Motability Scheme: how the car's cover works

If you lease a car through the Motability Scheme, the insurance is not something you buy separately. Insurance, breakdown cover, servicing and maintenance are all included in the price, and so are tyre and windscreen replacement¹. That single fact is why the scheme works differently from almost any other way of getting a car: there is no premium to compare, no renewal to shop around for, and no no-claims discount building up in your name.

What you get is a contract hire lease built around a qualifying disability benefit. Up to three named drivers can be covered, and the car can be used by friends, family or carers provided it is used for the benefit of the person leasing it³. There are firm age rules: only one driver under 21 is permitted, and that driver must live at the same address as the lessee³.

The rest of this page sets out what the lease covers, who can drive, what you still pay for, and what happens to the car and its cover if your benefit award changes.

What the Motability lease includes

The lease is a contract hire arrangement, and the inclusions are the heart of it. Insurance, breakdown cover, servicing and maintenance are all included in the price¹. Tyre and windscreen replacement are included too². Independent guidance for disabled drivers describes the same package: as part of a contract hire lease, insurance cover and free replacement tyres and windscreens are also provided when needed⁵.

That combination matters because it removes the costs that usually sit outside a car's sticker price. Road tax, insurance, MOT, fuel, parking, maintenance and replacement tyres are the running costs a private owner carries⁶. On the scheme, most of those sit with the lease rather than with you. For a child with the higher rate mobility component of Disability Living Allowance, a car can be leased using the mobility component with no payment for insurance, tax, breakdown cover, servicing or MOTs⁷.

The scheme is not only cars. It helps disabled people hire a car, a powered wheelchair or a scooter⁸. The insurance and breakdown arrangements described here apply to the car leases.

Named drivers: up to three, with rules for young drivers

Leasing a car through the scheme includes insurance for up to three named drivers². Independent guidance puts it the same way: the car can be used by up to three named drivers, whether that is friends, family or carers³. The condition attached is that the vehicle is used for the lessee's benefit³.

If the person leasing the car cannot drive, or prefers not to, other people in the home can be named on the scheme as long as they are eligible⁹. That is what makes the arrangement work for families where the disabled person is a passenger rather than the driver.

The age rules are where most questions arise. Only one driver under the age of 21 is permitted, and that driver must live at the same address as the person leasing the car³. The same rule appears in the Family Fund's mobility support guidance: only one named driver under the age of 21 is permitted, and this could be the applicant or another driver living at the same address¹⁰.

For learner drivers, disabled drivers can take lessons from the age of 16. Any other drivers with provisional licences must be over 21, and only one learner driver can be on the Certificate of Motor Insurance at any one time². The Motability Foundation also runs a Driving Lessons Grant for disabled people on the scheme, which requires a vehicle on the scheme or one arriving in the next four months, a provisional UK licence, a passed theory test and receipt of a means-tested benefit¹¹.

Insurance group limits for drivers aged 25 and under

Age affects not just who can drive but which car they can drive. All drivers aged 25 and under are only allowed to drive lower-powered cars falling into insurance group 16 or lower, or group 21 or lower for electric cars³. The scheme's own guidance states the electric vehicle limit as ABI Group 21 or lower and 140 brake horsepower or less¹².

The Family Fund applies a comparable principle to its mobility support: drivers under the age of 25 can only drive cars with a lower insurance group and brake horsepower¹⁰.

This is a restriction on the car, not a surcharge on a premium, because there is no premium to surcharge. It means a household with a young named driver has a narrower list of cars to choose from when ordering. If you are choosing a car partly around a young driver, the insurance group of the model is the figure that decides whether it is available to them.

For context on how these groups work in ordinary car insurance, see car groups 1 to 50. Outside the scheme, younger drivers generally pay more: it is possible to get classic car insurance under 25, but you will probably pay more than older drivers¹³.

Driving licence and conviction rules for anyone on the cover

Anyone with a full UK or EU licence can be a named driver on the scheme's vehicle insurance¹². That is a broad starting point, and the restrictions sit on top of it.

Serious driving endorsements, convictions or disqualifications in the past five years may disqualify someone from the scheme³. This is a scheme-level rule about who can be on the cover at all, not a matter of a higher premium.

Separately, ordinary insurance disclosure rules still apply to the policy behind the lease. If you or your named driver are banned from driving or receive a non-motoring conviction, you must tell your insurer immediately¹⁴. Failing to do so is the kind of thing that can affect cover later, which is why the timing matters: immediately, not at renewal.

What you still pay for: fuel, Advance Payments and extra mileage

The lease covers a great deal, but not everything. You will have to pay for the fuel you use, so it is worth calculating likely fuel costs before deciding which car to choose⁵.

If the car costs more than your allowance, you can pay an Advance Payment to make up the difference¹. This is a one-off top-up at the start, not a monthly charge, and it varies by car.

