Motability Scheme  Avis 

Left Housebound After Non-Fault Accident – No Support, No Adjustments

My experience with Motability has been extremely disappointing.

I was nearing the end of my lease when I was involved in a non-fault accident in September 2024, which resulted in my vehicle being written off. Prior to this, a grant had already been approved for a Mercedes Sprinter WAV (internal transfer).

In January 2025, the order was cancelled. The reason given was that my new wheelchair was taking too long to arrive.

I made it clear that I had a spare backup wheelchair available and was willing to self-fund the transfer of any required brackets so that I could proceed. Despite offering a practical and reasonable solution, this was not accepted.

Then in February 2025, the hire vehicle was taken back, leaving me with no accessible transport at all.

As a result, I have been left housebound.

There has been:

No flexibility in approach

No willingness to consider interim solutions

No recognition of the real-world impact this decision has had

Losing access to a suitable vehicle has removed my independence completely. Simple, everyday tasks like attending appointments or getting food have become difficult or impossible without relying on others.

To make matters worse, communication has been poor. I have requested accessible electronic communication, but this has not been consistently followed, making an already stressful situation harder to manage.

Overall, this experience has felt:

Rigid and process-driven rather than person-focused

Dismissive of practical solutions

Lacking in understanding of the impact on daily life

For an organisation that is supposed to support disabled people, the outcome here has been the opposite.

totally appalling
after 16 years no more for me
the errors they’ve made cost me not ordering a car in march
they put it all sun to human error
i was treated rudely .told three different versions and was told there is no complaint address

NOT worry free motoring anymore. 10,000 a year mileage is a JOKE

All they care about is their PROFIT

10,000 a year mileage 50% cut

Insurance excess gone up to £250 so it has More than DOUBLE

You can not have a under 30 driver UNLESS your happy to be tracked like a sea turtle

Uk road are in a poor state snd they decided to CUT TYRE ALLOWANCE

good condition bonus CUT from £600 to £200

And yet the advance payments keep getting higher for a standard car

SAVE YOUR MONEY

DON'T USE THESE MONEY GRABBING PEOPLE

It is not a charity anymore it became a LTD OWNED by Direct line insurance company.
Motability put The faith of disabled people in the hands of the DIRECTLINE INSURANCE.
What a shame!?
Disabled people are now bullied by a crock insurance company.

Absolutely heartbroken. My son finally has been awarded enhanced PIP after a year of fighting back and forth and now it looks like getting him a vehicle isn't going to happen because of the DriveSmart roll out. I'm 41 years old with no points, what on Earth do I need a DriveSmart for? And as for having my location tracking on 24/7 so the insurance company can trace me at the drop of a hat, what an incredibly harrowing invasion of privacy. Imagine you're sat at the gynaecologist clinic and someone from Direct Line is reviewing your telemetry and there you are. Being emailed with threats to cancel the insurance on the vehicle unless you turn tracking on EVEN WHEN YOU ARE ASLEEP AT 3AM is disgusting, and as for Motability insisting your lease won't be affected by the new policies, I believe that, but the INSURANCE WILL BE affected, that's the hidden detail they don't admit. The mileage is crazy, we don't all live in the city, we have rural locations and hospital visits in other cities... and as for 6 journeys a day... it's every time you turn the engine off! So not 6 journeys, it's 6 engine switch offs. Just when my son could've had a better quality of life, it's snatched away. I am beyond anguish.

Shocking Mobility Scheme should be called Mobility Scam.
Only got one key Perrys Burnley shocking.
Sending mine back early they can have the £250.
Avoid the scam sorry scheme if you can.
Patronising online chat staff.
Avoid the Mokka absolutely disgusting on fuel & handling is utter rubbish.

I would advise any other disabled people before signing a contract with Motability, to be aware of your consumer rights regarding faulty cars, as Motability disregard them

I know this as I took them to court & won

I had a VW Tiguan Allspace that developed an airbag fault 14 months into lease. In total, this car had 19 separate airbag incidents, along with other safety system faults, mechanical breakdowns & 2 episodes of severely corroded & crumbling brake discs

Each time it went in for repair, often needed RAC towing, I was mostly left for weeks without a car (24+separate incidents & only given 4 courtesy cars) all while still paying for a car the was off the road

The only option Motability offered was for me to end the lease & not charge me the penalty fee. This meant walking away when nothing. Under the Consumer Rights Act, this warranted a rejection, which should have seen me receive some of my deposit back

I have seen recent posts regarding people in the same situation. You do not need legal advice from a solicitor. If your car has a persistent fault, or multiple faults, you can bring a claim in the small claims court & represent yourself

You have to follow the process of complaint, starting with direct complaint to Motability (they may offer token 'gesture of goodwill' but will be nowhere near what you are due, then Financial Ombudsman (this takes quite a long time but courts prefer you to have done this, although not essential), if not satisfied, in my case Ombudsman award was one third of what court judgement was, you can reject decision, write Letter of Action to Motability & start online small claims

Do not let Motability bully or intimate, as they did me

This organisation claims to provide safe, reliable, worry free, continuous mobility. This in legal terms is 'puff' and not promise. But they'll still take you money, making billions along the way

Motability is now a scam for all disabled individuals who are looking for vehicles to get them around. I believe the DriveSmart is not fit for purpose - targeting disabled drivers under-30 and new lease holders when we have years of no claims.

