Wheelchair users may need insurance

Motorised wheelchair users may have to fork out for insurance
because of a rise in the number of accidents involving the
vehicles.

The proposal, which is to be considered by the Department of
Transport, has attracted criticism from the Disability Rights
Commission.

A spokesperson for the DRC said that the plan prompted questions
about the government’s priorities concerning disabled people.

Introducing third-party insurance for motorised wheelchairs was an
example of an increasingly litigious society and could impair the
mobility of disabled people who could not afford to pay, he said.