VAT on mobility aids for people aged 60 or over

A business that both supplies and installs grab rails, ramps, stair lifts, bath lifts, built in shower seats (or showers containing them) or walk in baths with sealable doors in the home of someone aged 60 or over charges VAT at the reduced rate of 5% instead of 20%. The relief is in Group 10 of Schedule 7A to the VAT Act 1994, HMRC explains it in section 9 of VAT Notice 701/7, and the customer should give the installer a separate written declaration that they are 60 or over.

Where does the 5% rate come from?

Section 29A of the VAT Act 1994 applies the reduced rate to the supplies listed in Schedule 7A. Group 10 of that Schedule, headed “installation of mobility aids for the elderly”, was inserted with effect for supplies made on or after 1 July 2007 by the Value Added Tax (Reduced Rate) Order 2007 (SI 2007/1601). It has two items:

• Item 1: the supply of services of installing mobility aids for use in domestic accommodation by a person who, at the time of the supply, is aged 60 or over.
• Item 2: the supply of mobility aids by a person installing them for use in domestic accommodation by such a person.

The reduced rate is currently 5%. There is no income test and no disability condition in Group 10: the law looks only at the age of the person who will use the aid.

Which items qualify?

Note 1 to Group 10 gives a closed list of “mobility aids”:

• grab rails;
• ramps;
• stair lifts;
• bath lifts;
• built in shower seats, or showers containing built in shower seats;
• walk in baths fitted with sealable doors.

Nothing else is covered. Notice 701/7, paragraph 9.2, says general adaptations in the home of a person over 60, such as widening passageways or building extensions, do not qualify, and nor do repairs to the aids once they have been installed. A stair lift service visit or a replacement bath lift motor is therefore standard rated.

Why must the business both supply and install?

The relief is aimed at installation. Notice 701/7, paragraph 9.1, says the reduced rate does not apply if a business simply supplies an eligible item, and paragraph 9.2 says the aids can only be reduced rated if they are supplied by the installer. A shop or website selling a grab rail or a bath lift to a 70 year old without fitting it charges 20%.

The legislation treats the fitting itself as a separate qualifying service under Item 1. Where a relative buys a grab rail from a retailer and a VAT registered handyman fits it in the older person’s home, the handyman’s installation charge is within Item 1 and can be reduced rated, while the retailer’s sale of the rail stays at 20%.

Whose home counts, and who can pay?

Note 2 defines domestic accommodation as a building, or part of a building, that consists of a dwelling or a number of dwellings. Notice 701/7, paragraph 9.1, says the aid must be installed in the person’s own home or a home shared with friends or relations. Work in a residential home or similar establishment does not qualify.

The person aged 60 or over does not have to order or pay. Paragraph 9.1 says the work can be ordered and paid for by someone else, or by a charity, a local authority, a housing association or any other organisation. A council or housing association arranging a stair lift for an older tenant can therefore benefit from the 5% rate, provided the installation is in the tenant’s home. The age test is applied at the time the supply and installation takes place, so a customer who orders at 59 and has the work done after their 60th birthday qualifies.

How is this different from the zero rate for disabled people?

The two reliefs overlap but are not the same, and a supplier should check the zero rate first because it is more generous:

	Disabled people (zero rate)	Aged 60 or over (5%)
Who qualifies	A person who is chronically sick or disabled	Anyone aged 60 or over at the time of supply
Typical items	Stair lifts designed for use with a wheelchair, hoists, adjustable beds, ramps, widening doorways, adapted bathrooms	The six items in Note 1 only
Installation needed	No, many eligible goods can be zero rated when sold on their own	Yes, supply and installation or installation alone
Repairs	Repair and maintenance of eligible goods can qualify	Not relieved

Notice 701/7, paragraph 3.2.1, says the zero rate does not cover an elderly person who is not disabled or chronically sick. That is the gap Group 10 fills. An 80 year old with a long term condition that substantially affects everyday activities may qualify for the zero rate on eligible work; an active 65 year old who wants grab rails fitted for safety qualifies only for 5%. The detail of the zero rate is in VAT relief for disabled people.

What declaration should the installer hold?

Notice 701/7, paragraph 9.3, says the customer should give a written declaration, separate from any invoice, order or other paperwork. HMRC’s example wording has the customer give their full name and the address where the installation takes place, declare that they are 60 or over and that the supply and installation qualifies for the reduced rate under the Value Added Tax (Reduced Rate) Order 2007, and sign and date it. If the customer cannot physically complete and sign it, a declaration by a relative, partner or other responsible person is acceptable.

Paragraph 3.6 of the notice, which paragraph 9.3 refers to, adds that HMRC does not issue exemption certificates to customers, and that signing an order should not automatically mean signing a declaration. Building the declaration into the terms of a quote is a common error. Keep the declaration with the VAT records for the sale.

How does this work in practice?

Illustration only. A mobility firm quotes three jobs for customers who have each signed a separate age declaration:

• A straight stair lift supplied and fitted in a 72 year old’s house for £3,000 plus VAT at 5%: VAT of £150, total £3,150. At 20% the VAT would have been £600.
• Two grab rails and a ramp to the back door fitted for £400 for a 66 year old living with her daughter: VAT of £20.
• A year later, a call out to repair the stair lift for £120: standard rated, VAT of £24.

The same firm sells a bath lift over the counter to a 75 year old who will fit it himself. That sale is standard rated at 20%, because the firm is not installing it.

If an invoice wrongly charged 20% on a qualifying installation, the supplier, not HMRC, refunds the customer and corrects its own return; see correcting VAT errors.

What mistakes come up most often?

• Reduced rating items sold without installation.
• Reduced rating repairs, servicing or replacement parts after installation.
• Extending the 5% rate to wider building work such as widening doorways or a new bathroom for an older customer who is not disabled.
• Applying the rate to installations in care homes or similar establishments.
• Charging 5% where the customer is disabled and the work could have been zero rated.
• Relying on a tick box in the order form instead of a separate signed declaration.

For how reduced rate work shows on the VAT return and invoice, see VAT rates explained.

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Related Accountapedia entries

• VAT relief for disabled people
• The aged creditors report
• Credit control and the aged debtors report
• HMRC enquiries into 60 day CGT returns
• Amending a 60 day CGT property return

Sources

• GOV.UK: Vat on land and property notice 742
• legislation.gov.uk: Act 1994 c. 23, schedule 7A
• GOV.UK: Vat rates
• GOV.UK: Reliefs from vat for disabled and older people notice 7017

Reviewed by Christine Anderson, Broker, Solar Protect. Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Part of Accountapedia, the Solar Protect guide to UK tax and accounting. This page is general information, not personalised advice.