Due to the specialised nature of passenger lifts and construction required, and the fact that they aren’t at all common in residential settings, you may think that disabled access lifts cost many tens of thousands of pounds. However, due to advances in engineering, it’s possible to have some form of disabled access lift in your home for under ten thousand pounds.
Various factors can add to the overall cost of a disabled access lift. For example, if there is limited space in the home, a lift shaft may need to be constructed on the outside of the building which can increase costs significantly. For those that are conscious of interior design, many disabled access lifts now come in a variety of materials and finishes to blend in with your décor or become a unique feature in your home, but added extras or fancy finishes will increase the cost. Depending on the style of the lift itself and the materials it’s made out of, you could be looking at costs of £10,000 – £20,000.
Lift styles and prices
Disabled access lifts can range from platform step lifts, which help people with limited mobility up and down a couple of steps, to passenger platform lifts which can take the weight of a person with limited to no mobility, along with their wheelchair or mobility scooter, to different floors of their house. Naturally, the more weight the lift is going to be taking and the further it will be carried (i.e up and down steps or between floors of your house), the more infrastructure and materials are needed and the more cost you will incur.
Platform step lifts
As this type of step lift is simply used to aid people up and down one or two steps, prices range from £9,000 – £15,000. The cost depends on whether the platform lift will be situated indoors or whether a weatherproof model is required for an outdoor lift, what mechanism powers the lift (either hydraulic or scissors) and what functional options and finishes are chosen.
If you live in a bungalow that either has steps to the front or back door or a couple of steps within the property, a platform step lift is the cheapest disabled access lift you can choose to improve your mobility into and around your home.
Incline platform stairlifts
This style of disabled access lift incurs higher costs due to the bespoke nature of it; it is created for the particular staircase that it is fitted to. The price will depend on both the length and shape of the staircase, which will denote the length of the guide rails and how many bends there are in the rails, as well as the types of materials and finish used.
Other factors to be taken into consideration are whether the lift will be fitted indoors, or if a weatherproof version is required for outdoor installation. Depending on these factors and which choices are the best for yourself and your home, an incline platform stairlift can cost between £9,000 and £25,000.
Home lifts
Home lifts are highly customised and bespoke, which is helpful as most domestic properties have limited spaces when compared to commercial properties so an off the shelf lift isn’t likely to work well. All requirements are considered, from the space the lift shaft has to be in and the space required inside the cabin – whether or not it is housing a person along with their wheelchair or motorised scooter for example. The price will depend on how far the lift is going to travel and the amount of weight the platform will be lifting, as well as the size of the cabin.
Due to these lifts being in your home, there are many different finishes available to ensure they either blend seamlessly in or stand out in a bold, elegant way. Depending on all these factors, home lifts range from £14,000 to £26,000.