Mail on Sunday Mobility Scooter Articles

You may or may not be aware of two articles that have recently been published in the Main on Sunday, which call into question the use and regulation of mobility scooters in the UK. Scoota Mart have received a letter from the National Federation of Shopmobility which should clear up any confusion that these articles may have caused.

Current owners of 8mph scooters who do not display a tax disc on their machine, or do not have their machine registered with the DVLA, should call the telephone number at the bottom of this page to find out what you need to do. The letter follows:

Hello All,

NFSUK has received hundreds of phone calls and emails from concerned members of the public about the two articles that have appeared in the Mail on Sunday on 26th November and 3rd December 2006. The reports highlight some concerns, but are not balanced or in context. To suggest that every scooter owner or user behaves in the way the articles suggest or that they are all acting illegally in not registering their vehicles with the DVLA is factually incorrect.

All affiliated Schemes know that NFSUK requires that as a condition for affiliation the Schemes must adhere to minimum standard and best practice requirements in regard of user training, maintenance of equipment, risk assessment and insurance. These standards have to be confirmed / re-confirmed on an annual basis.

Many Schemes have been amongst those calling for the facts about registration. The information provided direct from the DVLA Policy Unit about the legislative provisions for registering and licensing these "invalid vehicles" is as follows:

"The Use of Invalid Carriages on the Highways Regulations 1988 (made under the provisions of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970) provides the construction and use requirements for invalid carriages. Under these regulations, invalid carriages are separated into 3 categories:

Class 1 - Manual wheelchairs, i.e. self-propelled or attendant propelled, not electrically propelled.

Class 2 - Powered wheelchairs and scooters - intended for footway use only with a maximum speed of 4mph and an unladen weight not exceeding 113.4kgs

Class 3 - Mechanically propelled invalid carriages that are constructed or adapted to be capable of exceeding a speed of 4mph but incapable of exceeding a speed of 8mph on the level under its own power (generally powered wheelchairs and other outdoor vehicles including scooters intended for use on roads/highways). They must be fitted with a device capable of limiting the maximum speed to 4mph for used when travelling on footways. The unladen weight must not exceed 150kgs.

Class 1, 2 and 3 invalid carriages are exempt from driver licence requirements under the provisions of S20 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970.

The legislation governing vehicle registration, licensing and the payment of vehicle excise duty (VED) is contained in the Vehicle Excise and Registration Act 1994 (VERA)(as amended). Under the provisions of VERA, all mechanically propelled vehicles used on a public road must be licensed (i.e. display a tax disc) and registered.

This means that Class 2 and Class 3 invalid carriages are required to be licensed and registered under the provisions of VERA. However, because of the limited road use of Class 2 vehicles, the Department exempts them from the vehicle licensing and registration provisions on an extra-statutory basis. Class 3 vehicles, however, must display a nil duty tax disc (i.e. be licensed in the disabled tax class) and be registered for road use.

The Road Vehicles (Display of Registration Marks) Regulations 2001 provides the requirements for displaying registration plates. Vehicles that meet the definition of an invalid vehicle within these regulations are exempt from displaying registration plates. "Invalid vehicle" within these regulations means "a vehicle, the unladen weight of which does not exceed 254kgs and which is specially designed and constructed, and not merely adapted, for the use of a person suffering from a physical disability and solely used by that person."

The Road Traffic Act 1988 provides for the requirement to have insurance against third party risks for motor vehicles. However, vehicles meeting the definition of an invalid carriage under S185 of that Act, are exempt from the requirement to have motor insurance cover. The term "invalid carriage" has the same meaning as the term "invalid vehicle" within the Road Vehicles (Display of Registration Marks) Regulations 2001.

In short this means that if your vehicle is a class 3 invalid carriage, it will need to be registered for road use, be licensed in the "disabled" taxation class and display a nil duty vehicle licence (tax disc). It will not, however, need to display registration plates.

In order to first register and license a class 3 invalid carriage the user will need to complete form V55/5 (for used vehicles) or V55/4 (for new vehicles) and take or send it to their nearest DVLA local office (addresses can be found in information leaflet V100 - available from post offices that issue tax discs - and on www.direct.gov.uk/motoring). Evidence of the vehicle's age (or newness) will need to be submitted with the application together with documentation confirming the keeper's your name and address."

It is unlikely that most of the above will be news to many Schemes. NFSUK is confident that affiliated Schemes will be complying with the law and best practice. There is a clear understanding that affiliated Shopmobility Schemes provide equipment to users who have a temporary or permanent physical impairment that affects their mobility, and whose shopping or leisure or other experience will be enhanced by using the equipment provided. They do not have to be "severely disabled" (whatever that is supposed to mean) or registered as disabled or hold a blue badge.

In response to the article published yesterday, the DVLA and DfT are now working on a Press Release that will seek to correct the position as published by the Mail on Sunday.

Hopefully, the above guidance will enable you to advise clients and other users of the legal position in a clear and straight-forward way.

NFSUK will pass on the DVLA/DfT press release as soon as it becomes available. In the meantime, you might wish to contact the Mail on Sunday to advise them of your views about their articles on this matter to bring some balance back into the argument!

With best wishes.

Contact the National Federation of Shopmobility on 0845 644 2 446 for more information