The price of mobility scooters could increase by as much as £250 as a result of EU changes to customs regulations.

Under the new rules, scooters are now classified as ‘motor vehicles for the transport of persons’ rather than ‘carriages for disabled persons’ meaning that they attract an import duty of 10%.

The trade body which represents the majority of scooter manufacturers and importers in the UK also says that HMRC is issuing demands for three years’ back payment of duty, as the regulations came into force six years ago.

Ray Hodgkinson, the director general of the British Healthcare Trades Association (BHTA) said: “This position needs to be reviewed urgently.  A price increase of over £250 will cause hardship to many consumers, and because some of our members will be unable to pay the back demands (totalling £10m) they may go out of business, so reducing choice of product.”

Gordon Lishman, Director General of Age Concern, said placing mobility scooters in the same class as leisure vehicles was “ludicrous”.

“If scooters are to be made affordable for those who need them, the UKGovernment must put pressure on the EU to totally rethink this policy.”

For information about scooters and accessories contact www.nmsdirect.co.uk

Q:

What counts as a disability according to the law ?

A:

The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) protects disabled people. The Act sets out the circumstances in which a person is “disabled”. It says you are disabled if you have:

•  a mental or physical impairment 
•  this has an adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities 
•  the adverse effect is substantial 
•  the adverse effect is long-term (meaning it has lasted for 12 months, or is likely to last for more than 12 months or for the rest of your life).

There are some special provisions, for example:

• If your impairment has substantially affected your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities, but doesn’t any more, it will still be counted as having that effect if it is likely to do so again
• if you have a progressive condition, and it will substantially affect your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities in the future, you will be regarded as having an impairment which has a substantial adverse effect from the moment the condition has some effect on your ability to carry out normal day to day activities.
• if you have  been diagnosed as having cancer, HIV infection or multiple sclerosis you will automatically be considered as ‘disabled’. 
• if you are registered as blind or partially sighted or certified as blind or partially sighted by a consultant ophthalmologist, you willl automatically be considered as “disabled”. 
• people who have had a disability in the past but are no longer disabled are covered by certain parts of the DDA.

What are “normal day-to-day activities”?
At least one of these areas must be substantially affected:

• mobility
• manual dexterity
• physical co-ordination
• continence
• ability to lift, carry or move everyday objects
• speech, hearing or eyesight
• memory or ability to concentrate, learn or understand
• understanding of the risk of physical danger.

It’s really important to think about the effect of your impairment without treatment.  The Act says that any treatment or correction should not be taken into account, including medical treatment or the use of a prosthesis or other aid (for example, a hearing aid). The only things which are taken into account are glasses or contact lenses.  The important thing is to work out exactly how your impairment affects you.  Remember to concentrate on what you can’t do, or find difficult, rather than what you can do.  For example, if, as a result of a hearing impairment, you experience difficulty hearing someone talking at a sound level which is normal for everyday conversations in a moderately noisy place, it would be reasonable to regard this as having a substantial adverse effect.  Being unable to hold a conversation in a very noisy place such as a factory floor would not.  If your impairment affects your mobility, being unable to travel a short journey as a passenger in a vehicle would reasonably be regarded as having a substantial adverse effect.  So would only being able to walk slowly or with unsteady or jerky movements.  But experiencing some minor discomfort as a result of walking without help for about 1.5 kilometres or a mile would not.
What does not count as a disability?
Certain conditions are not considered impairments under the DDA:

• tendency to steal, set fires, and physical or sexual abuse of others
• exhibitionism and voyeurism
• hayfever, if it doesn’t aggravate the effects of an existing condition
• addiction to or a dependency on alcohol, nicotine or any other substance, other than the substance being medically prescribed.

Additionally, disfigurements consisting of a tattoo or non-medical body piercing are treated as not having a substantial adverse effect on ability to carry out normal day to day activities.

www.nmsdirect.co.uk