Platform Lifts and Wheelchair Stair Lifts in the UK

Key facts

• A seated stairlift needs the user to transfer onto a seat. Platform and through-floor lifts do not.
• Inclined platform lifts fold flat against the wall when parked, but they still need a staircase wide enough for a wheelchair platform to travel. Most UK domestic staircases are not.
• Vertical platform lifts and step lifts suit short rises, a few steps at an entrance or between split levels. They do not serve a full storey.
• Through-floor home lifts carry a wheelchair between floors. Stiltz publishes a starting price of £17,000 excluding VAT, including installation and standard building works.
• The relevant safety standards are BS EN 81-40:2020 for stairlifts and inclined lifting platforms, and BS EN 81-41 for vertical lifting platforms. Both sit under machinery safety law, not the lift regulations that cover a passenger lift in an office block.
• A stair lift or chair lift designed for use in connection with a wheelchair is specifically named in HMRC’s VAT relief notice, and zero-rating does not require the lift to carry the person while they are seated in the chair.
• The Disabled Facilities Grant can fund any of these, up to £30,000 in England and £36,000 in Wales, means-tested for adults and not for children under 18.

Who this suits, and who it does not

This page is for people who cannot transfer out of a wheelchair safely, or who can transfer but would then have no wheelchair on the upper floor. It is also for anyone arranging access at a threshold, a porch, a raised patio or a split level, where a ramp would be too long to fit.

It is not for the larger group who can stand and sit with or without help. If a transfer is safe, a seated stairlift costs a fraction as much, installs in hours instead of days, and needs no building work. Our types of stairlift guide covers the seated options, including perch models for people who cannot bend their knees to sit fully.

It is also not the right page if the issue is a single step at the front door and a ramp would fit. A ramp is cheaper than any lift and needs no power, no service contract and no annual inspection.

The three machines, and what each one does

Inclined platform lifts

An inclined platform lift runs on a rail along the staircase, like a stairlift, but instead of a seat it carries a fold-down platform that a wheelchair rolls onto. The user stays in their chair for the whole journey. When not in use the platform folds up against the wall.

The constraint is width. The platform has to be large enough to hold a wheelchair, and it has to travel past the wall and the banister without fouling either, while still leaving usable stair width for everyone else in the house. On a typical UK domestic staircase, which is often under a metre wide, that does not work. This is why inclined platform lifts are common in schools, churches, libraries and listed public buildings, and uncommon in family homes. A surveyor can tell you within minutes whether your staircase is a candidate, and for most terraced and semi-detached homes the answer is no.

Where the staircase is wide enough, an inclined platform lift avoids building work entirely, which is its main attraction over a through-floor lift.

Vertical platform lifts and step lifts

A vertical platform lift raises a platform straight up. A step lift is the short-rise version, covering a few steps instead of a storey, and is the most common domestic application: getting a wheelchair from a garden or drive up to a raised door threshold, or between two levels inside a converted property.

Because the travel is short, the engineering is simpler and the cost lower than a full home lift. Installation usually needs a level base and a power supply, and for outdoor installations, drainage so the pit does not hold water. Our guide to outdoor stairlifts suitable for wheelchair users covers the outdoor considerations in more detail.

Travel height changes the regulatory picture. Platform lifts are treated as machinery, and above three metres of travel an EC type examination by an accredited notified body applies, which is a consideration for commercial installations more than domestic ones.

Through-floor home lifts

A through-floor lift travels between two floors through an aperture cut in the ceiling, usually from a ground-floor room into the bedroom above. It carries a wheelchair and, in larger models, a wheelchair plus a companion.

This is the most capable option and the most expensive. Stiltz publishes a starting price of £17,000 excluding VAT, which it states covers manufacture, delivery, installation by its own engineers, a 12-month warranty, standard building works of around £2,500, waste removal and coordination with building control. It also notes that many customers qualify for VAT relief. Traditional hydraulic and traction lifts sit considerably higher, over £23,000 and from £28,000 respectively on the same published comparison.

The practical costs beyond the price are the floor space taken on both levels, the loss of part of a bedroom, and the need for building control involvement. Our stairlift vs home lift explained guide sets the two side by side.

