North Wales Police face a £100,000 bill for selling an impounded luxury motor home without the owner’s permission. The Unimog based vehicle from Germany was taken in October last year when its German owners asked a policeman for directions and couldn’t produce insurance, which was obtained in December but after NWP sold it and it was stripped for parts, it's been reported by the BBC. Alfa Romeo … [Read more...]
Higher demand for new cars expected
British car manufacturing came to a screeching halt in April, down 99.7% against the same month last year. Seán Kemple, Director of Sales at Close Brothers Motor Finance, offers his views on the shutdown, including recent data on what dealers want from the Government moving forward. Seán Kemple, Director of Sales at Close Brothers Motor Finance, said, “April’s manufacturing slump reflects the … [Read more...]
Rental fleets face fundamental challenge from virus
The threat of coronavirus is likely to have a “fundamental” effect on the rate of adoption of mobility solutions by fleets, believes FleetCheck. Peter Golding, managing director at the fleet software specialist, explained that the issue was simple – most mobility solutions relied on multi-user use of assets at a time when sharing of almost any asset could lead to the virus being much more widely … [Read more...]
EV shocks for dealers
The move towards electric cars is going to be a shock for many car dealers, according to a new survey, writes Robin Roberts. While generally satisfied with manufacturers’ plans to introduce battery electric vehicles and hybrids, they are less happy about dealership costs and how they are going to make money in the longer term. Already coping with new restrictions surrounding working with … [Read more...]
Counting the costs of Coronavirus
The coronavirus lockdown has left many households living on significantly reduced incomes. As a result, millions of drivers are struggling to meet the cost of running their car, while a significant minority (4% = 1.3 million) say they will be forced to sell their vehicle. GoCompare Car Insurance is offering practical, actionable advice to drivers concerned about meeting monthly finance or … [Read more...]
Banks tardiness threatens coronavirus recovery
The Government must make lenders move faster to access the special loan scheme or businesses will fail, says the FTA. On 2 April, Chancellor Rishi Sunak MP announced changes to the government’s Corona Business Interruption Loan Scheme, vowing to take “all action necessary” to make sure government backed loans were benefitting businesses as planned. But only a month later, FTA, the business … [Read more...]
Tradelines 15 April
Ford is preparing for a $600M loss in the first three months of 2020 due to sales slowdown in the shadow of the global coronavirus. It’s already secured credit facilities and has a $30B reserve to cover most eventualities. New service and maintenance procedures at Arval UK have been adapted in a matter of days to keep essential fleets available 24/7 during the coronavirus crisis. Corrine … [Read more...]
Sunday drive: On the road and in the news
With the greater part of the World in coronavirus lockdown, in the UK there are no showrooms open with any business available mainly being done on-line and all car and component manufacturers factories are shut down, writes David Miles. UK new car sales figures released this week by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders show sales fell by 44.4% in March and are down by 31% for the first … [Read more...]
Motorists want to buy from stock not wait – survey
Analysis of website carwow visitor trends between 17 and 25 March reveals that car buyers are increasingly considering in-stock vehicles, as concerns over new car availability and delivery times sway consumer purchase decisions. A survey of 440 motorists conducted a week ago revealed that 80% of buyers would prefer to buy a new car available immediately from dealer stock, than place a factory … [Read more...]
Budget of hope to smooth rough ride ahead
The Budget provides something for today’s and tomorrow’s drivers, said RAC head of policy Nicholas Lyes. “Today the Chancellor has given a boost to drivers of today’s vehicles with a fuel duty freeze while also investing in tomorrow with funding for rapid charging hubs for electric vehicles, an extension to the plug-in car grant, funding to repair Britain’s roads and a commitment to spend on … [Read more...]
