Life with a Mobility Scooter

“Are you buying the mobility scooter for health reasons?”

This is what I was asked by the supplier. I looked puzzled: he explained that there is no VAT, if you need a scooter for health reasons. I responded that I had severe arthritis in both knees, restricting mobility etc. No VAT. Do abled- bodied folk buy mobility scooters for fun? They are expensive even without VAT. Max speed of mine-4 mph. Not for sensation-seekers or street cred.

There are a wide range of mobility scooters on the market, and you need to choose wisely. In my area the county council have a facility to give advice and to let you try out various scooters. You can also hire a scooter for a day from Shop Mobility in the town.

I decided on a folding scooter, light enough for me to lift into the car but robust enough to ride over my lawn with longish grass and on garden paths. I found one, and it has been a great help.

Mobility scooters do not live well with pedestrians on busy pavements. You can’t manoeuvre a scooter as well as a walker can move about. Some scooter riders go too fast. Even 4 mph is fast on a crowded pedestrian area. I always give way to pedestrians, which they appreciate.

I cannot stand in queues in the bank or post office, and the mobility scooter helps there.

You soon realise that a mobility scooter has no brake. To stop you release the accelerator hand control. But it is where the brake would be on a bike. To stop in an emergency the instinct is to press on the hand control, as if it were a brake. You then shoot forward. Ouch.

Pavements have cambers sloping towards the road. This is a bit scary at first, as you feel that you are being pulled towards the road and its traffic. A worse problem is that of potholes and uneven surfaces on pavements.

The scooter has been great in my large garden. I can take tools and things with me, and, if I forget something, shoot back and get it. I have found ways of carrying bulky items. I even tow a trailer with my recycling boxes on it a bin day. At my age at last I have become a train driver.

My mobility scooter is not great in wet weather, like the first six weeks of this year. It has no rain protection, and you need to keep the seat and yourself dry.

I am due to have another knee replacement soon, and, if all goes well, in time I should have two good knees. I would not need the scooter then, unless for joyriding.

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