Motability

Article summary

Motability is a scheme in the United Kingdom intended to enable disabled people, their families and their carers to lease a new car, scooter or powered wheelchair. It is open to recipients of certain disability benefit, who exchange their weekly payments for a leased vehicle through the scheme. Insurance, vehicle excise duty and breakdown cover are all included, and customers of the scheme are eligible for a new car every three years. Motability was founded in 1977 by Lord Sterling of Plaistow and the late Lord Goodman. It is a partnership between the charitable sector, the UK government, leading banks, and the motor and insurance industries, managed by a private company called Motability Operations Ltd, and overseen by the Motability Foundation charity. King Charles III became Chief Patron in 2024. It is the largest fleet operator in Europe. In 2024, the scheme accounted for around 1 in 5 new cars purchased in the UK, with 815,000 people on the scheme, up 15% on the previous year. More than 20 manufacturers currently offer cars through the scheme.

Key claims

1. date of birth: 1977 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
2. date of foundation: 1977 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
2. The record states that the date of birth is "1977". What evidence would count against this claim?
3. The record states that the date of foundation is "1977". What evidence would count against this claim?
4. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
5. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1377319997