Disney approved scooter rental companies

[rugman1969]

I am looking for some feedback on these 4 scooter rental companies. Mainly,
condition of scooter,
battery life,
timeliness of delivery/pickup
seat comfort
3 wheel or 4 wheel
anything else I may have missed

Buena Vista Scooters
Best Price Scooters
Scooterbug
Apple Scooters

I have checked prices on all 4, and they all seem to fall within a +/- 10 dollar range.
I have read extensively the reviews I have come across, and while all get good and bad, I would like some real-life reviews from people. Thanks so much for all input you can give me. I just want to have a pleasant experience and not have to worry about having a scooter that just won't cut it, or a company that could care less. Just trying to find the one that people seem to recommend the most. Thanks so much.
a quick p.s.- I have ruled out Gold Mobility Scooters because of pricing. While flat-rate pricing works great for people needing a scooter for 7 days, it does not if I only need it for 4 days. The guy from GMS compared it to a .99 cent drink for any size. I compare it to renting a car and having to pay for 7 day rental and I only need it for 2. Kinda silly IMO.

 

[wiihoo888]

Only have used two of them, but hoping this helps. I would never rent from Scooterbug again. Their delivery was on time, but the scooter was in horrible condition. The seat was incredibly unstable.... exactly not what I am looking for in an ecv. I have used Buena Vista my last three trips, and they have been amazing. Scooters were on time, almost new, had great battery life, and were easy to use. I use the standard which is three wheel. My husband uses the larger scooter which is three wheel as well, but has tiny side wheels to help balance on turns. Am renting from them again in April

 

[kaytieeldr]

Search for those three companies on this forum (leaving out Scooterbug thanks to PP ). Plenty of DIS experience, although probably not recent thanks to the popularity of Gold.

 

[rugman1969]

Search for those three companies on this forum (leaving out Scooterbug thanks to PP ). Plenty of DIS experience, although probably not recent thanks to the popularity of Gold.

Thanks. I have, and there is very few current posts on this, except for Gold, which I have decided not to use and is not a disney "approved" option.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Nobody is suggesting you use Gold Mobility. Nobody is questioning why you aren't. But you are not finding recent reviews because most DISers are renting from GMS. You might have to trust older reviews.

Minor clarification: There is no such entity as a Disney "approved" option. The four or five companies that can utilize Bell Services are "featured" companies.

 

[Starwind]

We will be using Gold Mobility for our next rental. However, we have used Buena Vista multiple times.

Renting with Buena Vista was easy, the scooter was in good condition [we have had both pretty new ones which were great, as well as a couple that were starting to show their age, which weren't bad, but the age was noticeable], and we had no issues with the battery -- it had plenty left at the end of the day. Seat was comfortable. We have had both 3 and 4 wheel models [though we requested 3 wheel, sometimes we were given the 4 wheel model, one of the few things I don't like about BV].

One thing we liked about Buena Vista was the tiller design of their scooters; specifically, how the action of the lever works that you use to "move". On BV scooters, it is operated by the whole hand [though a finger could make it work, it is designed for the hand]. This contrasts with the tiller design of the first scooter we rented, which was from Walker Mobility, whose lever is thumb activated. My hands were in a LOT of pain partway through the day with the Walker tiller design. I had no problems with the BV design, and it is the only design I will rent. Some people won't care, but if you have any issues with your hands the tiller design could be an important decision factor. [our first time renting an ECV we had a split stay bracketing a DCL cruise. The first stay we used Walker because I wanted them to explain how it works; the second stay we used BV since I would already know how it works; that is how we discovered the tiller design difference and importance].

As for drop off/pick up, since the featured providers are allowed to leave the ECV with Bell Services, there are not many things that can go wrong with it beyond they don't drop it off. We have not had an issue. It was waiting for us when we went to retrieve it, the Bell Services CM showed us quickly how to use it, and we signed for it. On return we signed it back in and were done. Nice benefit of being able to drop it off via Bell Services is we could pick up and drop off at a time convenient to us and not having to coordinate with the company.

I would use BV again without hesitation. For our net trip we are going to try GMS -- I like the high back design, extra features, and fairly new scooters. Though their pricing is not idea for us [our stay is well <7 days], price is only one consideration. We will try them, see what we think, and then decide between them and BV for future rentals.

SW

 

[Selket]

I agree with Starwind. I’ve rented from Buena Vista for several years before switching to Gold mobility and generally had good service from Buena Vista. My most recent rentals with Buena Vista I had more problems with the scooter being in good condition (I got 2 scooters in a row that were super squeaky ... like enough that people turn around to see what’s coming up behind them lol. I couldn’t stand it. They were petulant about swapping them out which annoyed me) and generally I would need to charge the battery at some point during the day in order to get a full days use out of it but I would rent from them again if Gold Mobility wasn’t an option for my trip. If the cost was anywhere similar I thought GMS is worth it even if I’m not going to be there 7 days. I also agree with Starwood about the “tiller” part being easier on my hands which are the same for BVS and GMS but not the other companies you mentioned as far as I know.

