As final preparations get underway for the Special Olympics, Irish disabled motoring campaigners have criticised the restrictive access to the Disabled Drivers scheme, writes Ian Noctor
The scheme provides for tax claw-backs relating to the purchase and use of motor vehicles by special needs people. To be considered, the person with the disability must be in possession of a Primary Medical Certificate (PMC), the examination for which is carried out by the local health board. The Irish Wheelchair Association says eligibility criteria for PMCs excludes many stroke and MS sufferers and others with limited mobility.
Army Sgt Nicholas Aulsberry from Kilcullen, Co Kildare had a stroke last August. He now has severely restricted mobility in his left arm and leg: "A senior area medical officer called to assess me but said I didn't qualify. I need a car but I can't drive one with normal controls, so I'm now stuck in the house."
Sgt Aulsberry, who has over 40 years service in the Defence Forces, says assessment for the PMC should be decided differently. "It should be decided on whether or not you are able to drive an unadapted car, not whether you're missing or without the use of one or other limb." He's appealed the decision, but has been told it could be two years before it's decided. Meantime, Sgt Aulsberry must depend on others to get around.
The Irish Wheelchair Association's transport manager, Tony Maher, says the essence of the problem lies in the definition of who is eligible for the certificate, a definition which he says is archaic. The medical criteria to enter the scheme limits access to those who are severely and permanently disabled. According to the criteria laid down, applicants must be wholly or almost wholly without the use of one or both legs, or be severely restricted as to the movement of their lower limbs. They may also qualify if they are without one or both hands or arms or have the medical condition of dwarfism.
Stroke victims are not the only group unable to avail of the Disabled Drivers scheme. Motor Neurone Disease sufferers and people with MS may or may not qualify, depending on their condition on the day of assessment.
With both diseases, sufferers experience periods of remission where their mobility temporarily improves. In the case of MS, their conditions can vary from day to day. Carrie Cheung of MS Ireland says: "If on the day of the assessment by the local health board the sufferer is having a 'good' day and their mobility is better than normal, they may not qualify for the scheme."
The scheme itself is described as excellent by organisations working on behalf of those with disabilities. According to Tony Maher, the Irish scheme is among the best in the world and means those who qualify can save a third off the price of their car.
Under its terms Vehicle Registration Tax and VAT can be claimed back on vehicles especially constructed or adapted for use by disabled drivers or passengers, and excise duty paid on fuel is refundable. Those who qualify for the scheme are also exempt from Road Tax. Once the car has been owned by a disabled driver for two years it can be sold on at market rate and another car bought, availing again of the scheme. "Managed correctly, it is possible to change your car every two years and it won't cost a lot," says Maher. The scheme also applies to second-hand cars, where the amount repayable to the disabled driver is the residual tax contained in the value of the vehicle.
However, while the VAT and VRT are reclaimable on the purchase price of the car, only the VAT on adaptations is refundable. As the extensive adaptations required to vehicles for power-wheelchair users can push the price to over € 40,000, the Irish Wheelchair Association is calling for tax relief to also apply to adaptations on the vehicles.