Do You Need to Transport a Wheelchair in Your Vehicle?
ShareWhen you are driving, it is important that you take safety seriously. When you get into your vehicle, you will want to make sure that your seat is stable and won't move during the journey. You should clip your seat belt into place and make sure that you are secure before you set out on the road. For wheelchair users, ensuring their safety before driving on the road is even more critical since they may be unable to notice a problem or make any changes themselves once the vehicle is moving.
How can you secure a wheelchair in a vehicle?
If you have ever tried to park a wheelchair in a car, then you will know that a wheelchair will move during a journey. Having wheels, a wheelchair will naturally roll around unless secured. Applying the brakes on a wheelchair may prevent some of the rolling, but it doesn't make the wheelchair any more stable. Unless properly secured, the wheelchair is likely to tip over if any corners are turned too sharply or if the driver is forced to brake abruptly. A moving wheelchair creates a hazard not just for the wheelchair user but for everyone else in the vehicle. The best way to secure the wheelchair and to ensure that everyone can travel safely is to use effective wheelchair restraints that hold the chair firmly to the floor of the vehicle.
How can you choose suitable wheelchair restraints?
To select the best wheelchair restraints, you must be familiar with both the wheelchair and the vehicle you want to use. The wheelchair restraints operate by creating fixed anchor points on the vehicle floor. The vehicle you choose must have sufficiently clear floor space to allow these points to be created and to remain permanently in place even once the wheelchair is removed. The wheelchair restraints that you choose must be capable of accommodating the wheels of the wheelchair and of holding it securely in place throughout the length of the journey.
A final consideration is the length of time that it will take you to unlock and unlock the wheelchair restraints. There are several types of restraint locks available, and you must ensure that you can operate the locks on the wheelchair restraints quickly if you don't want each journey that you take becoming far longer than it needs to be. It is worth seeing if you can see the locks of the wheelchair restraints in action before you make your choice; that will help you to see how suitable they are for your needs.