Motability is a charity in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
. It oversees Motability Operations Ltd, which runs the Motability Scheme intended to enable
disabled
Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, s ...
people, their families and their carers to lease a new car, scooter or powered wheelchair, using their
disability benefit
Disability benefits are funds provided from public or private sources to a person who is ill or who has a disability.
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom disability benefits are covered by Department for Work and Pensions. There are numerous ben ...
. Currently, the scheme has more than 650,000 customers.
Motability was founded in 1977 by
Lord Sterling of Plaistow and the late
Lord Goodman and the Motability Scheme was launched at
Earl's Court,
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, on 25 July 1978. It was initially targeted at motorists aged 16–19 years, with some 220 applications being processed at the beginning of the scheme.
It is a partnership between the charitable sector,
the UK government, leading banks, and the motor and insurance industries. Since 1978 over three million cars, scooters and powered wheelchairs have been provided to help disabled people with their mobility needs.
Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...
had been the Chief Patron of Motability since its foundation.
History and beginnings
By the mid-1970s over 40% of households in the country owned a car but disabled people were underrepresented. Only those who could drive themselves received any government help with transport, usually in the form of a
blue trike which was unable to take passengers.
The Mobility Allowance – now called the mobility component of PIP, formerly