Cost comparison

Seated stairlift and step lift ranges are the figures published on our stairlift prices guide, reviewed September 2026. The through-floor figure is Stiltz’s own published starting price, checked 25 September 2026. Inclined platform lifts are not advertised at a standard price in the UK because every installation is specified to the staircase, so treat any single figure you are given as a quote, not a market rate.

Standards, and what they are for

Two standards do most of the work here, and it helps to know which covers what.

BS EN 81-40:2020 sets safety rules for stairlifts and inclined lifting platforms intended for persons with impaired mobility. It is the standard behind both the seated stairlift on a domestic staircase and the wheelchair platform running on a rail in a public building.

BS EN 81-41 covers vertical lifting platforms intended for use by persons with impaired mobility, which is the step lift and vertical platform family.

Both sit under machinery safety law. The regulations that govern a conventional passenger lift do not apply. Platform lifts are treated as machinery, requiring a declaration of conformity and appropriate marking, with third-party type examination where travel exceeds three metres. Separately, the Equality Act 2010 is what obliges service providers to make reasonable adjustments for access, and Part M of the Building Regulations sets access requirements for new buildings and certain works. None of that makes a product suitable for your particular staircase, which remains a survey question.

We set out the full UK regulatory picture, with a primary source for each rule, in our stairlift regulations reference.

Paying for it

The VAT position is unusually clear for wheelchair lifts. HMRC’s VAT Notice 701/7 lists among the goods eligible for zero-rating a stair lift or a chair lift designed for use in connection with a wheelchair, and adds that it is not necessary for the lift to carry the person whilst seated in the wheelchair. The notice also allows zero-rating for the service of installing eligible goods for an eligible customer. Zero-rating depends on the customer being chronically sick or disabled, which HMRC defines as having a physical or mental impairment with a long-term and substantial adverse effect on the ability to carry out everyday activities, or a condition the medical profession treats as a chronic sickness, and on a written declaration being given to the supplier.

Separately, people aged 60 or over who are not disabled can access a reduced 5 per cent rate on certain mobility aids including stair lifts, but only where the supplier both supplies and installs them.

Because the sums involved here are larger than for a seated stairlift, get the VAT treatment confirmed in writing before you sign, and ask the supplier which parts of the quote they are zero-rating. Building work associated with a lift is not automatically zero-rated, and the notice’s building-alterations provisions are narrower than people assume.

On grants, the Disabled Facilities Grant is the main route. The maximum is £30,000 in England and £36,000 in Wales, means-tested for adults on household income and on savings above £6,000, and not means-tested for disabled children under 18. In Northern Ireland the Housing Executive administers a grant with a £35,000 maximum and discretion to go up to £70,000 in some cases. Scotland assesses through its councils and applies no fixed cap.

A £30,000 cap does not stretch far against a £17,000 lift plus building work, so ask the council early whether a top-up or a charitable grant can close the gap. Our stairlift grants guide covers the application route, and the occupational therapist assessment that any application depends on.

Where this goes wrong

The most common mistake is buying more machine than the situation needs. Households sometimes price a through-floor lift when the person can still transfer onto a seat, which is a difference of £14,000 or more. Settle the transfer question with an occupational therapist first.

The second is space. Every one of these machines takes floor area away from a room, permanently while it is installed. Ask the surveyor to mark out the footprint on the floor with tape and live with it for a day before you agree. That applies especially to through-floor lifts, where the upstairs landing position is decided by where the downstairs lift sits.

Servicing is heavier than for a seated stairlift. These are larger machines carrying more weight, and service intervals, inspection requirements and call-out costs are correspondingly higher. Get the service cost in writing as an annual figure before you buy, not after.

Power is the last one. A platform lift stuck between levels with a wheelchair user on it is a more serious situation than a seated stairlift stopping halfway. Ask specifically what happens in a power cut, whether there is a battery descent or manual lowering facility, and how it is operated. That answer should be in the handover documents, and the household should be shown it on installation day, not left to find it later.

Frequently asked questions

Can a wheelchair go on a normal stairlift?

No. A seated stairlift carries a person on a seat, and the wheelchair stays where it is. If the wheelchair needs to travel between floors, you need an inclined platform lift, a vertical platform lift or a through-floor lift. Some households solve it more cheaply by keeping a second wheelchair upstairs, where the person can transfer safely.

Will an inclined platform lift fit my stairs at home?

