It’s good to see that the spotlight is turning on Motability, even if only in Scotland. Whilst it is understandable that there will be some temporary reductions in choice due to the chip shortage, the current AP prices are inexcusable and pure profiteering. Retail price increases cannot be used as an excuse, given that the percentage increase in retail prices is but a fraction of the percentage increase in AP’s.
We all welcome the £60 insurance rebate due to lower claims, but where’s the £2,000 per customer rebate to reflect higher resale prices of returned cars? I suspect that the Christmas bonuses at Motability Operations this year will dwarf those that were given last year.
However, we must manage our expectations. A U.K. Government sponsored review into Motability a few years ago identified excess profits, AP’s being too high (and that was well before the massive hikes of the last year), lack of choice – particularly larger vehicles and other issues. Of the many recommendations made, only one has been implemented and that is to try to encourage the two-thirds of people who are eligible to join the scheme but don’t (hence the tv adverts). So the one thing that would benefit Motability was done versus none of the things that would benefit the Motability customers!
Sadly, talking about and raising concerns seems to achieve nothing. Where Scotland might be able to help is by breaking the Motability Operations monopoly there and letting other entrants into the market. You can be sure that new entrants won’t employ staff on the gold plated salary and benefits package that Motability Operations pays all its staff, which would result in lower operating costs and therefore lower AP’s.