This year I'm handing back my #Hyundai #Kona #EV as agreed per the #Motability scheme. Been looking for another EV as it meets my needs, even though I don't have a home charger as I live in a first floor flat.
Had a test drive of a #Kia #EV4 yesterday, thanks to #FiskensOfForfar, such beautiful car, had to remind myself that I was in a GT-Line S model & that I won't get all the toys in the Air trim đ Kia removed the GT-Line trim from the scheme yesterday morning. No idea why.
#Tories vow to slam the brakes on Motability cars for PIP folks with ADHD, anxiety & mild depression - 39% of claimants could be grounded!
-> Who's next?
#PIPCuts #MentalHealthMatters #DisabilityRights #Motability
One in three new cars in Wales now taxpayerâfunded Motability vehicles
South West Wales hotspots
Wales has emerged as the UKâs Motability capital, with one in three new cars registered in 2024â25 leased through the taxpayerâfunded scheme.
In Neath Port Talbot, nearly seven per cent of residents are entitled to a Motability car â thatâs one in fourteen people.
Swansea has the largest absolute number of awards, with 13,536 residents entitled, representing 5.4 per cent of the cityâs population.
Carmarthenshire records 10,807 awards, or 5.7 per cent of its population. Bridgend has 8,484, equal to 5.8 per cent.
Pembrokeshire shows the lowest rate locally, but still 4.8 per cent of residents â one in twentyâone â qualify for a Motability vehicle.
A lifeline for independence
Campaigners say the scheme is not a perk but a lifeline. It enables disabled people to live independently, access work, and participate fully in society.
Kat Watkins, from Disability Wales, warned that the proposed changes could isolate disabled people and make them feel like âsecond class citizens.â
She said reforms risk preventing people from accessing work and could lead to social exclusion. âWithout reliable transport, disabled people are cut off from employment, education and even basic social contact. The Motability scheme is not a luxury â it is a necessity.â
Local voices echo that concern. Derrick Farr, from Barry, who had a leg amputated, described his Motability car as a âlifelineâ to independence and said he would be âlostâ without it.
Budget reforms spark controversy
The debate has intensified following the Governmentâs Autumn Budget. Chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed that tax breaks available to Motability will be reduced from July 2026.
VAT relief will be removed for âtopâupâ payments made to lease more expensive vehicles. Insurance Premium Tax will be applied at the standard rate to Motability insurance contracts.
Luxury marques such as BMW, Audi and MercedesâBenz have already been removed from the scheme. The Treasury says the changes will save more than ÂŁ1 billion over five years and ensure Motability continues to deliver for its customers.
But young disabled people have reacted angrily, saying the new charges add hefty and unfair costs. Disability Wales criticised the Chancellorâs use of the phrase âgenerous taxpayer subsidies,â arguing it fuels misunderstanding of how the scheme works.
Claimants do not receive cars for free. They surrender their mobility allowance â a benefit designed to offset the extra costs of disability â to lease a vehicle. âFraming the scheme as a handâout undermines public support and stigmatises disabled people,â Watkins said.
Political battle lines
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has pledged to tighten eligibility further, arguing that cars should be reserved for those with serious physical disabilities.
The party has gone further by promising to block access to Motability for people whose entitlement is based on mental health disorders, claiming the scheme was never intended to cover psychological conditions.
Welsh Conservative MS James Evans welcomed reforms, saying the schemeâs âexplosive growth and spiralling costsâ must be contained.
But disability advocates strongly oppose restricting eligibility to physical conditions only. They argue that severe anxiety, PTSD, autism or ADHD can make public transport impossible, and that cars are essential for daily life.
Disability Rights UK and more than forty charities warned the Chancellor that cuts announced in the Budget will have âdire consequencesâ and risk âpricing disabled people out of the scheme.â
Disability Wales added that the focus on âluxuryâ cars ignored functional needs, noting that larger vehicles are often required to accommodate equipment such as wheelchair hoists. âWhat looks like a luxury badge to the Treasury may be the only practical option for a disabled family,â Watkins said.
Disability Wales warns of wider impact
Disability Wales has described the reforms as being driven more by negative media rhetoric than by consultation with disabled people.
The organisation fears the changes will make life more expensive and more difficult for those who already face barriers to independence.
Campaigners highlight that the removal of premium brands ignores the reality that bigger, solidâbuilt cars are often necessary to carry medical equipment.
They also warn that taxing insurance and advance payments will hit younger disabled people hardest, adding costs at a time when they are trying to build independent lives.
Watkins said: âThe danger is that disabled people are being punished for political headlines, and that risks turning a lifeline into a battleground.â
Disability Wales argues that reforms must recognise the diversity of disability, including mental health and neurological conditions, and ensure that independence is not sacrificed for the sake of savings.