Usually not. The platform has to carry a wheelchair and still clear the wall and banister while leaving usable stair width, and most UK domestic staircases are too narrow. Have a surveyor confirm it. Do not rule it in or out yourself.

How much is a wheelchair platform lift in the UK?

Short-rise step lifts commonly run £5,000 to £15,000 depending on the rise and the setting. Through-floor home lifts start at around £17,000 before VAT. Inclined platform lifts are specified per staircase and are not advertised at a standard price.

Is a wheelchair lift zero-rated for VAT?

A stair lift or chair lift designed for use in connection with a wheelchair is named in HMRC’s VAT relief notice, and installation of eligible goods can also be zero-rated, where the customer is chronically sick or disabled and gives a written declaration. Associated building work is treated more narrowly, so ask the supplier to itemise what they are zero-rating.

Can the Disabled Facilities Grant pay for a through-floor lift?

It can contribute, subject to assessment and to the cap, which is £30,000 in England. Because a through-floor lift plus building work can approach or exceed that, discuss top-up funding and charitable grants with the council at the application stage, not afterwards.

What happens in a power cut?

It depends on the machine. Many have a battery-powered descent or a manual lowering facility so the platform can be brought to a level floor. Ask before buying, and make sure whoever is in the house day to day is shown how it works at handover.

Do these lifts need an annual inspection?

They need servicing to the manufacturer’s schedule, and in workplaces and public buildings additional statutory inspection duties apply. For a domestic installation, follow the manufacturer’s service interval and keep the records, because warranty cover usually depends on it.

Next steps

Start with an occupational therapist assessment, free through the NHS or your council’s adult social care team, and ask it to address one question directly: can the person transfer safely onto a seat, now and in the foreseeable future? That answer decides whether you are choosing between seated stairlifts or between platform lifts, and it is what any grant application will rest on. Then get three quotes for the recommended type, ask each supplier to itemise VAT treatment and annual servicing, and ask your council about the grant position before you commit.

Related guides

• Types of stairlift
• Stairlift vs home lift explained
• Outdoor stairlifts suitable for wheelchair users
• When a stairlift is not the right solution
• Stairlift regulations UK
• Stairlift grants
• What an occupational therapist does

Sources

• Reliefs from VAT for disabled and older people (VAT Notice 701/7), HMRC, last updated 31 December 2020, https://www.gov.uk/guidance/reliefs-from-vat-for-disabled-and-older-people-notice-7017, accessed 25 September 2026.
• Disabled Facilities Grants: what you’ll get, GOV.UK, https://www.gov.uk/disabled-facilities-grants/what-youll-get, accessed 25 September 2026.
• Disabled Facilities Grants, nidirect, https://nidirect.gov.uk/articles/disabled-facilities-grants, accessed 25 September 2026.
• BS EN 81-40:2020, Safety rules for the construction and installation of lifts. Special lifts for the transport of persons and goods. Stairlifts and inclined lifting platforms intended for persons with impaired mobility, BSI, https://landingpage.bsigroup.com/LandingPage/Standard?UPI=000000000030364301, accessed 25 September 2026.
• Latest regulations, The Platform Lift Company, page modified 3 September 2024, https://platformliftco.co.uk/about-us/latest-regulations/, accessed 25 September 2026.
• Wheelchair lifts explained, OnLevel, last updated 24 September 2026, https://www.baseonlevel.co.uk/guides/wheelchair-lifts-explained/, accessed 25 September 2026.
• How much do UK domestic lifts cost, Stiltz, modified 5 March 2026, https://www.stiltz.co.uk/blog/product/how-much-do-uk-domestic-lifts-cost/, accessed 25 September 2026.

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We do not sell or install stairlifts. Quotes go to UK suppliers. If you buy a stairlift from a supplier we introduced you to, that supplier pays us a fee. Requesting quotes is free and we are not paid for the request itself. Stairlift Guru is published by Whito Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales (number 10918465), and we have no ownership link to any supplier.

How to cite this page

Stairlift Guru, “Platform Lifts and Wheelchair Stair Lifts in the UK”, stairliftguru.co.uk, reviewed September 2026. Please keep the date attached to any cost figure and say whether it is a published starting price or a typical range.

Last reviewed: September 2026. Editor: Jacob Whitmore.