Buyers Guide
A GUIDE TO BUYING A FOLDING ELECTRIC WHEELCHAIR 2024
With all the new online Electric Wheelchair companies that have popped up over night this last year, we understand that choosing the right Wheelchair for your needs and more importantly the right company to buy from is becoming more confusing than ever.
With this guide we can hopefully help you work out what to look for when choosing the right wheelchair and most importantly the right company to buy from.
We will highlight the various things you need to watch out for. The necessary essentials you need to know before even starting your wheelchair buying journey. What type of questions to ask and lastly how to not get stung, waste your money or buy the wrong style of chair for your needs and use.
In this Guide…
We will cover the key areas that you will need to consider when buying your Electric Folding Wheelchair.
1) Understanding your needs.
2) Choosing the Right Company.
3) Common Issues and How to Avoid Them.
4) Important Questions to Ask.
Understand your Needs
When buying a folding electric wheelchair it is imperative that you match the right chair with your customers needs, use case and disability. Although all our models may look similar to the untrained eye they all have slightly different features and characteristics which will benefit certain disability’s or different peoples intended use for the chair.
At LITH-TECH, when anyone buys a chair from us, either online or over the phone, we provide each customer a quick telephone consultation before we send anything out. This insures that they are selecting the right chair for the intended purpose, along with a chair and set up that matches their height and weight.
On this call we will offer you invaluable information, not only helping you choose the right chair for your needs but also the best way to set it up. This sometimes involves upgrades or minor modifications meaning you actually get a chair that really suits you and that is really going to make a difference to your life.
Choosing the right company
When choosing your wheelchair, it is just as important choosing the right company as it is choosing your actual chair. Your wheelchair will be your lifeline, so you need to know that you are in safe hands; firstly when choosing your chair but also most importantly the aftercare you receive.
LITH-TECH have been operating since 2017 and are the UK’s only Electric Folding Wheelchair Specialist and are known for not only having the best products on the market but also the best levels of customer service and aftercare in the industry.
The modern day mobility industry can be a very scary place for elderly or vulnerable customers so the (trust factor is everything) LITH-TECH are the highest rated Electric Wheelchair Company in the Uk on all major review platforms and have been finalists for various mobility awards and Toby the CEO even won the Best eMobility Chairs CEO in the UK award in 2023.
Do not buy from anyone overseas, second hand or from any type of marketplace like Faebook, Amazon or Ebay.
- Most of the chairs on Facebook marketplace don’t even exist or are faulty.
- On Amazon and Ebay they often don’t have a physical company backing them.
- You won’t be able to speak to anyone over the phone.
- They will not offer a legitimate warranty (if any) and most importantly will not have access to the spare parts or able to carry out any repairs when you need them.
- Whoever you buy your chair from you need to know that they are always at the other end of a phone if you need them and that most importantly that they will still be around in the next 3-5 years.
- When buying second hand, you have no idea of the chairs history and how it’s been treated or maintained, more times than not it works out to be more expensive and a total nightmare.
At LITH-TECH we answer all calls and emails straight away and have over 1000 spare parts in our warehouse ready for instant dispatch for when you desperately need anything. We understand that your wheelchair is your legs and how import it is to get you back up a running as quickly as possible.
Common Issues and How to Avoid them
- You get what you pay for – by trying to save now, it will cost you far more in the long run. If a company can sell a wheelchair for £900 that means they would need to have bought it for £400 once you include shipping, taxes etc. It is impossible to buy a quality wheelchair that cheap – To put it into perspective thats the rough costs of just our motors or pair of batteries.
- Buy from an actual specialist that has a range of models, that way you will get a chair that actually matches your needs and disability. Stay clear from your local mobility shop as they will probably only have 1-2 chairs and will push those to anyone who walks in no matter if they are suitable or not.
- Look out for warranties and spare parts, ask lots of questions so you know you will always be looked after correctly in the future.
- Don’t be obsessed with the weight of a chair – anything under 22kg is meant for indoor or for smooth flat outdoor surfaces only. For outdoor use you need a multi-terrain big wheeled wheelchair, these start from 25kg and go upto 40kg.
- Buy a chair that suits your height and weight – Anyone over 14 stone should be in a Multi-Terrain chair and not a lightweight chair with smaller wheels. If you are a larger individual you will need an XL chair and if you are a taller individual you will need a higher cushion and telescopic footplate. Like wise if you are someone who is shorter you will either need an adjustable footrest or a chair that caters for smaller people. This is why it is so important to talk to a specialist as we will know what will work best for you.
Important Questions to Ask
1) My wheelchair needs are xyz, what chair would you recommend for my needs and why?
2) What range or distance can I expect from a particular chair’s batteries?
3) Can your chairs batteries be charged on and off the chair?
4) Are your batteries plane safe under the new airline regulations?
5) How long do your chairs take to fold or unfold?
6) Can your chairs be pushed either folded or unfolded in freewheel mode?
7) What warranty comes with your chair and what does it cover?
8) What happens if my chair stops working under warranty?
9) Does your company have legitimate product liability insurance?
10) Are your chairs multi-terrain capable and if so, to what extent?
11) Do your chairs armrests retract out of the way for easier access and getting under tables?
12) What is the delivery time if I purchased a chair?