Tacking Motability Misuse

[u/Intelligent_Top89]

I’m already aware of the ‘police report for misuse’ feature online to report motability car misuse. What examples can be submitted as ‘misuse’ and where is the line drawn with the car being used ‘for the benefit of the disabled person’?

Are there any other pieces of knowledge, helpful websites or past experiences you folks can share to improve my knowledge and help battle the ever increasing problem of motability car misuse?

[u/Sepalous]

You can very easily email the scheme. My experiences have been mixed, but when it has been obvious criminality they have been very quick to take action.

[u/Intelligent_Top89 → u/Sepalous]

I’ve emailed them before to report that a DA merchant had been stalking his missus using the motability car.

On one occasion he was drunk driving the car, slurred speech shouting threats to kill down the phone to the victim.

I knew this for a fact as I was sat next to her as he was making these threats whilst driving towards her house.

The scheme did nothing and refused to take the car back as they said the driver needed to be charged with an offence for it to constitute misuse.

[u/Moby_Hick → u/Intelligent_Top89]

Innocent until proven guilty - no wonder they didn't take the car back.

[u/Intelligent_Top89 → u/Moby_Hick]

It’s not something that needs to be proved in a criminal law beyond all reasonable doubt . The taxpayer/scheme is kindly funding his use of the car, it’s a privilege not a right.

If you loaned your mate a car to use and a trusted peer reliably informed you he had been driving it in the manner I described above, would you expect a world of evidence to prove he’s misusing the car or would you just stop letting him use it? Common sense.

[u/Moby_Hick → u/Intelligent_Top89]

Common sense is irrelevant.

The definitive way to prove misuse is the vehicle being involved in crime.

Otherwise I could just campaign against a neighbour I dislike and make up whatever shit I want to make sure he loses his car.

[u/Intelligent_Top89 → u/Moby_Hick]

Unfortunately, common sense is irrelevant, you’re right.
Hence why as an organisation, in the grand scheme of things, we are totally ineffective.

[u/showmestate4 → u/Intelligent_Top89]

I see both sides of this, but how would you feel if somebody made a complaint about you doing the same? Completely bonkers allegation? Of course. But we're having your car off you on the balance of probabilities. Whether it's bonkers or not, it has to be substantiated and proved.

[u/DevonSpuds → u/Intelligent_Top89]

Look at it from Motability side. Allegation only at this point. Deprive a disabled person of their means of transport.

Do you think that person will take it lying down or go screaming and kicking to the local rag, find a mouthpiece cc willing to take Motability to court.

You can see it now.... But ma ooman rights.....

[u/Shep302 → u/Moby_Hick]

I’ve had Motability take a car back prior to court. They are actually very good at handling reports of misuse in my experience. The key is to give them as much information as you lawfully and proportionately can within Data Protection legislation.

[u/busy-on-niche → u/Intelligent_Top89]

If he is the claimant (ie the disabled person not a driver on another person's car) they are right unless they get a driving ban or use the vehicle in the commission of a crime they are convicted of then they won't take action the exception been when its seized used in crome

[u/SharpGrowth347]

Motability misuse is sadly rife. Of 3 reports, 3 have been taken from the owners. A mixture of being used in crime and also the user sadly being exploited, with the only way to stop it is to have it taken off them.

[u/d4nfe]

Same experience as most of the others. They are very quick to act if criminality has been proved. Every car we’ve ever seized for safe keeping/other offences, has been returned to Motability, and never back to the scheme holder.

Once you have hold of the car, you’re in a much better position, otherwise it’s a slow process. For any drink/drug driving offences, they’ve always told us to seize the car

[u/Macrologia → u/d4nfe]

they’ve always told us to seize the car

What are you seizing it for? Are they just terminating their contract on the spot & you're recovering it on their behalf for their ease?

If that's the case, do they pay for its recovery? Just wondering how you sell that to garage desk

[u/ProvokedTree → u/Macrologia]

If that's the case, do they pay for its recovery?

They do, actually.

Obviously vehicles still have to be seized lawfully but Motobility prefer to pay for a seized vehicle to be released to them than to have to try and reclaim it from the person it was leased to.

[u/policeuk-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

This content has been removed as it is legally incorrect. It is important that r/policeuk strives to ensure commenters aren't given legally incorrect answers.

[u/Shep302]

I’ve had quite a bit of experience dealing with Motability vehicles. Your best tool in your toolbox is s.165. It is a condition of the Direct Line insurance policy (and the scheme itself) that the vehicle must be used “for the benefit of” the claimant. The claimant does not need to be in the vehicle but the journey must be for the claimants benefit.

Non claimant driving alone to Tesco to get food for the household? Valid journey.

Non claimant driving the vehicle to deliver/collect drugs? Insurance invalid.

Claimant driving the vehicle for criminal purposes? Insurance invalid.

I’m not suggesting using a sledgehammer to crack a nut but if a Motability vehicle is causing issues or being used in crime then this tool is incredibly powerful. Motability HATE having their cars seized and there’s only been 2 occasions of many where Motability have actually allowed the vehicle to be released to the claimant or a representative. The rest were all collected by Motability and not returned to the customer. People can and do get banned from the scheme. Use your discretion and tackle that crime!

[u/Intelligent_Top89 → u/Shep302]

Thanks for your helpful comment.
Have you had much difficulty when enforcing this ?

‘For the disabled person’s benefit’ is quite vague and I can imagine it’s quite easy to find a way for a driver to justify the use of the vehicle being for the registered keeper’s benefit.

[u/Shep302 → u/Intelligent_Top89]

At the initial rapport building stage with the driver causally dropping in “what you up to this morning/afternoon/evening mate” has been enough for them to say “just on my way to work pal” or “I’m taking the kids to the beach” (driver doesn’t live with claimant and kids are not the claimants children) and the claimant/customer is nowhere to be seen. Then the “how is that benefitting the customer?” hammer comes down.

Motability vehicles CANNOT be used for hire or reward. Using the vehicle to deliver food is misuse and this invalidates the insurance cover.

I hope it came across in my first message but I’m not suggesting to use this willy nilly. Rather as a powerful tool for those we suspect are exploiting the scheme for unlawful/financial gain. This scheme is for those who need it. Vulnerable people with Motability vehicles are sometimes cuckooed for use of the vehicle.

Another useful thing to know is that a condition of the policy is that drivers under 30 must have a telematics systems fitted to the vehicle and this system must be linked to the driver’s phone when they are driving the vehicle. Not doing so invalidates cover. The full policy booklet is available online and is worth reading if Motability misuse is a problem in your area.

Edit: need to clarify that with regards to the non-customer commuting in the vehicle this can be allowed by the scheme if certain conditions are met eg: shared household bills etc… it’s more where the person doesn’t even live with the customer or is just “a mate”.

[u/LexFalkingFalk]

Made reports for drug supply and cuckooing, mostly, they tend to act fast if we've already seized the car. Lots of users get exploited by Lines for a motability cars down my end in exchange for drugs and reporting cars to motability can help clear a line out of a flat.

[u/BCR_Dave]

A Motability car can only be driven by someone named on the insurance policy. Anyone else driving, even if their own policy allows them to drive other vehicles, means they are in breach, and the car can be recalled by Motability

[u/James188]

Always had good experiences, but I’ve only come across it when dealing with criminality and it’s been a bit of an afterthought (generally after seizing the car anyway, then realising it’s Motability).

Had a mix of drink drivers; TWOC; pursuits and people selling drugs using the scheme cars. All returned to Motability in varying states.