the War Pensioners' Mobility Supplement and have a Motability car, you may be eligible for a grant from the Service Personnel and Veterans Agency, based on medical records. If you need a vehicle or adaptations costing more than the standard grants available, and are unable to meet the cost yourself, you can apply to Motability for help but should approach relevant service charities for help first.
Ex-Invalid Vehicle Service Holders: Motability also deals with applications from customers who previously drove a three-wheeled, blue "trike", or other Government vehicle.
To find out more, please contact our Customer Services team on 0845 456 4566

[Guest]

My ex husband used to get grants with every car he had from motorbility, he had to have hand controls too.. it is a lengthy process, but usually successful. I now have another motorbility car, (my son is disabled) and went for a Chevrolet. Have you looked at any of their models, their advance payments were a lot lower than most.
good luck with it, but I would suggest you start the ball rolling asap.
Sally xx

[MrsGrumpy]

Thanks for the advice, rang motability this morning and they are sending out a form for me to complete, they were very helpful, so fingers crossed (if I could!)

[Stco]

Try the Citroen C4 Picasso. it is available as Automatic

[Guest]

We're really struggling too. Our car is due for replacement in Jan, and now Oct prices are out, we have started looking. Ours is DH's car - he has CP. He only has an automatic licence, and we need a large car to fit his wheelchair in - but like you say, the prices are absolutely huge.

I actually did not know about the grant, so will be showing DH this thread tonight and calling Motability tomorrow morning to request a grant application form.

The Dibb never ceases to amaze me with it's knowledge!

[MrsGrumpy]

Originally Posted by Bethanuk

I really struggled to find em first mota car...
I have 4 children but one has autism and has sensory probs... she cant tolerate lots of light or be jostled so I was looking for a 7 seater... I also need an automatic as i get so very tired and have a lot of constant pain.

The prices on the 7 seaters were way out of my reach i ended up with a 5 seater estate that is a bit too small I also tinted the windows at my own cost due to photo sensitivity for my daughter,...

I was told that we could probably try for a grant but because it is more about family problems rather than mine needing a bigger car it might not be sucessful and I also needed the car in a hurry so didnt have the option of waiting and was told it could take several months...

Our advance payment ended up at £900 and i struggled to find it... I hope you are sucessful with your claim...

x

See more...

Bethan, there is a question which asks if anyone who will be travelling in the car has any health problems that they need to take into account. They also told me that if it takes longer you can keep your current car a bit longer (although I know that wouldn't have helped you with yr first car). Everyone I have spoken to has been very helpful so fingers crossed, now have to write out a supporting letter explaining it all

[MrsGrumpy]

grant application unsuccessful

[Guest]

I am so sorry hun, its not fair. We had to have a loan on our mortgage to get Beth's adapted vehicle. We bought straight out as we could never afford £9000 deposit and all Beth's mobility money. We have to put an extra £15 a month towards it and pay for insurance,mot and service but it was the only way we could do it.

[Guest]

Motability is fine if you can drive any car and go for one with a low or nil advance payment but the more disabled you are, the more it costs which doesn't seem fair. We need a wheelchair accessible vehicle as DS can't transfer to a normal car seat and DH needs an automatic so he can drive without using his bad leg. Some of those vehicles cost as much as our first house!

We have the cheapest possible WAV as it was all we could afford. I won a competition which gave us £1000 off the advance payment or we couldn't even have afforded that. I don't know if we will be able to afford to replace it in a couple of years.

It is great not having to worry about the running costs, insurance etc.