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Just for some balance and so new readers don’t think it is all doom and gloom.
Having managed forums relating to vehicles as a moderator and head admin in the past, firstly my thanks to those who run this site in what can be a thankless and often tongue biting situation. It is the nature of forums that most posts are often ones seeking advice or highlighting problems. The majority of satisfied have little to post or even the need to search for a forum
Yes i know Mobility is not perfect and a lot of changes that could be made that would benefit us all. However on the whole i am a satisfied Mobility customer. I am currently on my fourth vehicle and have seen two massive culls during this period.
As time has passed after the initial knee jerk reactions things have improved in the past, i am hopeful this will be the case again.
I haven’t always been able to get vehicle of my choice and would like to get higher spec, but as it gives me freedom to drive and not worry about repairs or unanticipated bills I appreciate this system. Also whenever i have contacted by phone or email i have had polite and courteous replies . Maybe i have been lucky who knows.
My apologies for posting this but there are three sides to every story, yours, mine and the truth. Hopefully new members will not be too disheartened and all can enjoy whichever vehicle best suits there needs. Remember that light at the end of the tunnel may just be a train approaching at high speed :0
Happy Motoring all
Iain
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I do agree, Motability is a fantastic scheme for the majority of people, giving them the opportunity of leasing some really excellent vehicles, which many would never be able to have without Motability.
As a former banker I can confirm that not having credit searches or income checks for Motability applicants is a great advantage over others applying for private leasing or finance.
Vehicle availability is big subject of course, but ideally, there should always be a good choice of all types of vehicle for Motability customers, and it matters not one jot whether the AP Is Zero or £5000- we are all individuals, with individual minds, capable of recognising which vehicle we would like, as well as , perhaps, need.
We may well be disabled, but that doesn’t mean that we should all be thought of as incapable of exercising choice – lumping us ‘altogether’ under the ‘disabled’ banner and as such, have our choices restricted , is stereotyping and discriminatory!
We are just the same as any other members of society, who do have the ability to choose , we just happen to be disabled !
I would add however, that any vehicle on contract hire from Motability should always be suitable for redistribution amongst the membership should the need arise?
I remain a happy Motability customer and cannot in all honesty recall a major issue since getting my first car on the scheme back in 1997 ?
I’ve never had any big issues with Motability in the 13 years I’ve been with them but I do of course have some niggling issues that I’ve talk about on other occasion but I’ve never had anything to complain about in a big way but I do let them know of my niggles else wise nothing would ever change or improve if we just let sleeping Dogs lay.
(●’◡’●)
As with everything, certain things could be easily improved with some effort.
But, i will say, Motability made a big difference in our lives in terms of quality of life. Even with the niggly bits (that we personally haven’t encountered).
Yes, things could be better, but lets not forget the people out there who quite literally otherwise would not be able to get a car, and with that the freedom it brings.
We’re happy and grateful for Motability.
Well, I will admit I am not too happy with the range of choice on the scheme. But, hey ho, I can still get a car I like. In general I have found Motability service to be very good. Its phone people seem to know what they are talking about; real people, not just box-tickers. Have had to change my car before lease-end because of changing factors in my health. They were most understanding and the whole thing was arranged quickly, cheaply and with efficiently.
Only aspect I would seriously like to change is the availability of the scheme to members who lose their PIP or DLA entitlement. The fact is that those losing the benefit are still disabled and still need vehicles.These unlucky victims should be allowed to continue leasing from Motability, using their own money. Understand this cannot be offered because of VAT regulations and tax/charity laws. Well, said laws/reg’s are wrong. So just get the damn laws/reg’s changed.
My beef with Motability is solely the lack of choice, nothing else. We have just ordered our 4th Motability car and during that relatively short time choice has eroded from over 4,000 cars to just over 1,500. Our needs (higher driving position, room for wheelchair and luggage etc) make the vast majority of these cars unsuitable as they are too low or too small, and most of those that are left just don’t appeal to us. I just don’t accept any arguments as to why there couldn’t be a far wider choice, just as with other leasing companies. Disabled motorists should be able to have what they ‘desire’ as well as what they ‘need’. We would happily pay a higher AP than the current caps to get something bigger, more suitable and that we would also enjoy.
In the spirit of balance feedback though, we have always found the customer service element of Motability to be first class and this is a major reason that we have stayed in the scheme, in spite of the lack of choice. When my wife’s disability worsened and we needed hand controls we were allowed to order a new car early without question. When I retired and my wife could no longer drive, we only needed one car and I was contemplating keeping my private car as it was better than anything we could get on Motability. I sold it in the end (just before the pandemic – phew!) and we kept the Motability car, but they were prepared to let us end the lease early.
Although I know from experience (having run private cars and Motability cars side by side for years) that Motability isn’t as cheap as many people think (my private BMW 5 series, bought new, cost us less to run over the time I had it than my wife’s Motability VW Tiguan), you sometimes can’t put a price on that level of flexibility. In all honesty, if the choice was entirely mine we would leave Motability, but we are in the fortunate position that we can afford to do so. However, my wife is the PIP recipient and, like most Motability customers, likes the ‘peace of mind’ aspect of Motability, hence we have recently ordered another Motability car!
So far in my experience when it works it generally works flawlessly however if you do cone across an issue it tends to fall into one of two categories
1. It gets dealt with promptly & efficiently
2. You get ignored
Don’t get me wrong ordering the car was easy 7 days later driving off no issues at all.
The main issues relate to motabilities choice if partner to provide charge points in this instance but that was their choice so it’s their issue to fix & now after raising an official complaint they do appear to be taking it seriously & keeping me updated so that’s good proof the complaints process works at least.
I agree with others it doesn’t need a huge change just some tweaks here & there to make things a lot better
There is always the question of the excessive
profitssurpluses Motability Operations accumulates. It’s all very well for them to occasionally redistribute it to charitable causes, but it’s our money which should come back to us in the form of lower APs.Given the shortage of good used cars due to Covid and low new car production, the motor industry is seeing booming prices for 3 year old cars as dealers scramble for stock. So Motability is bound to see more money than planned coming back from their disposals. I wonder where it will go…
There is always the question of the excessive
profitssurpluses Motability Operations accumulates. It’s all very well for them to occasionally redistribute it to charitable causes, but it’s our money which should come back to us in the form of lower APs. Given the shortage of good used cars due to Covid and low new car production, the motor industry is seeing booming prices for 3 year old cars as dealers scramble for stock. So Motability is bound to see more money than planned coming back from their disposals. I wonder where it will go…Excellent point about the surplus profits that should result in lower AP’s. The other thing that is very wrong is the salary and benefits package that Motability Operations staff get, and I’m not talking about directors I’m talking about even the most junior staff. They are all extremely well paid compared to other similar roles and have a pension scheme and benefits package that is almost unheard of these days, all of which is paid for by disabled people, which seems morally wrong. How many disabled drivers are on prolonged waiting lists for NHS treatment? No such worries if you are an admin person at Motability Operations. Your sacrificed benefits are paying for their private health insurance!
So, yes, from my experience the customer service has always been excellent, but I would like to see at least double the choice of cars, lower AP’s (especially for automatics) and a re-setting of the remuneration package for all Motability Operations staff. Quite a lot of change needed really when you think about it and I’m not holding my breath!
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