Do I Got A Deal for You?

Wheelchair salesmen are generally a bit sleazy. Think car salesmen, but with less competition and a more desperate customer base. Many motorized wheelchairs cost more than $20K big ones, often paid in full upfront by public or private insurance plans. That's quite a hefty commission for one lucky smooth-talker. And oh, can they be smooth...

When I was in high school, considering buying a new wheelchair, a Permobil dealer happened to be travelling through town. He told us how the Swedish company had created a wheelchair that could elevate you, stand you up, and even transfer you to the ground. All of this was certainly intriguing, but then he put in the video. My entire family sat eagerly on the couch waiting for the revolutionary chair to wow us on the television. The video faded in...

It was a gang of suburban white children/preteens with their hats on sideways, rapping about how cool the Permobil was, while rocking out in their wheelchairs.

"I got my wheels. They Swaang. Like boom shacka boom shacka boom boom. It's not. Over yet. Till the fat. Lady sings, I got my wheels..."

My brother, sister and I were rolling. To this day, we still break out into the Permobil rap on a regular basis. I looked for that video, hoping I could post a copy, but apparently, Permobil has modernized its ad campaigns. Its current promo is actually quite compelling. I almost bought one.


Though I'm quite content with Quickie, I am strongly considering doing yoga and/or going to a beach now.

As slick as they are, it makes sense that the wheelchair salesman does not tell you one important detail. He doesn't tell you that when you commit to buying a chair from a dealer, you are buying not only a wheelchair, but an exclusive contract with that dealer/service provider to use only that company to repair the chair.

For example, let's say--hypothetically of course--that I bought a new wheelchair from a salesman who worked at a wheelchair dealership. I may have been somewhat skeptical about the company's practices as a whole, but I knew that the machine they were selling me was what I wanted and the manufacturer was well respected, so I went ahead and bought it. Over the next five to seven years, I could expect to have various problems and to need various routine repairs. Still being somewhat unimpressed by the dealer's business practices, I then decide to look for another repair shop. Guess what I would find.

The vast majority of wheelchair repair shops only repair chairs that they've sold. I've called every wheelchair company in the DC metro area to no avail. I've even moved across the country, needed wheelchair repairs, and been told that nobody would service my chair unless they had sold it to me. I called every wheelchair dealership in the New York City area to find a repair shop and was turned down by every single company because they did not sell me the chair. Even after I explained that I bought the chair in another state hundreds of miles away, nobody would help me.

As far as I can gather, this has nothing to do with insurance, payment, or warranty issues. My insurance works with many of the companies that I called, and my warranties are all expired. Apparently, industry practice is simply not to repair wheelchairs that a company did not sell. The only plausible explanation that I've heard is that companies lose money on repairs, so they try to limit the repair/servicing portion of their businesses.

Finally, after a great deal of strife and frustration, I now understand. I've learned my lesson the hard way. When buying a new wheelchair and choosing a wheelchair dealership, you MUST choose the company that you buy from based on the quality of their servicing department and their repair policies.

All the shiny videos and smooth-talking in the world won't get you new tires, replace that broken switch, or save you when you're stranded at the office with a bum motor. Service is everything.