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Internet sales and contactless delivery measures must be put in place to ensure social distancing is maintained, though
Car retailers have been given the green light to start selling and delivering cars again following the coronavirus lockdown – so long as they continue to strictly adhere to social distancing regulations.
In a statement to Car Dealer Magazine, a spokesman for the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) said: “We have asked non-essential shops like car dealerships and showrooms in England to close, unless they provide urgent car repairs and other necessary services.
“They are all able to continue tosell cars remotely and deliver cars, as long as they follow our clear guidance from Public Health England to protect both employees who cannot work from home and their customers.”
The clarification means that retailers set up for online interactions with potential customers can restart both sales discussions and actual selling – so long as all paperwork can be completed remotely.
Meanwhile, anyone who buys a car, or those who are waiting for a car theyhave bought to be delivered, can receive it, again so long as strict social distancing protocols are followed. Since the lockdown began
Autocar has been contacted by several car buyers whose vehicles have arrived in the Uk but which couldn’t be delivered because of the current restrictions.
While it is not yet clear which retailers or manufacturers will look to restart or ramp up operations under the guidelines, there have been several indications that car buyers have begun shopping again in recent weeks.
A weekly car buyer survey by What Car? revealed last week that one in five people researching cars on its website was looking to buy as soon as lockdown ended, while Robert Forrester, CEO of thetop-five Vertu Motors retail group, revealed yesterday that the firm received 366 sales enquiries over the internet and took 50 sales orders yesterday.
The only person who got all his work done by Friday was Robinson Crusoe.
Anything i post over three lines long please assume it is an article lol.
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Looks like we’re back in business, how will motability deal with the remote ordering and delivery?
I think it’s going to be difficult to get motability up & running for anything other than delivering the cars already ordered for the moment.
I’d be due to order from 18th April under normal circumstance so I’d had the automatic lease extension, but, I had pretty much completed looking at which car to get before the lockdown arrived & was just awaiting the Q2 prices to base the final decision on. Now I’m just in limbo watching to see if any new cars may arrive that I couldn’t consider as they’d not yet become available before the lockdown… I can’t go look at them so couldn’t order on of those of course.
As time moves on all my previous research could become too dated, for instance, if the VW ID3 were to arrive on the scheme it would attract my attention but I couldn’t order one as I’ve no idea if the seats would be comfortable, if it’s too low, too cramped, etc.
I was due to order in the last week of March – I’d picked the car, test driven it, negotiated a £500 AP discount with my local dealer and was due to go up on the weekend to say yes, however a couple of days earlier the lockdown started and now….. ??????
A VIRTUAL showroom and minimal contact, contactless delivery measures could mean picking the car up from the dealers as well.. As they just not geared up to deliver everycar and would add costs to the operational and otr. price.
They been doing online chats on youtube, with those in the trade and they seem to think. online will play a big part moving forward.. soon there maybe car vending machines hahaha, deffo a video etc of a car .. but really you need a test drive especially in our case and maybe a law change as the long distance selling rules maybe a problem, as with no test drive maybe some may be unhappy.. when like with vw ceratin things it’s not clear they not included but on the car like mirrorlink etc gotta pay more to get it unlocked..
All i need to do is collect mein and tell them the pin one weeks gone by now since i was suppossed to exchange.. but if we all on lockdown is no point having a brand new car and cannot drive it..
Prob will be by appointment only.. once i get my new car, i’m going to drive to scotland then drive straight back he he he just because i can..
I’m due to pick up my new car but I’m not going to until I’ve seen the new list of what’s available and prices.
Might get mine sooner rather than later. It’s at the dealers ready to collect.
Will be looking for Q2 prices sooner rather than later.
I’m not due to order for 12 months but I’m, like a lot of folks on here, are in the high risk category so I really can’t see myself going to dealers until a vaccine is here but their is a few cars I’ve already seen and sat in that I would be interested in.
