Tag Archives: UK garages

garage services

Yet another ‘rip-off garage’ survey; this time in West Sussex

How much did you say?My blood boils when I read about bad garage surveys. The latest states that only one out of eight garages tested by West Sussex Trading Standards carried out all the required work on a test car with known problems.

Imagine the safety implications here. Not just the vulnerability of many female motorists but the accidents that badly repaired or inadequately serviced cars can cause for us all.

We can’t prove it for obvious reasons but we suspect that many women on their own don’t complain because they don’t realise they’ve been ripped off or, even worse, despatched with a car that’s unsafe.

Why am I surprised by rip-off garages?

No-one should be surprised that garage surveys like this produce these such shameful results across the UK. This is an unregulated industry where
+ anyone can open a garage
+ mechanics don’t have to be qualified
+ the industry’s Motor Codes scheme covers dealerships/garages that opt-in (and bad garages don’t for obvious reasons); an added complication is that HM Government runs this ‘OFT approved code’ scheme and is reliant on the subscriptions from it
+ the Trading Standards recommended scheme ‘Buy With Confidence’ merely covers customer service issues (not any measurable quality workmanship that should underpins the business).

Even worse, few motorists realise this or the risk they run when choosing any garage.

FOXY would like all car mechanics to be accredited

Why is it that gas fitters, plumbers and electricians need to be qualified to practise their trade but mechanics don’t? Yet they can repair safety issues such as the brakes on our cars.

The perfect solution is the Institute of the Motor Industry’s ATA accreditation scheme where mechanics are assessed, sign an ethical commitment and have to do it all over again three years later. Regardless of whether they are dealership or garage employees, all mechanics should be required to take this test before working on our cars.

And what a shame WSTS is unable to publish the names of the offending garages here. When we’ve asked about this in the past Trading Standards have said ‘we can’t tell you for legal reasons…’ which is a cop out we feel – knowing how many vulnerable women are prey to the unscrupulous and/or incompetent garage staff out there.

West Sussex garage survey details

West Sussex County Council’s Press Release PR4996 confirms that a selection of garages were targeted on this occasion following complaints from members of the public. This is worrying in itself because it indicates a history of shoddy workmanship rather than a one-off mistake which can be forgiven. A test car was prepared beforehand by Trading Standards and then taken to each garage for a service and pre MOT check.

Examples of rip-off garage behaviour this time include
+ an oil filter which was charged for but not changed
+ a tyre was said to be damaged when it wasn’t
+ a part of an exhaust was said to need replacing when it wasn’t faulty
+ an engine was overfilled with oil (which can be as costly as too little oil)
+ extra work was done and charged for without permission
+ low tyre pressures were not checked/topped up (with potential safety implications here).

Formal action is now being considered by Trading Standards against four of the garages.

Christine Field, County Council Cabinet Member for Public Protection, said: “Motorists need to be able to trust their garages won’t exploit them, as most people are unlikely to be able to check the claims for themselves. In the present economic climate, people are feeling the pinch, and need to be able to rely on work being done competently.”

We wholeheartedly agree Christine but the only way we’ll ever see this is through industry regulation. In the meantime, the best solution is for female motorists to join FOXY Lady Drivers Club so we can identify, monitor and share the details of the best garages together. In this way women drivers can steer clear of the rest (and tell their menfolk of course).

To find out more about this subject read FOXY’s Good Garage Guide.

To find out which garages have signed the FOXY Promise ‘to never overcharge, patronise or sell women services they don’t need’ in West Sussex please visit the FOXY Choice website and its female friendly garage network.

To tell us about good, bad or indifferent garages/dealerships in West Sussex please leave your female garage feedback here.

If you have a problem with a garage, you can contact the marvellous Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on 08454 040506. But even they won’t know the inside story here and what the many logos and competing quality schemes actually need. For informed advice, information, assistance and support female motorists can also contact FOXY Lady Drivers Club (FOXY as in shrewd, canny and discerning which is what women need to be when choosing a garage)…

We’re also a not for profit and 100% independent company which means we really are doing it all for the motorist. If you’d like to know more, read what the Daily Telegraph said about us (and Mandy, a Scottish widow in particular) and this very issue.

FOXY

motoring

50,000 jobs at risk – don’t do it

50,000 jobs are at risk if the Government decides to scrap the annual MOT test in favour of the EU’s every other year model. On behalf of UK women drivers everywhere… please say ‘No’ Justine.

Government proposals to end annual MOTs would put at risk up to 50,000 jobs in the retail motor trade disproportionately hitting apprenticeships, young employees and independent businesses, according to new research by Pro-MOTe.

In their report, “An MOT system that works”, Pro-MOTe explains that:
* Almost 150,000 people are employed in the UK as a direct result of MOT testing with 105,000 jobs in 21,000 testing stations and a further 42,000 in tyre and parts businesses;
* The retail motor industry employs a higher proportion of skilled workers (38%) compared to the UK as a whole (11%), and a higher proportion of 17 to 24 year-olds with more than 14,000 apprenticeships starting in 2009/10;
* MOT-related activity within the retail motor trade is valued at £2.35 billion.  Replacing the current 3-1-1 MOT regime in which cars and vans are tested at three years and every year thereafter to a 4-2-2 system in place in most of the rest of the EU would reduce income from fees and repair work by £1.06 billion;
* A reduction of trade in such a labour-intensive industry would put between 25,000 and 40,000 MOT tester jobs at risk with a further 8,000 jobs in related activity vulnerable too.