Beyond fuel and any Advance Payment, the ordinary running costs of a car are the ones to keep in mind: road tax, insurance, MOT, petrol, diesel or electricity, parking, an additional vehicle warranty, and maintenance such as repairs and replacement tyres⁶. On the scheme, most of those are inside the lease rather than outside it, which is the point of the arrangement.

One cost that sits invisibly inside any insurance price is Insurance Premium Tax, charged on insurance premiums and covering most general insurance including motor¹⁵. It is not a separate bill, but it is part of why insurance costs what it does. For how premiums are built up more generally, see how insurance premiums are worked out.

European breakdown cover and the 2026 admin fee

Breakdown cover within the UK is part of the lease¹. For European breakdown cover, the position changed for newer leases.

If your lease predates that, the position is different, so it is worth checking your own arrangement before planning a trip abroad. For how European breakdown cover works on ordinary policies, including what it typically pays for, see breakdown cover explained and does my car insurance cover me abroad?.

European breakdown cover on standard motor policies commonly includes replacement parts dispatch, extra accommodation expenses, a replacement driver, help after a vehicle break-in, returning your car to the UK and travel expenses¹⁶. On some insurers it is only available with comprehensive cover¹⁷. Most car insurers offer breakdown cover as an added extra rather than as standard¹⁸, which is one reason the scheme's inclusion of UK breakdown cover is unusual.

Adaptations: what is available and who pays

The scheme offers around 500 different vehicle adaptations to tailor a car to specific needs³. Because the car and its adaptations sit inside the scheme, you are not arranging modified car insurance separately. That is a meaningful difference: outside the scheme, modified car insurance allows you to modify your vehicle knowing that you and the modifications will be covered, and many insurers will insure modified cars as long as you disclose the details of the changes made¹⁹.

The Motability Foundation can grant-fund new adaptations during your lease if your needs change²⁰. There is also a separate grants programme covering cars and vehicle adaptations²¹.

Who can use the Motability Scheme and how to join

The scheme is open to people who receive a qualifying mobility allowance. The qualifying benefits are Personal Independence Payment enhanced rate mobility, Disability Living Allowance higher rate mobility, Scottish Adult DLA higher rate mobility, Adult Disability Payment enhanced rate mobility, Child Disability Payment higher rate mobility, War Pensioners' Mobility Supplement and Armed Forces Independence Payment²¹. The scheme also accepts the Enhanced Rate Mobility Component of PIP and War Pensioners' Mobility Supplement as qualifying awards⁶.

Parents of children aged three and above, and disabled people who do not drive, can join the scheme¹. The national programme is open to anyone who receives a qualifying mobility allowance, but families cannot claim until their child is three years old¹⁰. To claim the mobility component of DLA, a child must be at least three years old²³.

The practical steps are:

1. Check that you receive one of the qualifying benefits listed above²¹.
2. Choose a car, bearing in mind the insurance group limits if a driver aged 25 or under will be on the cover³.
3. Agree any Advance Payment if the car costs more than your allowance¹.
4. Name up to three drivers, subject to the age and conviction rules².
5. Arrange any adaptations you need, which the Foundation may grant-fund²⁰.

For related help, see benefits in the UK and money in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, since Adult Disability Payment and Child Disability Payment are the Scottish equivalents of PIP and DLA.

If your benefit award is reviewed or you leave the scheme

The lease is tied to the benefit. If you do not qualify for the PIP enhanced rate mobility component, for example when your award is reviewed or renewed, you may have to return the vehicle⁴. The same applies in Scotland: if you do not qualify for the ADP enhanced rate mobility component, for example when your award is reviewed or renewed, or you transfer from PIP, you may have to return your Motability vehicle²⁴.

There is support for people in that position. The Transitional Support grant may be available from the Motability Foundation for customers who leave the scheme following an unsuccessful DLA to PIP reassessment, where they lose their qualifying benefits and meet the grant criteria²⁵. Additional Transitional Support is available if you are a scheme customer who is unable to continue with your lease because of a reassessment by the Department for Work and Pensions and unable to meet the costs of a replacement vehicle or the adaptations you need²⁶.

If you need to talk to the scheme about your lease, the Motability phone number is 0300 456 4566⁴. You can also call them on 0300 456 4566 to discuss your circumstances²⁷. If you later need a record of your driving and claims history on the scheme, Direct Line Motability will send you a letter giving details of your claims history, which you can request online in the DLM insurance portal or by phone on 0300 037 3737²⁸.

Where to get free help

If money is tight alongside a lease, free and impartial debt advice is available from charities including StepChange. Their guidance on buying a car while on a debt management plan sets out how a car fits into a budget and what creditors expect⁶. For benefit questions, Turn2us and Contact provide free information for families⁴.

If a complaint about insurance on the scheme cannot be resolved, the Financial Ombudsman Service considers complaints about insurance, including disputes about cover and claims²⁹. For how complaints work generally, see complaining about an insurer and the Financial Ombudsman Service.