What the Disabled Facilities Grant covers
The DFG is a mandatory grant from your local council in England for adaptations that help a disabled person live independently at home — including home lifts, through-floor lifts and wheelchair platform lifts. The maximum grant in England is currently £30,000 (different limits apply in Wales and Northern Ireland).
Who qualifies
Eligibility turns on two things:
- The work must be necessary and appropriate to meet the needs of a disabled occupant — usually confirmed by an occupational therapist assessment.
- It must be reasonable and practicable for the property, which the council surveys.
- For an adult, the grant is means-tested on the income and savings of the disabled person and their partner; grants for a disabled child are not means-tested.
How to apply
Start by contacting your local council's home-improvement or housing team, or ask for an occupational therapy assessment through adult social care. The council arranges the assessment, agrees the works and the figure, and pays the grant on completion. We are happy to provide the written, specified quotation councils require.
Are home lifts VAT exempt for disabled people?
Yes — in the UK, a lift installed in a private home for a disabled person is zero-rated for VAT: no VAT is charged on the lift, its installation, or later repairs and maintenance. You complete a short eligibility declaration confirming the disability when you order; there is no HMRC application to make. The relief applies to home lifts, through-floor lifts and wheelchair lifts supplied and fitted for the eligible person’s domestic use, and it applies separately from the Disabled Facilities Grant — many families benefit from both. We will confirm whether your installation qualifies as part of your written quotation.
Find a platform lift installer in your area
We install and service OnLevel platform lifts across England, with dedicated local pages for hundreds of towns. Explore the areas we cover — including London, Surrey, Kent, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Cheshire, Greater Manchester and Essex — or browse the full list of locations across the UK.
Request a no-obligation quotation
Every property is different, so the surest way to a firm figure is to tell us about your project — the property, the floors you need to serve and what you want to achieve. Send us those details and our SafeContractor-accredited team will prepare a written, no-obligation quotation. Request your quotation on our contact form, or see the areas we cover across the UK.