The Motability Beemer
William Yarwood has a topical Critic piece on how the Motability scheme is widely abused.
The Motability scheme is taking the British taxpayer for a ride
A noble scheme is being used excessively and sometimes opportunistically
It all started so nobly. The Motability scheme was set up to help people with serious mobility impairments — those who genuinely couldn’t get around without a vehicle. A simple, compassionate concept: if your disability makes life harder, the state can step in to keep you mobile and independent. For almost 50 years, what made it remarkable was precisely how unremarkable it was.
But as the old saying goes, the road to hell is paved with good intentions — or in this case, the road to bankruptcy is full of taxpayer-subsidised BMWs.
Because what was once a targeted support scheme for the genuinely disabled has ballooned into something unrecognisable. Last year alone, a record 815,000 people made use of the scheme — that’s 170,000 more than the year before. Thanks to data crunched by the TaxPayers’ Alliance, we now know what’s fuelling it.
The whole piece is well worth reading as yet another example of political and cultural decline.
What’s clear is that Motability is no longer a lifeline for the most vulnerable. It’s becoming a mainstream perk — one that taxpayers are expected to fund without question.
While Motability Operations earns revenue from the sale of used cars, much of its funding also flows from the PIP system — and that means it’s funded, to a large extent, by taxpayers. It benefits from exemptions to vehicle excise duty, insurance premium tax and VAT, so while your council tax goes up, NHS waits lengthen, and the roads resemble the lunar surface, someone else is cruising around in a brand-new car courtesy of the state.
Source: https://akhaart.blogspot.com/2025/03/the-motability-beemer.html
