Stairlifts and home lifts: choosing, funding and fitting

A straight stairlift runs on a rail along a single straight flight. It is usually the quickest to supply and fit, and straight rails can often be reused or bought refurbished. A curved stairlift follows landings, bends and half-landings on a rail made to fit that particular staircase, which is why it costs more and takes longer to arrive.

Outdoor stairlifts are built for garden steps or a flight up to the front door, with weather-resistant parts and covers. Platform lifts carry a wheelchair user without transferring to a seat, either on an inclined rail along the stairs or as a vertical lift over a few steps. A through-floor lift travels between two floors through an opening cut in the ceiling, which is building work and involves Building Control.

Stairlifts and inclined platform lifts are made to the European standard BS EN 81-40. Most modern stairlifts run on batteries that charge from the mains, so they can keep working for a while in a power cut.

Before buying, it is worth asking your council's adult social care team, or children's services for a child, for an assessment by an occupational therapist. The occupational therapist looks at how the person moves around the home and may suggest a stairlift, a different type of lift, grab rails, a bed downstairs, or other changes. That assessment is also the usual route into a Disabled Facilities Grant.

An installer's surveyor then checks the staircase itself: its width, the space at the top and bottom, where the rail can be fixed, whether a door or radiator is in the way, and where the charging point goes. Ask for a written quote that names the model, lists the options such as a powered swivel seat or a folding rail, and states the warranty.

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, a Disabled Facilities Grant from the council can pay for a stairlift and other adaptations. The amount usually depends on household income and savings, and grants for disabled children are not means-tested on the parents' income. The council may send an occupational therapist or trained assessor, must give a decision within 6 months, and you may get no grant at all if work starts before the council approves the application. In Scotland, Disabled Facilities Grants are not available; the council's support for equipment and adaptations applies instead.

VAT relief is separate from the grant. Under VAT Notice 701/7, the supply and installation of a stairlift for a person who is chronically sick or disabled, for use in their own home, can be zero-rated, and so can its later repair and maintenance. The person, or someone acting for them, signs an eligibility declaration that is kept separate from the order form. People aged 60 or over who do not qualify on those grounds can get the reduced rate of VAT when a stairlift is supplied and installed in their home. A reputable installer explains this without pressing anyone to sign a declaration.

Source: gov.uk

Rental suits short-term needs, for example after an operation or where someone's needs are likely to change. Check what the rental includes: installation, servicing, breakdown call-outs and removal at the end. Reconditioned stairlifts can cost less, especially straight ones, but ask how old the unit is, what has been replaced and which warranty applies.

Whichever you choose, ask about servicing: how often it is recommended, the cost after the warranty, how fast breakdowns are attended, and whether there is a buy-back if the lift is no longer needed.

If you agree a contract during a visit at home, you normally have a cooling-off period under the Consumer Contracts Regulations. Goods made to your specifications, such as a curved rail built for your staircase, can be excluded from it, so take time before you sign. You are entitled to ask the salesperson to leave the quote with you, to involve a relative, and to wait for the council's decision on a grant.

It is worth being wary of prices that are only valid today, or of pressure to sign the VAT declaration as part of the order.

• straight or curved stairs, and any landings or turns
• whether the lift is for indoor stairs, outside steps or between floors
• whether a seat, a standing platform or a wheelchair platform is needed
• whether you own or rent the home, and if the landlord has agreed
• whether a council grant has been applied for or an assessment arranged
• buying new, reconditioned or rental
• the best times and who should be present for the survey

You tell us about the stairs and the home and confirm your phone number and email address. Installers in your area see the request without your name or contact details, and exactly one can buy it. After that it is no longer offered to anyone else. The installer pays Offrano; you pay nothing.

We email you the installer's name, address and phone number before the installer receives your details, and you can withdraw your consent at any time through the link in each email. We cannot guarantee that an installer takes up every request; if none does within 21 days, it is withdrawn. Offrano checks that buyers are registered businesses but does not assess their products or service, so compare warranty and servicing terms before deciding.