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Hi Kezo,
So I have autism, and agoraphobia, I can’t do anything outside the house unless my friend/PA is with me, I’ve been assessed by my LA as having care needs, and my friend is my PA.
I can’t drive, my friend takes me wherever I like to go, and before I had her I was housebound for many years of my life.
My friend would have the car at her house, if she went out for the day, could she use the car? Her car has recently broken, and when she goes out to another town, she obviously would have her car, I like knowing my friend can get back easily and quickly if I need her (for example, due to my agoraphobia, it means I cannot travel in a car with anyone else, so if I needed the hospital, and my friend was out for the day, I really struggle with the idea she’d need trains to get to me, it’s unpredictable and would just make me feel so anxious.
Would she be allowed to?
My friend drives me places every week, she drives me to garden centres, appointments, supermarkets, a relatives house, I’m just worried because I would want her to use it for reasons that might not be obviously for my benefit, but it would be, even if it isn’t obvious.
Strictly speaking all seems fine untill your friend goes to town for her own needs however, given your friend can get back to you ASAP, there’s nothing to say she hasn’t gone to town,to get whatever shoping for you and therefore it becomes a benefit to you!
How far away does your friend live from you?
Hi Kezo,
Honestly, my friend does so much for me, she picks up my prescriptions, gives me a life outside the house, she went to pick up something I’d bought on Vinted, she took me to view a sofa from Facebook, sorry for the unnecessary information, it’s just I wanted to explain for some reason how much I gain from my friend having a reliable car, I gain an entire life from it.
She doesn’t live too far away, about 3 miles in the same town.
Its all about common sense and making it so it’s to your benefit, so when she nips out to town, she went for you.
I’ll be visiting family soon, my daughter (disabled) likely won’t be coming this time, but my mum has knitted her a lovely snuggle she’s looking forward to, so the trip will be to her benefit and I get to see my family in peace!
There’s a thread on here with a similar principle and replies broadly in line with what I said, although your is more genuine than going for a round of golf! You’ll find other will comment on here at somepoint tomorrow, well later š
Its all about common sense and making it so itās to your benefit, so when she nips out to town, she went for you.
I’ll be the devils advocate.
No, the example situation would be reason for termination. She can’t “go out” in the car, even if she were “on call”. It also is quite likely that the car would get a location tracker, given that none of the drivers lives at your address, and isn’t a family member.
I’ve read these “use common sense” and “spin it to your benefit” a lot, i would just like to point out that MB isn’t stupid. Ignoring situations that simply can’t be explained away (if the car, for example, was driven into on the parking lot of a golf course, lets say), even the situation about the shopping is nowhere near as clear cut as Kezo makes it sound – because there’s a key difference between your and his situation.
His daughter lives with him.
Here’s the actual rules straight from the MB webpage. I’ll put emphasis on a particular point.
“Your vehicle needs to be used by the disabled customer or for their benefit.
This does not mean they need to be in the vehicle for every journey.
It means other drivers in the same home can use the vehicle for:
Shopping
Visiting family
Other routine activities
As long as the disabled customer benefits.”If you tread careful, you should be fine. You just need to make some things very clear to your friend. A: it’s not her car. She can’t use it like her own, even if one gives some leeway. This is important, because in particular when the car is fitted with a location tracker, a mistake or misunderstanding in that regard can lead to problems, including a potential ban for her as driver, or even losing the car. And that has to be clear to both of you: if she gets the car damaged on a journey that clearly wasn’t to your benefit, MB is gonna throw a fit. And with a fitted location tracker, that’s easy to spot. The second point plays into that: you’re on the hook for Ā£250 excess in case the car gets damaged. You need to clarify who’s going to pay for that beforehand, same for fuel etc pp.
I am not trying to talk you out of it, far from it – i actually understand your situation better than probably most here, considering that my wife is also agoraphobic (and i play the same role as your friend, being the anchor), and i’ve seen first hand how a car impacted her life. So by all means, see to it. I would just suggest to do it “correctly”.
I understand that, generally speaking, i am in the minority here –Ā i just have a deep dislike of dishonesty, particularly towards the “corporation” that enabled my wife to live a better life. If that makes sense. In the end, i’m a random internet stranger, so you don’t need to care about any opinion here – just wanted to voice it.
