Aftersales success with older vehicles under the microscope at AM Live

A dedicated aftersales session at AM Live will focus on how dealers can look to capture older vehicles for servicing to help prepare their workshops for the future.

AM Live is being held on November 9 once again at the NEC and this aftersales session will feature insights and data from Quentin Le Hetet, country director at aftermarket intelligence business GiPA UK.

Paul Jordan, head of Secret Service, will also be sharing some viewpoints on how the UK’s aftersales market was looking to target older vehicles back during the pandemic in 2020 and how things have progressed since then.

Le Hetet will be able to show key trends underpinned by GiPA’s data for how the market has been developing to inform where things are headed in the future.

He said: “The car parc is ageing. Yes car sales are recovering and that’s good, but even with new car sales recovery, the ageing of the parc will just slow down, it’s not going to stop.

“Vehicles that fall out of the 0-3 year-old category are going to become increasingly important to focus on.”

Jordan said the current picture generally with franchised dealers is that “everything is rosy in the garden” with healthy workshop volumes.

However, he thinks there will be a “crisis point” in the middle of next year and towards the end of 2024 as production for new car sales ramps back up.

Jordan said: “Where are we going and has anything changed in the last three years?

“It’s not just about extending the service car parc for older vehicles, but also expanding out to all makes and models, rather than just sticking to your franchise.”

That sort of approach requires long term planning, with the ability to prepare the backbone of the workshops with the right training and getting new blood on board.

Le Hetet said: “I will be showing some predictions on what may happen with the car parc and the impact and the growing share of 4-9 year old cars.”

The presentation will also explore the growing impact of electric vehicles (EV) on workshops and what will happen if franchised workshops let petrol and diesel vehicles slip away in the coming years.

Not only will the event offer a packaged schedule of seminar content featuring over 40 speakers, there will also be over 60 innovative suppliers under one roof for delegates to explore the latest innovations and benchmark the best solutions for their business.

• Explore the AM Live agenda at www.automotivemanagementlive.co.uk/whats-on

• Register now for your free ticket to AM Live on November 9 at the NEC.