Frequently Asked Questions

No, no law states you must have mobility scooter insurance. Many people do opt to take out insurance to protect themselves against 3rd Party Claims (if you injure someone or damage someone’s property) and to protect against theft or accidental damage to their scooters, but it is not compulsory or a legal requirement.

There are two different types of Scooters, Class 2 Scooters that go up to 4mph and Class 3 Scooters that go between 4mph and 8mph. The Class 3 scooters can go on the road and have to be registered with the DVLA. You can find more information on the government website, www.gov.uk and by typing ‘invalid carriage’ into the search bar. (www.gov.uk/mobility-scooters-and-powered-wheelchairs-rules).

We’ve put together a handy blog on are mobility scooters allowed on the road with more info.

You do not need to take a test or have a driving license to use a mobility scooter.

Our policy states that “You must ensure that you or any friend using the scooter or wheelchair are capable of doing so safely” If you have been advised by a medical practitioner that you shouldn’t be using a mobility scooter then it could invalidate a claim. There are very few regulations around mobility scooter safety, but you can find some guidelines online on the government website, www.gov.uk and by typing ‘invalid carriage’ into the search bar. (www.gov.uk/mobility-scooters-and-powered-wheelchairs-rules). There is no legal eyesight requirement to drive mobility scooters or powered wheelchairs, but you should be able to read a car’s registration number from a distance of 12.3 metres (40 feet).

Yes, we can cover manual wheelchairs and powered attachments under one <a href=”https://www.bluebadgemobilityinsurance.co.uk/mobility-scooter-insurance/mobility-scooter-insurance-policy“>policy</a> as a Powered Wheelchair, as long as the powered wheels/attachments don’t go faster the 8mph, and as long as the combined value of the chair and the wheels/attachment doesn’t exceed £7,000 in value. The wheelchair will be covered for using both with and without the wheels/attachment. *(PLEASE NOTE – WE CANNOT INSURE THE BATEC ELECTRIC OR THE BATEC RAPID ATTACHMENTS DUE TO THEIR TOP SPEEDS)*

As long as the Golf Buggy complies with regulations of the Class 3 Scooters on the gov.uk website and as long as it is being used at a Mobility Aid we can cover it. It will not be covered for use whilst playing golf or whilst on the golf course. If you need cover for it being used as a Golf Buggy you will need specialist golf buggy insurance.

We no longer insure any type of Tandem Scooter.

We can insure rented scooters, but we only offer an annual policy, we don’t offer any short-term insurance, so you would need to purchase a policy for the year. Our prices start from £46 for the year for a scooter that is under £3,000 and we would need to know the make, model and value of the scooter in order to insure it for you.

That’s not a problem, we don’t need a serial number to insure your scooter. All we need is the Make and Model, Date you got the scooter (approximate Month/Year) and the Value of the scooter. We will take the serial number if you have one, but if you don’t it’s not a problem.

No, we are insuring the mobility scooter rather than the user, so we can only insure one piece of equipment per policy.

The scooter will be covered for anyone to whom the policy holder has given permission to use the scooter. If you have two scooters and you want them both insured you will need to take out two policies.

Our policy covers you for your 3rd Party (Public) Liability, so if, whilst using your scooter, you cause an accident that injures someone else or damages someone else’s property then we will look to cover your liability up to £2 million. However, if your scooter was to spontaneously combust and cause a fire, then this would not be covered under the insurance. It would either be covered under a home insurance or building insurance policy, or you would need to claim directly against the manufacturer of the scooter.

Yes, the policy will cover your scooter to be used by anyone who you give your permission to.

We can set a policy up for you on our Standard Cover for £46 which will cover you for £2 million public liability.

It’s entirely up to you, we can put the policy in your son/daughter’s name and put a note on the policy to say they’re under 18 and to discuss the policy with yourself, or alternatively, we can put the policy in your name, the equipment is covered for whoever you give your permission to use it. If you would like to have the policy in your name, we can put a note on the policy to say it’s your son/daughter who is actually using the mobility scooter/chair.

