Checking wires is good, checking the batery is better.
Cleaning the contacts is easy.
Pull the Armrest,
Unscrew the switch Pod,
Gently pull out the switch it self from the pod, straight out,
With a small flat blade screw driver,
Again gently pry open the snaps, while prying the case off of the switch itself,
Inside youll see a bunch of brass contact parts,
Look Close, and youll see two tiny contacts at eather end, tiny round plates,
Get a tiny contact file, or real fine emery cloth/board,
Lightly "sand" the contacts till they are smooth, or at least clean,
Spray some Contact cleaner (found a big can at parts store that worked well, or radio shack has one thats pretty good as well) on it, and let dry,
Then snap it back together, and plug it in and try it.
Cleaning those helps in some cases, but it sounds like you may be low on power. If its the motor, or battery, or a bad wire, its hard to say for sure.