 

[wiihoo888]

We will be using Gold Mobility for our next rental. However, we have used Buena Vista multiple times.

Renting with Buena Vista was easy, the scooter was in good condition [we have had both pretty new ones which were great, as well as a couple that were starting to show their age, which weren't bad, but the age was noticeable], and we had no issues with the battery -- it had plenty left at the end of the day. Seat was comfortable. We have had both 3 and 4 wheel models [though we requested 3 wheel, sometimes we were given the 4 wheel model, one of the few things I don't like about BV].

One thing we liked about Buena Vista was the tiller design of their scooters; specifically, how the action of the lever works that you use to "move". On BV scooters, it is operated by the whole hand [though a finger could make it work, it is designed for the hand]. This contrasts with the tiller design of the first scooter we rented, which was from Walker Mobility, whose lever is thumb activated. My hands were in a LOT of pain partway through the day with the Walker tiller design. I had no problems with the BV design, and it is the only design I will rent. Some people won't care, but if you have any issues with your hands the tiller design could be an important decision factor. [our first time renting an ECV we had a split stay bracketing a DCL cruise. The first stay we used Walker because I wanted them to explain how it works; the second stay we used BV since I would already know how it works; that is how we discovered the tiller design difference and importance].

As for drop off/pick up, since the featured providers are allowed to leave the ECV with Bell Services, there are not many things that can go wrong with it beyond they don't drop it off. We have not had an issue. It was waiting for us when we went to retrieve it, the Bell Services CM showed us quickly how to use it, and we signed for it. On return we signed it back in and were done. Nice benefit of being able to drop it off via Bell Services is we could pick up and drop off at a time convenient to us and not having to coordinate with the company.

I would use BV again without hesitation. For our net trip we are going to try GMS -- I like the high back design, extra features, and fairly new scooters. Though their pricing is not idea for us [our stay is well <7 days], price is only one consideration. We will try them, see what we think, and then decide between them and BV for future rentals.

SW

Please update on your experience with Gold. We were Walker renters prior to trying our the other two companies I mentioned. We stopped using Walker for the same reason you specified....the tiller. It is not kind to arthritic hands, and I had to find creative ways to use it after blistering. We have reserved Buena Vista for our next trip based on three really good consecutive experiences with them, and the ease of pickup and return. May try Gold the next time just to see how it goes.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Please update on your experience with Gold. We were Walker renters prior to trying our the other two companies I mentioned. We stopped using Walker for the same reason you specified....the tiller. It is not kind to arthritic hands, and I had to find creative ways to use it after blistering. We have reserved Buena Vista for our next trip based on three really good consecutive experiences with them, and the ease of pickup and return. May try Gold the next time just to see how it goes.

That's why I stopped using Walker, too-the tiller style. I found Gold Mobility Scooter to have the most comfortable tiller of any company I've used (although I took a picture, unfortunately when I tried to post it, I keep getting an error message that the picture is too large to process. But the tiller is "wavy", fits ito my fingers perfectly. Add the tiller style to the many reasons why I'm another loyal Gold Mobility customer.

To the OP, I'm reluctant to use a featured provider any more (they're "featured", not "Disney approved"). Once the Bell Services had given my key to another scooter user and I had to wait about 20 minutes for them to "find a key that works". Apparently the keys, at least for BV, are somewhat interchangeable, lucky for me. Otherwise we might have had to call BV again.

 

[kaytieeldr]

timeliness of delivery/pickup

Timeliness should be a nonissue unless you arrive early. Featured providers will deliver the ECV before your scheduled time, and pick it up after you leave.

The guy from GMS compared it to a .99 cent drink for any size. I compare it to renting a car and having to pay for 7 day rental and I only need it for 2. Kinda silly IMO.

Not necessarily silly. You said you need it for four days. Is that calendar days, or consecutive 24 hour periods? If you arrive, say, Monday morning and leave Thursday night, that's four calendar days but five 24-hour periods. In that case, BVS will cost $155 or $160. GMS would still be the same $150.

 

[cmwade77]

Honestly, I have (or someone in my party has) rented from the following companies:
Buena Vista Scooters
Best Price Scooters
Apple Scooters
Gold Mobility
Randy's Mobility

Hands down Gold Mobility wins, their customer service is incredible, but also because their scooters are so nice that you actually don't get nasty looks from too many people.

With Gold Mobility they quite literally met us as we were getting off magical express, despite our flight having been delayed three hours and were willing to wait until Magical Express picked us up, we didn't need that, but it was nice.

Now something we did pay attention to was the condition of the scooters from all of the rental companies and pretty any except those from Gold Mobility looked like they had been through the war and back, especially ones from the featured providers. Honestly, I will be sticking with Gold Mobility in the future, they also give you rain ponchos and tiller covers which seems small, but it very handy.