Myself being under-30 means I’ll be one of those people who will have a DriveSmart system and unfortunately I paid nearly £3K for a BMW when it was on the scheme and only I will be monitored until I’m 30. Disgraceful. I don’t know what Motability are thinking but they need to change these rules because it’s harming all disabled individuals who do drive safely and are still punished by the stupid app or black boxes.

The scheme used to be good, now no-one who works for Motability, or the CEO, cares about how it affects the disabled individuals and only think of themselves and the profits they’re generating. If they could put themselves in our shoes then maybe the CEO should resign out of respect and replace him with a disabled influencer who knows how disabled people feel, financially, emotionally and physically and not to target the disabled audience adding more onto their stress, anxieties and worries.

However, I am considering moving away from the scheme in future due to this for more freedom and would like some compensation for the advance payment I paid as you’ve illegally changed the contracts T&C’s mid-contract.

It use to be worry free motoring with a good package to help enable freedom but the changes have left me in a position where I can’t even use the car to get to work and back each day without getting additional charges when I renew my lease.

The scheme use to be 60k for the 3 years but now it’s been reduced.
The 5p to 25p excess per mile will leave me needing to pay an addditional £7500 at the end of the lease, then an additional £3k for a suitable new lease advance payment on a car to fit my wheelchair in and pram for baby (yes, disabled people do have children!)

The app that would also be required to be used on my next lease for my carer to drive for me, is not reliable,
The isolation and discrimination towards customers is shocking…. I raised my concerns with motability asking to log a formal complaint about it all.
No consultation has taken place and the vast majority of users need the miles to carry out visits to hospital, physio and work!
I was told by customer service that they won’t log it as a complaint as it’s a policy change and not a performance issue

Honestly - I don’t quite think they realise how inhumane this is! I hope they go bust! I hope the staff think ethically about what company they work for!
The more of us who leave will impact them financially!

So thanks motability for the lack of care and service as you’ve put so many customers out of the scheme.
Gradual changes I could understand but backtracking makes no sense

The application was going fine until drive smart was mentioned. I queried this with the supposed drive smart expert who did everything the evade answering my questions and did his best to talk over me and try to put me through to new business colleagues as I was new to the scheme. I refused and asked him to clarify the amount of intrusion involved with this new app. Again he was totally evasive. The reasons appear to be that drive smart monitors everything you do in the car in order to mark you down. If you make a phone call, driving at night, where you go, the number of trips, cornering ability the list is endless. It’s a joke. All this information being retained and commented on by Direct Line insurance under the guise of safety but ultimately they are harvesting information about you that they have no right to and no doubt would sell or share this information regardless. I know motability has some problems and has been hijacked by some nefarious characters but this level of intrusion to address this is way too much. Companies can’t help themselves but model themselves on big brother is watching and think it’s acceptable. It’s not. I implore you to think carefully about the scheme and the information you surrender. Read the forums please.

I am extremely dissatisfied with the level of service I have received regarding ongoing issues with my vehicle.

As a disabled customer, I expect a duty of care and appropriate support. Unfortunately, my experience to date suggests a lack of both. I have reported concerns with my vehicle over several years, specifically relating to its performance and safety. Despite requesting thorough inspections via a Volkswagen dealership, I have repeatedly been informed that no fault can be identified.

I have also sought assistance through the RAC; however, their assessments appear limited to diagnostic scans, which have not addressed the practical issues I am experiencing.

The vehicle demonstrates concerning behaviour, particularly at roundabouts, where it struggles to accelerate from a stationary position. This delay in acceleration presents a significant safety risk, as it affects my ability to safely merge into traffic. This issue has been independently observed and confirmed by multiple drivers.

Given these ongoing safety concerns, I formally requested a vehicle exchange through Motability. However, I feel that my concerns have not been adequately addressed, and instead I have been encouraged to enter into a new agreement, potentially at my own cost. I do not believe this reflects an appropriate or fair resolution, particularly where safety may be compromised.

I am now seeking guidance and support, including legal advice if necessary, to understand my rights and to pursue a resolution that ensures my safety and fair treatment as a customer.

Worry free motoring not.

