02/04/2025

www.AbilityClassifieds.com
I just posted this on NDIS Participants Providers Australia's Post

I may as well ad this to what is going on, and this is a snippet
Where do I to begin with the masterpiece of red tape conjured up by the newly minted **Rover** (formerly known as RAWS), the Department of Infrastructure's very own innovation in making people's lives harder. About ten months ago, in a move that would make the Wolf of Wall Street proud, Rover decided to revoke all the model reports for wheelchair-accessible vehicles. Yes, you read that right—vehicles like the Toyota Voxy, Noah, Sienta, Ractis, and others were struck down in their prime. Why? Well, they apparently decided to listen to the sweet nothings whispered by self-serving conversion companies and their accomplices—greedy engineers who charge an arm, a leg, and probably your firstborn to certify these vehicles.
These entities have been lobbying their hearts out, spinning yarns about how Japanese purpose-built vehicles like those from Toyota and Nissan are *allegedly* unroadworthy and unsafe. You know, because multinational corporations like Toyota and Nissan clearly specialize in designing *substandard* death traps for their own citizens. The laughable claim? The wheelchair restraints in these vehicles aren't strong enough to secure a wheelchair during an accident. Never mind that these vehicles have been imported into Australia for over 15 years without a single incident to back up these outlandish assertions.
But wait, it gets better. Under this new regime, wheelchair restraints *must* be installed by certified engineers. Not your friendly neighbourhood qualified automotive engineer, mind you—no, only the chosen few certified by this cartel of profiteers can do the job. And let’s be clear, fitting wheelchair restraints is no more complex than installing a baby seat (which, by the way, licensed baby seat installers can do for a fraction of the cost). Oh, but apparently, in Australia, babies are more important than individuals with mobility challenges—because baby seats don't cost thousands of dollars to fit.
And don’t forget, these so-called service providers will insist you buy only one brand of wheelchair restraint. That’s right, one brand. Try showing up with your own restraint that meets the Australian/New Zealand Standards (AS/NZS 3696.19:2009), and they’ll flat-out refuse to install or certify it. They know people in need have no choice, so they exploit this vulnerability shamelessly.
Then there’s the vehicle debacle. Take the Toyota Ractis, for instance—a small car based on the Corolla platform. Its model report was revoked because *the roof is too low.* Even though the roof is raised slightly for wheelchair use! Sure, if you're a 6’5” adult, you probably won’t fit. But what about a child or someone under 1.54 meters? Nope, they’re out of luck because adapting a vehicle for specific use is apparently far too simple an idea for Rover to entertain.
Instead, Rover's solution seems to be forcing people to shell out $40,000 to $50,000 for a car that wasn’t originally designed as wheelchair-accessible, only to spend another $40,000 converting it. And let’s not forget the 18-month wait times for these Frankenstein vehicles. But hey, it’s fine—just bill the NDIS! And if the person in need doesn’t qualify for NDIS? Well, they can sit back and enjoy a hearty serving of bad luck.
Let’s not overlook Rover's pièce de résistance: the requirement that ramps on vehicles like the Ractis must be rated for 350 kilograms. Because, of course, if you weigh 350 kilograms, a compact car is *totally* the ideal mode of transportation. Heaven forbid they just slap on a “Do Not Exceed” sticker, like every other weight-bearing product out there.
And so, the cycle continues—forcing people to rely on expensive, jury-rigged conversions while purpose-built options from Japan, tested and engineered in high-tech factories, are deemed unworthy by "experts" working out of sheds. These are the same geniuses who make absurd claims about factory restraints being "weak and substandard," despite no evidence of failure. One such engineer even made a YouTube video to "prove" his point, showing a restraint pull through the chassis under extreme force—a scenario that would rip even a chain through the floor. But sure, let's believe his restraint brand would magically defy the laws of physics.
The real tragedy? While these self-proclaimed carers fleece the system and the NDIS bleeds money, people who desperately need wheelchair-accessible vehicles are left stranded. Loved ones lose the chance to improve their quality of life, all while this engineered monopoly thrives.
Its pretty ugly out there.