Yes, you can leave your electric / mobility scooter unattended for up to 1 hour. If it is left unattended for more than 1 hour it either needs to be; in a locked building, in a locked vehicle or chained to an immovable object with a padlock and chain.

Yes, while your mobility scooter is in the car it will be covered for theft and accidental damage.

Yes, the scooter policy includes up to 90 days cover outside the UK for public Liability and Accidental damage. We are not able to cover your Public Liability in North America and Canada. You will still be covered for theft and accidental damage in North America and Canada).

Our policy will cover you for theft of your scooter, but if it is left outside for more than 12 hours or overnight we are not able to cover it for damage.

Yes, we would look to cover any theft or accidental damage to a canopy or cover for your scooter, but only if the scooter is damaged or stolen at the same time. You need to state that you have a canopy when taking out the mobility scooter insurance.

There is nothing in our policy that states you must have your scooter serviced. It just states that “You must maintain your scooter or wheelchair in good condition and take all precautions to prevent accidents, injury, loss or damage. You must use and maintain your scooter or wheelchair according to the manufacturer’s instructions”.

Our Standard Insurance covers Theft and Accidental Damage, it doesn’t cover if your scooter just stops working e.g. caused by a flat battery.

We let our customers choose any reputable Mobility Shop or Engineer to carry out repairs to their scooters. We don’t have a list of repairers, but if you don’t know of anyone to do the repairs, we can look online and find two or three phone numbers of local repairers.

There is a section on the policy for personal injury, which covers up to £3,000 but there are only 3 occasions on which we can payout which are; Death, Loss of one of more limbs, or permanent blindness in one or both eyes. Broken bones or other injuries are not covered in our personal accident section.

We offer a New for Old Replacement, up until the scooter is 2 years old. Once the scooter is over 2 years old, we would then do a like for like replacement, so in the event that your scooter was stolen or written off, our claims team would look to replace your scooter with one of a similar age, make and model to the one you currently have

There is 90 days cover outside the UK, Public Liability is not covered in North America or Canada- this includes airport handling

Class 3 Mobility Scooter must legally be registered with the DVLA which is free to do, but you do not need to display a number plate.

Yes, we can insure your wheelchair, but it wouldn’t be covered whilst you are actually playing the sport. You would be covered for your Public Liability and Theft and Accidental damage, but if the chair was damaged or if there was a liability claim as a result of the sporting activity then that wouldn’t be covered.

Yes, we can provide cover for wheelchairs provided by the NHS. If you need cover for theft and accidental damage then we will need to know the approximate value of the wheelchair. If you can contact the wheelchair service and ask them how much the chair is worth, or alternatively you can look online and see how much the make and model are being sold for.

You can call the Recovery Service on 01730 233 101 and press option 3. This will take you straight through to the 24/7 Helpline at National Breakdown. You should receive a sticker with your documents that will have this phone number on it.

The recovery team will aim to get to your location within 1 hour, but as a mobility user you do get their top priority on their call outs.

The recovery team operate throughout the whole of the UK. They can take you anywhere you’d like to go within a 20 mile radius of where you’ve broken down. In the event that you needed to go further than 20 miles, they can do this, but there would be an additional charge per mile that you would need to pay directly to National Breakdown, as it would not be included in your breakdown cover.

Yes in our breakdown cover, the recovery is limited to 4 call-outs per year.

Yes, but it is at the discretion of the driver so you will need to advise National Breakdown that you will need transport for a pet too.

No, we provide you with National Breakdown, who have a 24/7 helpline for you to use, however, if you wish to use an alternative company you may do so, but you would need to pay the alternative company for their services and then claim the money back from us. (Maximum of £100 per claim).

If you are unable to travel in the recovery vehicle then a taxi can be arranged for you. If you are not easily able to transfer from your scooter/wheelchair into a taxi, then a wheelchair-accessible vehicle can be arranged for you, but you would need to let the recovery team know this when you call to request assistance.

No, the motor scooter recovery service is just a rescue service to get you home in the event that your scooter stops working, they don’t carry out any repairs to you scooter.

No, the recovery service should be able to locate your details on their system using your postcode.

