Even if you require a mobility scooter to get around town it doesn’t necessarily mean that this should hamper you if you wish to visit other places that your scooter wouldn’t normally reach. Some individuals used to enjoy day tripping to various parts of the countryside before they were required to use a wheelchair or a scooter and there’s nothing in this world that can stifle the human spirit of adventure, not even age, especially if you talk to a motorcycle enthusiast. This is where van scooter carriers come into play because they allow you to load up your mobile scooter without having to break it down and without any sort of physical work required whatsoever.
There are a few types of scooter carrier options, there are ramp carriers, tilt-a-rack carriers and lift platform carriers, each of them having their unique advantages and disadvantages.
The carriers that work on the ramp principle consist of a fixed platform that is linked to the van’s hitch at a fixed height from the ground. The ramp is hinged on this platform and it can be moved upwards or downwards, when it is lowered on the ground it allows for you to drive the scooter onto it and then on the platform. The clear advantage of this system is that it is very simple the disadvantage being that it is very external and will take a bit of flexibility to do it.
The tilt-a-rack carriers work on a similar principle with the ramp scooter carriers but in this case the platform on which you put the scooter isn’t fixed, it can be rotated around the axel and it can do double duty as the ramp when it is titled. The advantage of this system is that it is lighter than the previous option since it acts as both ramp and platform but on the other hand it can prove quite tricky to utilize exactly because of this reason as well. It is worth to mention that both these option require the user to have a certain degree of physical strength in order to be properly used.
The lift platform option is the one option that doesn’t require any physical strength in order to use. While it hitches to the van like the other do, the platform features an electrically powered lift which allows the platform to be lowered and raised automatically. All one has to do is to lower the platform, drive or gently push the scooter onto it, secure it and then lift it into place. The concept for these scooter lifts is borrowed from wheelchair lifts, it is worth to mention that since they’re built to withstand the weight of a mobility scooter they can easily be used as wheelchair carriers as well, ideal for electric wheelchairs that cannot be packed up. The advantage of this method is that it is by far the easiest and most convenient one to use but on the disadvantage side it is also the most expensive one to implement.
Ultimately the decision falls to you on which option to use, whether you like lifts or ramps it’s all up to you, but any of these van scooter carriers will allow you to take your mobility scooter with you on trips to the wider world outside.
