[Smoggy]

Managed to find 4 dealers with a vivaro e life elite in unregistered stock.

 

Not one will sell to motability only retail.

 

So frustrating.

 

I would love if motability started acting the big player they are and stepping in for the customer at times.

Topic

[gilders]

@Smoggy have you asked Motability to speak to all the 4 dealerships?

[fwippers]

I spoke to my dealer about this. At present with low stock levels most dealers will only sell to retail. Motability and leasing companies are losing out as the profit margins are lower.

[gilders]

I understand dealers saying “no” to a customer because a customer can’t offer an higher AP, but during this difficult period it would be nice to see Motability customers being able to contact Motability and see if they could talk to the dealership and see if they could come to an agreement.

For example if Motability offered the dealership an extra, let’s say £2k, it might be just enough to persuade them that it’s close enough to the profit they’d receive from a private customer. After all Motability do grants, so if the vehicle is the only suitable option, then a grant could be used as an additional payment on the AP, rather than a discount on the AP. It could open up quite a few more in stock vehicles for Motability customers.

[Headley]

That would only work if the customer was entitled to a means tested grant anyway. Most are not entitled.

Also those extra £2k would soon mount up putting a drain on the charitable side of Motability.

Think people just have to accept that the vehicle market is skewed with limited supply and great demand. Fleet companies such as Motability, hire car fleets, company fleets etc work fine in normal times. However in the current market the manufacturers and to a smaller extent the dealers have the whip hand. Hence they will sell to whoever generates the greatest margin.

can’t really blame them in all fairness with the state of the worldwide market.

[Smoggy]

I’ve spoke to motability about the dealers and forwarded emails with them etc to them and they have passed it onto there dealer liasion side of things.

 

It is against the motability TOS that brands sign up to for a dealer to reject a motability customer in preference of a retail customer without a extremely valid reason.

 

It’s also discrimination picking and choosing who you would sell to.

 

It’s in motabilitys hands now doubt it will get me anywhere but at least the dealers will hopefully be dealt with.

 

 

[Wigwam]

Aside from the agreement that exists between Motability and car suppliers, there is no right to buy in law.  Offering goods for sale does not obligate the seller to sell to any particular person or at all.  In simple terms displaying a car on a forecourt with a price sticker on the windscreen is an ‘invitation to treat”, nothing more.  Obviously refusing to sell on the basis of a buyer’s “protected characteristics” is another matter.

[se]

I found exactly the same a few months ago. My wife rang the dealers to check availability of  vehicles as a private person and told vehicles would be within a 2-3 month period while they transfer stock and prep the vehicles.  Then a short while later, I rang as a Motability customer and were told a minimum 9 months more likely 12 months.

When I mentioned this to a Motability, they were adamant it does not happen!

However, speaking to a VAG group sales guy whom has recently retired. The profit on Motability cards is so low and the paperwork  so involved, they would now only like to sell to private customers.  Many dealers want out of the scheme altogether but fear the bad PR that will come from it.

 

 

 

[Jojoe]

<p style=”text-align: left;”>However, speaking to a VAG group sales guy whom has recently retired. The profit on Motability cards is so low and the paperwork  so involved, they would now only like to sell to private customers.  Many dealers want out of the scheme altogether but fear the bad PR that will come from it.

</p>

This would explain why SOME of the sales staff who deal with Motability can be clueless, we’ve had this a number of times. The Motability dealer is frequently the youngest most inexperienced member of staff. Apart from our local Ford dealer who had the same guy dealing with Motability for 20 years.

Enyaq EV

[rox]

Motability agree a price with the manufacturer, not the dealer and the dealer can buy cars direct from the manufacturer, as well as placing factory orders for customers cars with the manufacturer. At whatever price they sell cars, they order themselves, is up to them, often under the mrp. Clearly right now they won’t sell as low as mb paying for them. So that’s the real issue.

It’s not them being discriminatory, it them saying to you not at the price mb are offering or have agreed with the manufacturer, on cars they have ordered for themselves to sell..

To get one at that price you need to place a factory order with the manufacturer and they will act as the broker between the 3 parties, The manufacturer, mb and us the leasee, for that they get a small fee..

Them refusing to do that would be discrimination. That’s one reason i believe some car manufacturers have removed themselves from the scheme altogether and i don’t see them rushing to rejoin anytime soon..

I just left the scheme and bought a car that a dealer had on order, got a great deal and 0% apr.

Not from my local dealer, they had no cars on order and said sept/oct at earliest. so got one from a dealer 70 miles away in Dudley, which from paying the deposit arrived in 4 weeks.

I do get your frustration but i only see it getting worse for the scheme, unless mb offer more £££ for cars which will mean us paying higher ap’s. Which is one of the main reasons i left the scheme now and had been looking to maybe do so for quite a while.

In the last few years some car prices have risen 26% and how much has the allowance we get risen, a few pounds evey year. it just ain’t kept up. Now energy prices have risen also, so the costs of making cars will increase even more. Where this leaves the scheme is for me not viable or justifiable anymore to lease a car.. with such high ap’s.

se you starteted a thread on vauxhall’s q3 ap’s and they have risen so maybe an idea to place an order now.

I feel sorry for those who want to join the scheme and have no car or those who extended for 5 years and have been told they must order something asap or leave the scheme. MBO don’t really care, actual cars on the scheme have drop by 75% but they made bumper profits and Mb the charity are giving away 50m to other disabled causes from the profits from us and not directly back into the scheme.

 

 

[Author]

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