I don't know what has happened to this company but it's went down hill fast.

My charger stopped working and I was passed around dealing with Motability and Ohme. The problem is Ohme are terrible and do not help at all.

In the end I paid for a it to be fixed. Motability advice at the time was just charge away from home.

Lastly I spoke with them today and they confirmed these black boxes will eventually installed in all cars regardless of age.

I intend on leaving the scheme and leasing instead.

Horrendous experience. Patronising rude staff who talk over you, give you duff advice and can't wait to hang up on you in the name of zero tolerance when you have the audacity to be annoyed. Spent most of the afternoon on the phone to them and turns out, surprise surprise, that they didn't give me the full information I needed to begin with. The RAC option is an AI operated nightmare as well which doesn't actually give you the option to speak to a person first if your situation isn't straightforward. Their service levels have certainly plummeted in line with their substantial financial losses it would appear. But hey, I guess the disabled folk should just shut up and be grateful right 🙄

This is the feedback I sent motability, I have previously sent them evidence of my husbands health. They have really screwed us over.

We've had no choice but to leave Motability. Because we need to travel for cancer treatment from Cornwall to Manchester at least once a month, we use a lot of miles. Although I am greatful that (after having to contact the CEO) the excess mileage charge was revoked, it's been clearly stated that this wont happen again. Charging us excess mileage charge put us further into debt and we simply cannot afford that to happen. The only way we could get a car in previous years was through Motability. When I spoke to the accounts manager he made a point of saying "You get a new car for £320 a month." But we didn't want a new car, we needed to get to cancer treatment. Edward has had cancer since he was 17 and it's been relentless in relapsing. He hasn't been able to save money because of extra expenses and has relied on benefits due to poor health. He couldn't finance a car and was declined. Because of the black box being introduced recently and the rule of only being able to drive for one hour at a time, 6 times a day; we would be flagged as a bad driver just getting to and from Manchester for life saving cancer treatment. Then we read you are giving gift cards as incentives! How about putting that money towards helping your most vulnerable clients instead of forcing them into debt. Like your account manager said, "We need to make money from somewhere." We tried again recently to privately finance a second hand car and after telling them our situation, after first declining us, they accepted. I'm so glad someone has compassion. This is going to affect us financially, waiting 6 weeks for PIP to back date the payments, but it won't be as devastating as the charges Motability will give us. You were a fantastic company up until recently. I am so sad how you've changed. I've been considering going to the media about this, because surely you can't legally say you're helping disabled people get mobile when we feel we have no option but to leave. Do better, greed has got this once wonderful company. What a shame.

You could be dead by the time it takes this lot to answer the phone!!
Also remove cars from the scheme on a whim, so why the hell do they ask you to do your research in advance before ordering???

I had quite a few issues that I needed help with. I spoke to Andrew on the web chat and I couldn’t ask for a better person to help with my issues. I would highly recommend using web chat as all of your queries and worries are addressed in a kind and considerate manner. I was put at ease and the gentleman went out of his way to help me today. Very happy customer

Absolutely dreadful and cold people I had a car and halfway through lease direct line cancelled because of a few claims .Neither motability or direct line listened or offered alternative help had to force motability to end lease yet they blame me for breaking it run far away from Direct Line and Motability.They tried to make me keep a car of no use to me.All that money down the drain.

I completed my registration for motability yesterday, but I haven’t been to look for a lease car as yet.

The new 10k rules means people will no longer be able to use their cars for work or holiday. Absolutely awful treatment. All while the CEO walks away with a massive amount of money. This car will be my last with motability. I have joined the legal challenge as it is totally discrimination.

Ive hated my car since day one, scalded several times, because the cup holder is useless and entertainment problems, key fob problems which Skoda swears they fixed, 2 minutes out of the showroom its acting up again, we even got locked out of the car a few times. When you go to a big dealer and say can you sort this and they say they can't possibly they haven't got a key to the cupboard. I told motability enough is enough but Motability just wanted me to pay to send it back, and I couldn't afford to. My tyres where all cracked on the tyre wall, motability refused to let Quick fit change them, this happened 3 times. A stroke of luck happened when we got a puncture, they couldn't repair it and 4th time the tyre got replaced. Today my Hubby decided to take on the lease and choose his new car, he was told by the grants team you can't have anything you want, as we couldn't afford the upfront for the car that would be ideal, she said go for a no upfront car, suggesting a mini, when we have 3 dogs a walker and a scooter, none of the no upfront cars where suitable. The grant department where not sympathetic the woman was saying go for an electric car, there is a load been put on with no upfront, I told her I can't charge it, I don't have a drive, my house is on a public walkway, and its three times more expensive to charge at a supermarket. Im done with motability, sick of arguing with them, can't wait to hand the car back and be done with it.