§ Mr. Thomas Coxasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the present car maintenance allowance payable to a disabled person; and when this was last increased.
§ Mr. PrenticeFirst, the Department pays an allowance to any disabled person who has the use of a car from the Department. This is a contribution towards the cost of its maintenance, for which the user is otherwise responsible. This allowance varies between £50 and £150 a year according to the age of the vehicle.
An eligible person who elects to use his own vehicle instead of one from the Department is paid either £100 a year if he was a beneficiary under the former vehicle scheme, which was replaced by mobility allowance in January 1976, or £250 if he is a beneficiary under the war pensioner's vehicle scheme. The £100 allowance has not been increased since its introduction in 1972, but all who receive it are eligible to switch at any time to mobility allowance. All the other allowances were increased in July 1978. All are tax free.