1 BMW x1 hybrid ( I have a X1 2.0d at the moment great car and suits all my needs)
2 volvo xc40 ( hybrid or non hybrid (a mate as one, really nice drive))
I cant see it working except for cars waiting to collect/delivery , new orders although we might know what car we like but i think we need to try it to see if we can get in and out it and it is the right car to suit our disability’s/illnesses so i cant see it working for motability
Also the car will just site outside our houses
Although many on motability will be very vulnerable and can’t take direct risk, many are not. There are many on the scheme, with physical or mental health problems, but no underlying health issues that would make them more at risk from the virus than any other not at high risk person.
Although that doesn’t help a lot on the scheme it at least gets motability up and running again.
I think we should call motability and ask what their plan is moving forward.
My car that I ordered is still to arrive. I drive with adaptions, the adaptation company that fits them, is still closed, so I don’t know when I will get my car.
Even when my car is delivered to the dealership, I have to wait for it to be adapted.
Only problem I can see, the car we will be returning at the end of the lease will have little value at present and were does Motability Operation dispose of them without significant losses, at present probably for the next six months they will still be getting an income from our leases. Regarding new customer at this moment in time very few lease companies will be willing to take on disabled customers of limited incomes
My prediction and it is only mine Motability hangs fire for the next 6 months until the market picks up, then they car dispose of the old stock without incurring losses, plus they will still receive the income from our leases. At the end of the day they are a business.
Unfortunately I have suffered a brain injury and occasionally I get confused and often say the wrong thing.
I’ve just rang Marshall BMW as that’s who is supplying my new car and they at present are not adapting the new guidelines as a group.
Motability will be on the phone to motability charity asking for their £500,000,000 back.
A message from Robert Forrester, CEO of Vertu Motors plc
Updated: 20th April, 2020 @17:15
In following HM Government and Public Health England advice, we recently made changes to the delivery of sales and servicing across our dealerships.
While our dedicated teams have always been available to help customers and to discuss their needs via live chat, email and telephone, in all but exceptional circumstances, we decided to postpone any delivery or collection of vehicles due to the lockdown.Following recent clarification, we are now offering assistance to key workers in need of a vehicle, who live within 20 miles of the supplying dealership. We will continue to keep these matters under review and to ensure that we prioritise both colleagues’ and customers’ health and wellbeing as our number one priority.
A large number of our service departments have remained open to assist key workers, essential organisations and vulnerable customers with servicing, repairs and tyre needs. We believe that this is an important service to our local communities and customers.
We continue to monitor and follow advice from Government. We are now beginning to plan for the safe and gradual return to offering a full service through both our sales and service departments. This will include use of PPE, social distancing policies and new working practices.
Robert Forrester, CEO
Looking forward to new list coming and hoping Motability with manufacturers can add more models to choose from( well… hoping!)
How about motability and dealers getting together and selling nearly new stock. It’s extreme times and extreme times call for extreme measures.
This could be offered for a limited time and could allow us to purchase higher trim cars to help get the motor trade industry moving again. I’m not talking about an M3 instead of a 3 series SE, I mean something like a Skoda L&K over an SEL.
Just realised that when I am able to re-order my new car, hopefully within a few months time, my current PiP award have less than a year to run. Does this mean I cannot renew?
How about motability and dealers getting together and selling nearly new stock. It’s extreme times and extreme times call for extreme measures. This could be offered for a limited time and could allow us to purchase higher trim cars to help get the motor trade industry moving again. I’m not talking about an M3 instead of a 3 series SE, I mean something like a Skoda L&K over an SEL.
I think getting more cars on order will help get the production lines up and running
then general public will help fix the leftover used car stock
I’m not certain the general public will be buying too many cars. People will still be working from home so might feel a new car is an unnecessary expense, a large number of people will be struggling financially for months, so again these people will not be rushing out to buy card, especially if they have been living for months on 80% of their salary.
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