Car dealers pushed hard to realise the benefits of car buyers’ increased interest in used cars during May – with the number of prospecting calls up by 21% during the month.
Close Brothers Motor Finance has exceeded last year’s fundraising record and raised £33,500 for Make-A-Wish and Cancer Research UK.
New 5G mobile networks could “revolutionise” some aspects of online motor retail and how dealers present vehicles, says iVendi.
Auto Trader’s annual turnover rose 8% to £355.1 million in 2018 as its grew its average profit per retailer forecourt by 9% to £1,844.
DealTrak is following up the recruitment of five new faces and and the completion of several internal promotions with a recruitment drive to fill nine new roles in preparation for its "biggest year-to-date".
Auto Trader data recorded a 14% rise in car buyers searching for electric vehicles (EVs) during May, but the 2012 Ford Focus Estate emerged as the online marketing platform’s fastest-selling car.
Auto Windscreens has announced that Rupert Armitage will step down from his position as managing director, as former operations director James MacBeth takes up the role.
Cazoo has announced it has signed a number of commercial partnership agreements with BCA to meet its vehicle logistics, refurbishment and disposal requirements.
Activate Group (AGL) has announced the creation of a new body shop division - Activate Accident Repair - following a £3m investment and creating 200 jobs.
Autotech Recruit has branched into Northern Ireland following increasing demand from garages for temporary vehicle technicians and MOT testers to fill positions as a result of the ongoing skills shortage.
Brexit is yet to have an impact on used car values in the UK according to Cap HPI’s latest analysis of the UK automotive sector.
Auto Service Finance (ASF) won its second FinTech award this time at the Credit Strategy’s Credit Awards 2019 in the Alternative Lender of the Year category.
The digital age has empowered consumers with a wealth of information. Where once automotive dealers shouldered the weight of the customer journey from start to finish, that script has now been flipped.
Specialist Motor Finance (SMF) has announced the appointment of Jim Cowell to the senior role of business development manager with the company.
Cazana director of valuations Rupert Pontin has claimed that its data suggests there is ‘no evidence’ to support suggestions of a significant decline in used car values in recent months.
CitNOW has been ranked the UK’s eighth fastest-growing UK exporters in The Sunday Times WorldFirst SME Export Track 100.
Car buyers interest in electric vehicles (EVs) peaked following disruptive protests by environmental activists Extinction Rebellion in London last month.
Fix Auto franchisee to develop new 13,000sq ft site Fix Auto’s Leeds South franchisees have completed the business’s relocation to a new 13,000 square foot site in the city. Owners Stephen and Sam Smith have equipped the new facility to carry out heavy and structurally damaged vehicle repairs alongside the express repairs the previous Leeds repair centre serviced. Two paint booths have been installed alongside a vehicle track-movement system to ensure the repair capacity is increased to 160 vehicles a month. However, the pair have now revealed the move is just a stepping stone after announcing new ambitious plans to develop a bespoke repair centre in the heart of the city. Plans have been submitted to develop a purpose-built 14,000 square foot centre on a recently-purchased 43,000 square foot brownfield site, which is close to the city’s arterial road network. Sam Smith said: “We had high hopes for our Leeds repair centre when we opened three years ago, but we never envisaged just how things would take off. “The high demand for repairs has been the driver behind relocating into a larger building, which gives us greater capacity for now. “This latest move is hopefully just a stepping stone until our plans to build our own new repair centre are complete. “If all goes well, we could be moving into our purpose-built repair centre by the end of 2020.” Ian Pugh of Fix Auto UK said: “Fix Auto Leeds is one of our many success stories. Establishing a business, relocating it and then revealing plans to develop a new site and all within three years is some going even by our franchisees’ standards. “You have to congratulate Sam and Stephen, it’s a great opportunity and I am looking forward to see how this one progresses over the coming months.”
Franchised dealers need to recruit more technicians, target increased retail work and address poor workshop utilisation to buck the trend of “an institutionalised acceptance of low overhead absorption”.
Used car values have experienced their most severe May decline since Cap HPI’s records began in 2012 and the heaviest monthly drop since December 2014.
