Driving Mobility training for retailers
Buying a mobility scooter? Why a trained retailer makes all the difference
A mobility scooter or powered wheelchair can open up daily life again – trips to the shops, visits to friends, time outdoors. But choosing the wrong model, or setting off without any guidance on how to drive it safely, can put both the user and other people at risk.
That is why the charity Driving Mobility runs a free training scheme for mobility retailers, supported by the Department for Transport. Three years after its launch, the scheme is still running, and there is now a published list of retailers who have completed it – so you can check before you buy.
What is the PWMS Retailer Training Scheme?
The Powered Wheelchair and Mobility Scooter (PWMS) Retailer Training Scheme teaches retailers how to assess a customer’s needs and abilities properly, so they can recommend a product that person can control safely, and give clear advice on driving it.
Until the scheme arrived in 2023, there was no consistent national approach to assessing or training new scooter and powerchair users. Some people ended up with vehicles that were too fast, too large or too difficult for them to handle – a problem that becomes more pressing as the number of mobility vehicles on UK pavements and roads keeps growing.
The training is delivered by clinicians from Driving Mobility’s network of accredited assessment centres – the same centres that carry out fitness-to-drive and mobility equipment assessments for people referred by the DVLA, NHS, Motability and the police.
What does the training involve?
Retail staff complete two online modules, which they can do at work or at home, and then attend a half-day practical session at their nearest Driving Mobility centre. The practical day combines desk-based work with hands-on sessions using different types of scooter.
Topics include assessing a customer’s needs, eyesight checks, advice on insurance, and the rules on where and how scooters and powered wheelchairs can legally be used.
Retailers who complete the course receive a certificate and a window sticker, so customers can see at a glance that the business has had clinically-led training accredited by Driving Mobility and the Department for Transport.
Leanne Grose, Business Development Manager at Cornwall Mobility, which hosted the very first training day, said:
“All the attendees indicated that they would be making some adjustments to their assessment processes. These changes included better eyesight checks, more in-depth recommendations on insurance and greater advice regarding the legal use of scooters.”
How to find a trained retailer near you
Driving Mobility publishes a list of retailers who have completed the scheme, organised by region, covering England, Scotland and Wales. More than 100 retailer premises are listed, from independent mobility shops to Shopmobility schemes.
See the list of PWMS trained retailers on the Driving Mobility website (external link will open in a new browser tab or window)
If your usual retailer isn’t on the list, it is worth asking whether their staff have done the training – and pointing them towards it, since it costs them nothing.
Disability campaigner Helen Dolphin MBE explained why this matters:
“For a disabled person knowing you are going to a retailer who is going to help you choose and buy a product which is most suitable for you is so important. There have been too many accidents where disabled people are using equipment that is totally unsuitable.”
Mobility scooter rules at a glance
Class 2 and class 3
Class 2 scooters and powered wheelchairs have a top speed of 4mph and are for pavements and pedestrian areas. Class 3 models can reach 8mph and can also be driven on the road, but must be limited to 4mph on pavements.
Registration and insurance
Class 3 vehicles must be registered with the DVLA – the dealer will usually do this for you when you buy new. There is no vehicle tax to pay. Insurance isn’t a legal requirement for class 2 or class 3 vehicles, but it is strongly recommended.
Eyesight
You should be able to read a car number plate from 12.3 metres (40 feet). You can be prosecuted if you have an accident because of poor eyesight.
Where you can’t go
Scooters and powered wheelchairs can use cycle tracks that are separated from the road, but not cycle lanes painted on the road. Class 3 vehicles must never be driven on motorways. Full details are in the GOV.UK guide to using mobility scooters and powered wheelchairs (external link will open in a new browser tab or window).
Questions to ask before you buy
A good retailer will be happy to answer these, and will ask you plenty of questions in return:
• Have your staff completed the Driving Mobility PWMS training?
• Is this a class 2 or class 3 model, and is that right for where I want to go?
• Can I try it out, including on a kerb, a slope and a tight turn?
• Will you check that I can see, reach and operate the controls comfortably?
• Will it fit in my home, my car boot or on the bus, and where will I charge and store it?
• Will you register it with the DVLA for me (if it’s class 3), and what insurance do you recommend?
• What training or handover will I get before I take it out on my own?
• What servicing, repairs and breakdown support do you offer?
If you are unsure what kind of vehicle would suit you, your nearest Driving Mobility centre can carry out an independent wheelchair and scooter assessment (external link will open in a new browser tab or window), with no product to sell you.
How the scheme started
The first training day took place in 2023 at Cornwall Mobility, a Driving Mobility accredited centre in Truro. The scheme was then formally launched at the House of Lords in July 2023, with speeches from Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson, the Department for Transport and Driving Mobility CEO Edward Trewhella. Pictured at the launch are Edward Trewhella, Alicia Trewhella and Isaac Harvey MBE.
Since then, training sessions have been held at Driving Mobility centres across the country, from Solihull and Welwyn Garden City to Thetford, Exeter and Leeds, and new dates continue to be added through 2026.
Are you a mobility retailer?
The training is free to all retailers and hirers of mobility scooters and powered wheelchairs, thanks to Department for Transport funding. Only a short online course and a half-day practical session are needed, and completing it gives your customers a clear, independent sign that you take their safety seriously.
To sign up, call Driving Mobility on 0800 559 3636 or email info@drivingmobility.org.uk. You can also book online on the Driving Mobility website (external link will open in a new browser tab or window)
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Further reading and resources
The Motability scheme – including scooters and powered wheelchairs
Find your nearest Driving Mobility centre (external link will open in a new browser tab or window)
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2 Replies to “Driving Mobility training for retailers”
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Where I live I have noticed that a lot of able bodied people are buying mobility scooters and use them for going shopping on and other short journeys instead of using their cars as the mobility scooter is cheaper to run, save people finding or paying for parking and avoid traffic jams for shorter journeys, is it right that able bodied people can buy and use mobility scooters or are there restrictions on who can buy them but the rules are not enforced .
Hello Russell
It is actually illegal for a non-disabled person to use a mobility scooter in public spaces.
The exceptions are:
• Demonstrating the scooter to a prospective buyer
• Transporting it to or from a repair centre
• Providing formal training to a user
Best wishes,
Frances