Prior: SEAT Ateca Xcellence Lux 1.5 TSI DSG MY19, VW Golf GTE PHEV DSG MY23
Current: Hyundai Ioniq 6 Ultimate
Next: we'll see what's available in 2028.I called Motability some months ago asking the same question about my kids, providing I add them to the insurance, if they occasionally can drive for my needs,Ā but without me.
I believe the calls are recorded by Motability,Ā so I won’t be exposed to any lawsuits in the future š
I have asked if they can take the car for their needs like going to meet with friends at a High Street and then collect my prescription on their way home.
The answer was that as long as part of this trip is for my benefits, the hall trip is converted by insurance.
But if the eldest goes for work in the morning and collects my prescription on the way back at the evening,Ā then it is not covered by insurance.
So the common sense should prevail.
Sent from a mobile device.
Apologies for briefness and spelling mistakes.Motability Skoda Enyaq SportLine 85x April 2024 (unhappy customer - Ombudsman pending)
Motability Mazda CX-60 PHEV July 2023 (unhappy customer - early termination on mechanical grounds)
Motability VW Touran Family Pack May 2019 (happy customer)It’s so confusing, I really need my friend to have this car, there are just some things that I’m worried the motability people wouldn’t understand, if it ever came up, like her being out for the day for example, her taking the car is for my benefit, because of my mental health, but would they understand or care about that?
There are some other little things too, so with the “part of the journey” being for my benefit, I guess that means when my friend comes over to me to help me get out, it would be acceptable for her to do the school run on her way home?
My suggestion would be to write an official letter to Motability,Ā explaining your personal situation, supported by the relevant evidence and ask for their guidelines.
Sent from a mobile device.
Apologies for briefness and spelling mistakes.Motability Skoda Enyaq SportLine 85x April 2024 (unhappy customer - Ombudsman pending)
Motability Mazda CX-60 PHEV July 2023 (unhappy customer - early termination on mechanical grounds)
Motability VW Touran Family Pack May 2019 (happy customer)@Cinnamonseason. Give Motability a quick call, youāll find they are very helpful. Explain your situation and hopefully Motability can clarify what your friend Can or Canāt do when sheās using the car for her own personal purposes.
Good luck š¤
One thing worth pointing out if you write to Motability is, your friend is actually your PA rather than just your friend. The thing with ringing, is the customer service reps are imo hopeless and the computer will say no!
At least by writing, you can take time to express your needs in more detail, such as your “PA” is a life saver to you and helps you all day doing “x” but will have to collect her children from school before coming back to assist you in the evening – On another day after assisting you, your “PA” will go to town to get shopping for both herself and pick up what ever you may need, such as your prescription and drop it off before going home. You can do this and lay it out in better detail without getting stumped or caught off guard if you were to do it on the phone.
Your PA living 3 miles away, won’t pose a problem, however, they may decide to fit a tracker as part of the condititions and monitor use of car as @Rene says, which means they will monitor reasonable use, to the benefit of you, so there as got to be activity of the car going to and from your address.
It’s certainly worth the effort to put it in writing, as 99% of the time it’s to your benefit, even if it’s just picking up and bringing back a pack of mints gor other 1% of the time.
We’ve decided not to do it, my friend needs a car for her own use too, and we think justifying school runs and family days out are going to be too difficult to explain.
The other option is to give part, or all, of your allowance to your friend each month so that they could buy a car privately to run you around in? Nothing to do with Motabilty that way.
A Chinese is delivered nearly every night to an elderly man across the street from me. 90% of the time it is delivered by a young man in a seat ateca which I know is a motability car. I wonder did he let motability know what that car was going to be used for.
I have found MB excellent in addressing issues, including empathy relating to my condition, which can be rare these days. However, this is a grey area and agree, written confirmation is essential imho as insurance companies tend to unpick T&Cs when determining liability.
@belfast4, If a Motability car is being used for Fast Food delivery? Iām sure that would come under āBusiness Insuranceā and wouldnāt be allowed by Motability rules of use, and Ā therefore making DirectLine Insurance void if they were to have an accident.
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