The car market turned upside down in July, said Sean Kemple, MD of Close Brothers Motor Finance. The bounce back from near-zero sales in April to a 11% uplift in July reflects the momentous release in pent-up demand because there is usually a summer slump, but 2020 has been anything but normal. Right now it’s the used car market where the real growth is taking place, reports Alex Buttle, … [Read more...]
Tradelines 17 June
Over 1,000 temporary contractor jobs are going at JLR as the executive car maker struggles to control losses as a result of the global pandemic hitting sales and it saw a downturn of £501 Million in the first quarter of the year. It has raised its cost cutting target by £1 Billion as it seeks to save £5 Billion by March including slashing capital spending by £500 Million. There were more … [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...]
MoT tests extended six months
The temporary MoT exemption is positive as it will allow vital services to continue and aftersales workshops to prioritise essential repair works on critical vehicles, said Sue Robinson, Director of the National Franchised Dealers Association. On Sunday 22 March, NFDA wrote to the Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP asking for a three-month MoT moratorium. Today, the Government has communicated that vehicle … [Read more...]
Dealers seek Government help
The retail automotive sector employs 590,000 people in the UK and businesses must be protected through supportive fiscal measures during the outbreak of the Coronavirus, said Sue Robinson, Director of the National Franchised Dealers Association. NFDA yesterday wrote a letter to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Rt Hon Rishi Sunak MP and Alok Sharma, Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise … [Read more...]
Traders attack new consumer advice
Car dealers and auction houses have fallen out with trading standards officers. “It is disappointing that following a number of responses, including our detailed comments on the draft guidance consultation, the Chartered Trading Standards Institute has ignored the majority of the issues NFDA had outlined alongside other industry trade bodies”, said Sue Robinson, Director of the National … [Read more...]
More buyers looking at used cars
It is positive to see that the used car market grew in the last quarter of the year, said Sue Robinson, Director of the National Franchised Dealers Association. The used car market saw a growth of 2.4% in the last quarter of 2019 with 1,804,343 transactions. Overall in 2019, the used car market finished almost on par with the previous year with a marginal decline of -0.1% and a total of 7,935,105 … [Read more...]
Keep Plug-in grant charged to boost ev take up, say dealers
Car dealers want the plug-in car grant maintained and a revision of vehicle excise duty changed to reflect whole-life emissions counted. “UK motorists should continue to receive incentives to ensure a consistent and successful transition to electric vehicles, in particular, this must include preserving the current plug-in grant”, said Sue Robinson, Director of the National Franchised Dealers … [Read more...]
Driving careers in automotive
It is extremely positive to see the success that Drive My Career has had over the past two years with millions of young people reading about a career in the automotive sector, said Sue Robinson, Director of the National Franchised Dealers Association. It developed Drive My Career in February 2018 and is an industry-first employment initiative which was launched to address franchised retailers’ … [Read more...]
Welsh car buyers most loyal in disappointing 2019
UK car sales last year hit a six-year low and the industry does not expect an early recovery but Welsh buyers were most loyal, writes Robin Roberts. The SMMT said today that overall sales in 2019 were 2.4% below the previous year at 2.31M new models. Consumer confidence, confusion over clean air legislation which is tightening each year and challenging car makers, and the Brexit debate with a … [Read more...]