The Pro-MOTe report follows its earlier studies that found that reducing MOT frequency would risk causing up to 250 more deaths every year on UK roads and would cost the motorist an additional £57 a year.  Recent opinion polls have shown that the proposed changes are not supported by drivers themselves.

We are told that the Government will announce its decision tomorrow. One last attempt to influence them then…

How can they opt for anything other than the status quo with jobs and lives on the agenda? But why has it taken them SO LONG to say so, causing so many people unnecessary stress in the industry and the time it takes us all to canvass for common-sense. We don’t need the EU to tell us how to run the UK motor industry; we’re different from France and Germany, for example, and we know best for UK motorists in this instance.

FOXY

garage services, women drivers

UK garages don’t get the female purse

Just three in ten women take their own vehicles for a service, compared with seven in ten men.

New research from Bosch Car Service confirms that women are doing all they can to avoid garage visits for fear of being overcharged and patronised for being female.

30% of the female sample said that they take their own cars for a service with 35% stating they were not confident of a good experience from a car service.

This is because too few UK garages are genuinely female friendly places to visit.

“It is clear that there is still a feeling of discomfort amongst women drivers towards taking their cars in for a service, which could be why they are leaving it up to men” said Bosch Car Service Concept Manager, Howard Price.

And why FOXY Choice’s ‘Female Friendly’ marketing services are designed to identify, promote and monitor garages and dealerships that have gone out of their way to be measurably better (in terms of quality), to provide services that address women’s needs and expectations and that genuinely welcome females.

But just because a garage can demonstrate measurable quality doesn’t mean that it’s female friendly. This is because too many men think that men and women should be treated alike; as if women want to be treated like men!

All this can easily be sensed during phone contact, when visiting websites, when making  email enquiries and via female garage feedback – providing it’s genuine and independent…

When will the industry look long and hard at the number of female employees in garages, for starters? This is the UK’s last male bastion and a perfectly valid reason why women find so many of them intimidating and unfriendly places.

It’s time garages, dealerships and bodyshops got their Female Friendly act together behind the scenes. What FOXY Choice does is unique and specialist, requiring garages to sign up to our FOXY Promise ‘to never overcharge, patronise or sell women services they don’t need’ as a minimum standard. We then monitor this by encouraging genuine female feedback via the independent FOXY Choice website.

But just by saying they are a female friendly garage, women will not start to queue at the door. Nor does it mean that they understand what women want. There’s a lot more entailed and it may well mean they need to change the way they do things for women. Yes, they need to be seen to welcome local women with open arms but many will have to change their business culture in the process.

Employ more females for starters but make sure their needs are catered for – many do not stay in the industry because they don’t feel welcome.  Like many female customers for the same reason…

Garages also need to respond to the needs of busy women for stressbusting and time-saving services.

So garages need to work harder for women to be the richer for their efforts. By benchmarking performance standards to FOXY Choice approved Female Friendly levels women will be reassured and begin to trust garages, dealerships and bodyshops where they know they are understood and appreciated.

Once reassured they will recommend Female Friendly garages to others, men will be (secretly) delighted to share these higher standards and garages purporting to be good but not meeting FOXY standards won’t attract the female purse in future.

Bring it on guys – you know it is the right thing to do in the garage industry today…

FOXY

female friendly, garage services, marketing to women, women drivers

How garages can win new business in 2010

Despite the doom and gloom of 2010 there are new market opportunities just around the corner that many garages may not have considered yet.

For example, more motorists than ever are keeping cars longer and need trustworthy garages to keep them running sweetly; they may also need replacing soon. These motorists might have been used to selling their car before its third birthday and have little experience dealing with MOTs or car servicing that might previously have been covered by a 3 year dealership warranty.

Another big audience is that of women drivers who account for some 50% of garage customers but often dread the ultra-male garage experience come MOT, car servicing or repair times. More than 20 million Google searches were being made for female friendly businesses during 2009 and to see which local garages are promoting themselves as female friendly online you just enter ‘female friendly garage’ and your post town into Google.

New car dealerships need to attract garage service customers as well; this is an important way to retain customer contact, earn well into the process and then introduce the customer to the car showroom at the right time, knowing that every new and used car sale counts…

The following business tips are specifically designed to remind garages and dealerships how to maximise their business revenues during a downturn.

1.   Put existing customers first, ahead of new ones – they are cheaper to keep in touch with and they can influence others.

2.   Emphasise a ‘value for money’ message – no matter your brand, saving money is essential in a downturn.

3.   Encourage a topical ‘maintain and repair’ culture – running a well-maintained older car can be both cost effective and environmentally friendly (and it is the lifeblood of your garage business).

4. Explain why OE parts are better than cheaper alternatives – just in case motorists might be considering saving money here without understanding the consequences

5.   Consider including emissions checks to reduce fuel costs.

6.   Emphasise impressive mpg performance, low VED & insurance group ratings to help sell a used car quickly – low running costs are important in a downturn.

7.   Do you review your products and services regularly – can you add value for the same price or economise and charge less in future?

8.   Make sure that you are always seen to be on your customer’s side. Never patronise, overcharge or try to sell anything that isn’t wanted or needed.

9.  Test ‘exclusive’ offers and loyalty incentives – then measure the response. If at first this doesn’t work, try it again – it takes time for new things to take off and it might not be the right month for his or her MOT and/or next car service.

10.  Don’t forget the growth in online shopping and the need for search engine visibility here – as well as your website, is your business name getting noticed by future customers in news PR, are you ever mentioned in blogs, on social networking websites or as a Twitter tweet?

For more information about female friendly business marketing services for garages, fastfits and car dealerships by all means contact me at FOXY Choice via fcsales@foxychoice.com.

FOXY