Improving Adaptation Equipment Quality Standards

This paper discusses the current UK situation with adaptations fitted to vehicles for the use of a person with disabilities. Many of the products are of poor design, inferior quality, dated and in some cases all of these. In the absence of legislation that relates directly to this type of product, a British Government supported charitable organisation ‘Motability’, has implemented a process of accreditation for services and products on which it grants charitable and public monies. The paper will discuss how successful this has been and how this process has now been further strengthened. It also discusses this within the European context and the work being done in this area by an EU sponsored research group project ‘QUAVADIS’.