 

[rugman1969]

Thanks to all who replied. I will take all of this under consideration. What I don't like about Gold is that I can't seem to find insurance coverage for if it gets stolen or damaged, nor have I been able to get them on the phone.

 

[rugman1969]

That's why I stopped using Walker, too-the tiller style. I found Gold Mobility Scooter to have the most comfortable tiller of any company I've used (although I took a picture, unfortunately when I tried to post it, I keep getting an error message that the picture is too large to process. But the tiller is "wavy", fits ito my fingers perfectly. Add the tiller style to the many reasons why I'm another loyal Gold Mobility customer.

To the OP, I'm reluctant to use a featured provider any more (they're "featured", not "Disney approved"). Once the Bell Services had given my key to another scooter user and I had to wait about 20 minutes for them to "find a key that works". Apparently the keys, at least for BV, are somewhat interchangeable, lucky for me. Otherwise we might have had to call BV again.

Thank you for your response. You are right, I stand corrected. They are not "Disney approved", but are listed, even on GMS website, as Disney's "preferred vendor program". My apologies.

 

[rugman1969]

To all, I would still like to know if you prefer 3 or 4 wheel and why. Thank you.

 

[rugman1969]

Nobody is suggesting you use Gold Mobility. Nobody is questioning why you aren't. But you are not finding recent reviews because most DISers are renting from GMS. You might have to trust older reviews.

Minor clarification: There is no such entity as a Disney "approved" option. The four or five companies that can utilize Bell Services are "featured" companies.

Thank you for your response. You are right, I stand corrected. They are not "Disney approved", but are listed, even on GMS website, as Disney's "preferred vendor program". My apologies.

 

[rugman1969]

Timeliness should be a nonissue unless you arrive early. Featured providers will deliver the ECV before your scheduled time, and pick it up after you leave.


Not necessarily silly. You said you need it for four days. Is that calendar days, or consecutive 24 hour periods? If you arrive, say, Monday morning and leave Thursday night, that's four calendar days but five 24-hour periods. In that case, BVS will cost $155 or $160. GMS would still be the same $150.

I have been quoted 130ish with damage and stolen insurance from bvs and bps for a 4 day stay, which is approximately only ~ 20 bucks less, but I cannot get GMS on the phone to see if they offer this insurance, so as of now, their price is still 150, a little higher, but it seems it may be worth it. Since the "preferred vendors" can come onto disney property to repair/replace a scooter that stops working, how is GMS able to do this, or are they able to do this, or do you have to get the scooter outside the front entrance?

 

[cmwade77]

Thanks to all who replied. I will take all of this under consideration. What I don't like about Gold is that I can't seem to find insurance coverage for if it gets stolen or damaged, nor have I been able to get them on the phone.

How strange, I get them on the phone within about 5 minutes, but they include the insurance at no extra cost. It says it can have a $500 deductible, but from what I have heard from others that usually gets waived unless you intentionally did something to damage it.

 

[Simba's Mom]

To all, I would still like to know if you prefer 3 or 4 wheel and why. Thank you.

I prefer the 3 wheel. I've driven both and don't find much difference when I drive. But the 3 wheel has a much tighter turning radius, so it's more maneverable. Also, what I really like, is that the 3 wheel is lighter (of course, one less wheel=less weight) so I can maneuver it in and out of the room by myself when I free wheel it.

 

[cmwade77]

I have been quoted 130ish with damage and stolen insurance from bvs and bps for a 4 day stay, which is approximately only ~ 20 bucks less, but I cannot get GMS on the phone to see if they offer this insurance, so as of now, their price is still 150, a little higher, but it seems it may be worth it. Since the "preferred vendors" can come onto disney property to repair/replace a scooter that stops working, how is GMS able to do this, or are they able to do this, or do you have to get the scooter outside the front entrance?

Except as we have learned the hard way, Buena Vista won't come into the parks and won't help after 8 or so. As to how GMS can, they may actually have an arrangement or may have annual passes, they just can't leave with bell services, that doesn't mean they can't come into the parks. GMS also is available 24/7 by text and we did have one issue, they texted back a fix that worked and then it was fine ever since so they didn't need to come out, but I believe they can come into the parks if needed. But I did just ask them in an email and will let you know what they say.

And making sure you are calling the right number from their website 407-414-0287.

But they do indeed include a damage waiver.

 

[cmwade77]

I prefer the 3 wheel. I've driven both and don't find much difference when I drive. But the 3 wheel has a much tighter turning radius, so it's more maneverable. Also, what I really like, is that the 3 wheel is lighter (of course, one less wheel=less weight) so I can maneuver it in and out of the room by myself when I free wheel it.

I personally like the 4 wheel because I would somehow manage to tip over the 3 wheel ones.