You want me to do what?!

[EvilEmpryss]

This is the way it should be. I personally don't understand why stores have these to begin with as you would think someone who has a need for one would actually have their own to begin with. Of course, that is not considering some people take a bus and most buses I've seen don't have an elevator for scooters (unless this has changed over the past decade I've been out of the city). In most cases that I've seen, the people using them don't really need them.

First, scooters are expensive and hard to justify to your insurance company. I could not afford to get one and I use one regularly with my shopping. As a disabled vet with a 100% disability rating I have the VA to rely on for my medical equipment, but the VA says I don't qualify for a powered scooter. It's no matter that I sometimes need to use a cart to the point where if they don't have one available I know that I am making the choice to do my shopping walking and then I will be unable to do anything else for the rest of the day due to the pain I'll be in, I'm not eligible and would have to pay out-of-pocket for one.

Second, if you have one, you must also have a means of getting it to and from the store. Until two weeks ago I didn't have a car with a tow hitch that would be able to hold the carrier to lug one around. If you don't get insurance to pay for it, it's one more expense that some people just don't have.

Third, sometimes people have a disability that makes it very difficult to get one loaded and unloaded from the vehicle without assistance. Walking into the store and using one of the worn out ones they offer is much easier.

Fourth, and this is possibly the most important point: Many disabilities are not obvious. You cannot see heart disease or lung cancer or any of a myriad of other disorders that might cause someone to need to use a cart. I am not obese, under forty, and do not look disabled. I very often get stared/glared at when using the power buggies. I almost feel obligated to carry my cane prominently so people won't harass me while I'm shopping. Like having my service dog with me, I should not have to justify to anyone why I need the scooter, but people who are not disabled and don't know me feel they have the right to judge me using one.

People should do the more reasonable, more compassionate thing and give others the benefit of the doubt. Yes, there are douche bags who will abuse the privilege, but don't lump everyone in with them unless you know for a fact that they are douches.

[Racket_Man]

First, scooters are expensive and hard to justify to your insurance company. I could not afford to get one and I use one regularly with my shopping. .

When I was still married to my now Ex, she got one in 1998 because of her disabilities. A new lower end Rascal Scooter 3 wheel with big assed batteries was around $8000 at that time. We had to get a bank loan in order to purchase it. The thing was built like a tank (and almost as heavy) and took a lot of abuse, but it did distance runs just fine on a full charge and could be taken apart in pieces and fit in a mid-sized car trunk.

The models today are a lot lighter and the batteries are smaller a better BUT the cost is still pretty hefty.