Watching the road ahead
Across Wales, the figures underline the scale of reliance on Motability. With 33 per cent of new car sales linked to the scheme, Wales stands apart from other regions such as the North East of England, where the figure is 26 per cent, and London at 24 per cent.
As reforms loom in 2026, South West Wales will be watching closely to see whether changes to tax reliefs and vehicle choice reduce access â or whether the scheme can continue to meet the needs of thousands of local residents who depend on their cars for independence, dignity and daily life.
Related stories from Swansea Bay News
Autumn Budget 2025: Westminster leak, Welsh impact
Rachel Reevesâs Autumn Budget sparked fierce clashes and revealed tax changes set to hit households across Wales.
Disabled people react with âfear and angerâ to cuts bill
Campaign groups warn of growing anxiety as Westminster pushes ahead with controversial disability benefit reforms.
Disability activists stage protest outside Swansea DWP office
Local campaigners rallied against welfare changes, saying reforms risk isolating disabled people in South West Wales.
#Conservatives #disability #disabilityAccess #DisabilityWales #HiddenDisabilities #KemiBadenoch #Motability #motoring #PhysicalDisabilities #politics
https://www.disabilitynewsservice.com/budgets-motability-taxes-are-devastating-punitive-and-baffling-and-will-add-hundreds-to-upfront-payments/. "'Devastating' & 'punitive' #tax changes to the #Motability scheme that will add hundreds of pounds to upfront payments to lease cars are 'baffling' & 'unjust' & threaten to 'lock #disabled people out of daily life', say campaigners." The #Labour war on the disabled continues.
#Motability is a leftover of possibly one of the earliest examples of Social Prescription. NHS doctors realised that the social exclusion people with disabilities lived with was creating much higher medical treatment costs. That preventative and inclusive methods were better for all.
Today is Budget day in the UK and so I will mostly be staying away from the news, social media, consciousness⌠But I really needed to write a thread because somethingâs been spiraling in my head for days â Motability. The threatened (and now, partially implemented) changes are emblematic of so many problems in politics. So for those of you who donât knowâŚ
(be warned, this'll be a long one)
#Motability #disability
This is literally just âooooh disabled people shouldnât be seen in nice carsâ #ukpolitics #motability
There are two reasons that Motability includes âpremiumâ brands:
1/ they are often the ones that meet the needs of the users with features like parking assistance for those who cannot see behind them
2/ the leases are often cheaper than non premium brands as their resale value is so much higher.
The effect of these changes might well be that Mobility actually costs the government MORE money đ¤Śââď¸
#ukpolitics #motability
https://news.mo.co.uk/news/motability-scheme-makes-ambitious-goal-that-half-of-scheme-vehicles-leased-from-2035-will-be-british-built
Kia Corp. has signed an MOU with the UKâs Motability to expand electric purpose-built vehicles for people with disabilities, aiming to lead inclusive mobility and next-generation energy solutions in the UK market.
#YonhapInfomax
#Kia #Motability #ElectricVehicles #PurposeBuiltVehicles #InclusiveMobility
#Economics #FinancialMarkets #Banking #Securities #Bonds #StockMarket
https://en.infomaxai.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=89057
There's several factual errors and biased interpretations in this article.
#disability #disabled #motabilityscheme #ukpolitics #motability
2/2
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www.msn.com/en-gb/money/...
#WarOnTheDisabled
#Motability
#DWP
#Disabled
MSN
Three DWP benefits face being scrapped in weeks as government issue warning. This won't help disabled in to work.. Restricting Motability will only force many disabled out of work as well as any thing else outside the home & make them housebound.
To view article your browser needs to be in desktop version
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/three-dwp-benefits-face-being-scrapped-in-weeks-as-government-issue-warning/ar-AA1Pc0zd
If you're wondering how 'seriously disabled' you need to be to qualify for the motability scheme here's the points system. You need to score at least 12 points on the mobility section - not an easy feat.
https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/personal-independence-payment-pip/pip-points-system
#tory #labour #disability #disabled #ukpolitics #PIP #Motability
Typical, always hitting the most vulnerable while the rich get tax breaks. Disgusting prioritization of profits over people.
Exactly! Vulnerable ppl shouldn't bear the burden of govtâs financial mess. It's unjust.
Govt screws disabled, raises taxes!
This govt moveâs brutalâcutting disability support while hiking taxes? Itâs just shifting costs to the most vulnerable. We gotta fight back, protect those who need help the most, no excuses.
Rachel Reeves, the UK Chancellor, has stated that she cannot leave welfare untouched during the current parliament, with significant reforms expected ahead of next month's budget. Her remarks come as the Treasury explores the possibility of reducing tax exemptions for the Motability scheme, which pr... [More info]
The government plans to completely eliminate all disability support programs, forcing disabled individuals to pay full taxes on their essential vehicles with no exemptions whatsoever.
