Disability car firm chief quits after £2.2m bonus revealed
THE boss of a taxpayer-supported business supplying cars for those with disabilities resigned after it emerged he is in line for a £2.2million bonus.
Mike Betts, the chief executive of Motability Operations, had an annual wage of £1.7million described as “totally unacceptable” by the Work and Pensions and Treasury committees.
But an inquiry by the National Audit Office (NAO) found he is also in line for a bonus that was worth £1.86 million in September and is likely to reach about £2.2million by 2022.
A Motability Operations spokesman said Mr Betts will resign “following the implementation of actions agreed as an outcome of the NAO review”. This will be “no later than May 2020”.
The NAO found that remuneration for executive directors has been “generous” and linked to performance targets set at levels “easily exceeded”.
The NAO also found that customers had been charged £390million “more than was required” since 2008.
The scheme, made up of an operations business and two charities, accounts for about 10 per cent of all new cars bought in the UK. Under it, mobility welfare payments are transferred to the firm for a leased car, insurance, maintenance and roadside assistance.
The committees said potential rivals cannot compete as the firm receives tax breaks from the Government that no other firm is entitled to.