At present we do not have a direct debit facility available so we would take the full payment at the start of the policy with either a debit or credit card.

No, there are no charges for paying with a debit or credit card.

We can accept postal orders which you can get from the Post Office (the post office do charge a 12.5% fee for postal orders) or someone else can pay for the policy on your behalf, but we will need to speak to the card holder at the time of the sale to confirm they are happy for us to process the payment.

You can cancel your policy at any time, however, refunds are only applied within the first 14 days of the policy start date.

Personal Care Assistant Insurance is not mandatory, however, you may wish to invest in carers insurance as you will be protected in the event of an error or omission at work. Having public liability insurance for carers will give both you and your clients peace of mind, knowing there is protection in place

No you must be living in the UK in order to take out our PA or Carers insurance.

As this is a policy for an individual, we can only have the policy in your name, we’re not currently able to offer a public liability insurance policy in the name of a business/company.

Please call us to discuss the specifics of your carers insurance needs.

We don’t need to see proof of training/qualifications to set up the policy, however, in the event of a claim, our claims team may request this information.

There aren’t any specific qualifications you need to take out the carers insurance, but in the event of a claim you must be able to demonstrate that you have either been trained or have qualifications for the particular care activities that you carry out.

We only offer the policy on an annual basis, unfortunately, we don’t offer any short term public liability insurance.

You can, however, the policy would be the carer’s policy in their name, and we would need to speak to them to arrange the cover as there are 5 statements they need to confirm. If you want to pay for the policy then that is up to you, but it would be the carer’s policy and all correspondence would be sent directly to them.

The policy covers you for carrying out ‘Care Activities’ The policy defines care activities as: provision of medical care including preparation and administration of prescribed medicines carrying out domestic activities support provided by you to help the care recipient carry out their day to day activities.

The policy will only cover you for the care activities described in the policy. If, in addition to the care activities, you also carry out activities that would normally be done by a qualified professional and you want to be covered then you would need to take out the relevant specialist insurance.

Our policy does exclude ‘dangerous sports and past times’ and although sailing/kayaking etc. may not be a dangerous sport, our underwriters have confirmed we would not be able to cover sailing/kayaking etc. as they do not class it as a ‘day to day‘ activity.

The policy doesn’t specify where the care activities are carried out, so we would look to cover you if you carry out care activities in your own home. However, if the person you are providing care for was to injure themselves whilst in your home as a result of a fault in your home (e.g. tripped on loose carpet and fell) this would not be covered.

The policy will cover you for any accidental damage, so for example if you were hoovering and knocked over an expensive ornament and smashed it, we would look to cover the cost of replacing the ornament. However, the public liability insurance does not cover damage to any property ‘in your control’ so for example if the hoover itself was damaged whilst you were using it, then this would not be covered.

No, the policy does not cover you if the person you are caring for is injured in a car that you are driving. You would need to contact your car insurance provider to make sure you have the correct insurance cover. If you were helping someone into the car and they slipped and fell then we would look to cover that type of situation, but you would not be covered for any injury caused whilst driving.

No, the policy does not provide you with cover for driving someone’s car. You need to contact your car insurance provider to check if you are covered for driving other people’s cars.

There isn’t anything in the policy that specifies the number of clients you are working for/looking after. So this policy will cover you for looking after multiple clients.

We would look to cover this under the Public Liability insurance for carers cover and as such we would look to defend a claim under this and the costs would be met by the policy. Our Claims team would appoint or deal with any claim.

The policy includes up to 90 days cover outside the UK, however, the person you are caring for must be a UK resident. If the person you are caring for abroad does not normally reside in the UK then you would not be covered.

Yes, our policy includes cover for personal accident up to £10,000. We have specifically listed the injuries covered in the policy and the amount payable for example; Broken hand, foot or ankle: £500.

No, our policy does not cover for loss of earnings. If you suffer from one of the injuries listed in the policy whilst carrying out your care activities then we will look to pay out the monetary amount listed in the policy for that specific injury.

Free Spirit are a specialist travel insurance company that offer travel insurance for individuals of all ages and a range of medical conditions. We have partnered with them to offer our customers excellent travel insurance.