I have seen numerous comments of folks intending to leave the scheme, and for different reasons. What I tend not to see is their intended replacement vehicle, and associated financial implications. > Type of vehicle. > Age of vehicle. > Price limit. > Means of payment. > Adaptations. > Estimated total expenditure over three years.
In 2015, well before AP’s went out of control and when there was still a decent choice of cars, we ordered two new cars. A VW Tiguan 2.0TDi Auto through Motability and a BMW 520d Luxury 4dr Auto privately. Both cars, including options that were added to both cars, were around the same retail price (£40k). We negotiated a £500 discount off the AP on the Tiguan and, through a combination of dealer, manufacturer and BMW Finance discounts, I negotiated £10k discount on the BMW (I paid off the finance after a few months so that I owned the car outright and wasn’t tied to any lease conditions, but I retained the full discounts).
When I eventually sold the BMW I worked out how much it had cost me to run per month during my period of ownership (depreciation, servicing, insurance, tyres, tax etc) and compared it to how much the Motability car had cost (sacrificed benefits, AP, options). Much to my surprise, the two had cost us virtually the same, yet the BMW was infinitely better than the Tiguan in every single respect other than lacking 4WD, so I would have been happy if it had cost significantly more – but it hadn’t.
I realise that buying cars isn’t an option for those who don’t have the means to do so and discounts have softened since I last did it but, contrary to popular opinion, they do still exist and can be substantial on some cars. AP’s have also sky rocketed since we last ordered through Motability and choice has been decimated, so now that we are retired and down to one car I have no worries of leaving the scheme and buying privately again. If we do so when our current Motability lease expires, we will be buying something that isn’t available through Motability so, yes, it will cost more, but it will be a better car than we would be ‘allowed’ through Motability, so we would expect to pay more for it anyway!