Benidorm hotel group bans mobility scooters

A number of holidaymakers have been left outraged after one of Benidorm's biggest hotel chain groups banned mobility scooters.

Servigroup, which has nine hotels in the resort in Spain, initiated the ban due to complaints from other guests that scooters were "clogging hallways and causing accidents", reports the Mirror.

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The problem appears to be that able-bodied holidaymakers are hiring the scooters, made famous by Madge in the hit TV series Benidorm, for drunken antics, and for cheap transportation.

According to Benidorm All Year Round, "there is a local bylaw which rental companies from hiring them out to under 55s with no disabilities, they are obviously flouting this".

The site explained the situation after speaking to an Operations Director at Servigroup : "The situation with regards to mobility scooters has got totally out of hand and they have had to take action following numerous complaints from other guests - primarily for safety reasons.

"The sheer volume of scooters left in the lobby and reception areas are causing serious problems for both staff and guests, with anywhere in the region of 25 scooters obstructing passageways and exits. There have been countless accidents, with glass panes broken and furniture frequently damaged – and they are running out of room."

But some disabled tourists have been left "disgusted". One disabled user Katherine Airson, 66, who stays at Servigroup's Hotel Pueblo five times a year, told the Mirror: "There is an allocated place at the Pueblo to park scooters as they're not allowed inside. It's never been a problem in the past at the hotel.

"This is about the able-bodied hiring scooters when they shouldn't be using them."

Local radio show host David Rowland also told the paper: "They started off as a fantastic idea that allowed the more elderly and less able to enjoy their holiday, but now they are like a cheap taxi for the lazy, drunk and too-fat-to-move Brits."

Wheelchairs are still allowed on hotel premises, but electric scooters would need to be hired on a daily basis and returned to the rental company at the end of the day.

Servigroup's nine hotels are: Castilla, Calypso, Orange, Rialto, Venus, Diplomatic, Nereo, Pueblo and Torre Dorada.