Nfda Dealer Attitude Survey Results Winter 2012/2013

NFDA NEWS

8 March 2013

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‘We represent, you benefit’ / Dear Member
The Winter 2012/2013 NFDA Dealer Attitude Survey results were published this week. The survey received a 26% response rate and the results reveal an overall improvement in the day to day relationship between dealers and manufacturers. Please see below a summary of the results.
Also this week, the new car and commercial vehicle sales figures were released for February. Month on month the new car sales were up 7.9% and as a whole, new commercial vehicle sales were up by 5%, with van registrations up by 11.8% in the month and truck registrations falling by 16.3% for February.
Looking to the week ahead, the FSA and HM Treasury have both published consultations on the move of consumer credit from the OFT to the new FCA. The NFDA will be reviewing the consultation and responding in detail. We will also give members a summary of the proposals shortly.
Just a reminder of two major achievements we have recently obtained; firstly, BIS have announced that they are going to introduce collective redress. The new rules will allow trade associations, such as the NFDA, to take action on behalf of a group of dealers.
Secondly, following extensive lobbying by the NFDA with the European Commission, they have recently announced that they are publishing a green paper which will look at the whole area of unfair business to business commercial practices. The Commission intend to put measures in place to improve business to business relationships. We will be responding to this in due course.
Sue Robinson, Director
Tel: 0207 307 3422
Email:
Twitter: @NFDASueRobinson
IN THIS ISSUE:

• NFDA DEALER ATTITUDE SURVEY RESULTS WINTER 2012/2013
• NEW CAR SALES FIGURES FEBRUARY
• NEW COMMERCIAL VEHICLE SALES FIGURES FEBRUARY
• DVLA UPDATE
• DVLA ANNOUNCEMENT FOR AFRL USERS
• OMBUDSMAN PUBLISHES LATEST COMPLAINTS DATA ON INDIVIDUAL FINANCIAL BUSINESSES
• HMRC BRIEFING ON CHANGES TO IMPORTING VEHICLES
• NEWS DIGEST
• DIARY DATES
• NFDA AUTUMN BALL – SAVE THE DATE

NFDA DEALER ATTITUDE SURVEY RESULTS WINTER 2012/2013

Franchised vehicle dealers believe there has been an overall improvement in the day to day relationship with their manufacturer. Sales incentive programmes and improved profitability boosted partnerships, according to the NFDA Dealer Attitude Survey Winter 2012/2013 results.

The NFDA 2012 Dealer Attitude Survey, published today (Monday 4 March 2013), shows that there has been an increase in the overall value of the franchise.

• When asked about the overall value of the franchised, the all dealer average increased from 6.6 to 6.9.
• Land Rover, BMW, Kia, Mini and Audi were recorded as the top 5 franchises.
• The least valued franchises by respondents are Alfa Romeo, Renault, Mitsubishi, Subaru and Seat.

However, the trend towards diminishing dealer/manufacturer relationships, highlighted in the Summer 2012 Dealer Attitude Survey, took a turn for the better:

• When questioned about the partnership with their manufacturer 62% of dealers increased their rating.
• When dealers were asked to rate their manufacturer’s sales incentive programmes the results showed an increase of 0.2. In addition, 86% of respondents scored on or above this mark.

Also profit and profitability ratings have improved slightly in this survey with dealers showing less concern about the standards imposed on their dealerships:

• When rating the profit return by representing their franchise, 63% of networks improved their score.
• When asked about the future profitability of their business 67% of dealers increased their score.
• When questioned about the dealer standards set by manufacturers compared with the return on investment/reward, the all dealer average increased from 2.9 to 3.0 with 67% of dealers increasing the rating since the last survey.

Manufacturer/Dealer relationships appear to have improved in recent months with new models and sales incentives boosting dealer profitability. Despite ailing sales in the rest of Europe the UK car market remains buoyant and manufacturers are keen to bolster through rewarding higher sales volumes.

However manufacturers continue to take an aggressive stance when setting targets. Many dealers feel they have little ability to negotiate with manufacturers on targets.

The NFDA gather a vast amount of information but historically have not analysed it in full detail. We are now working with Deloittes who will dig deeper into the figures and provide an analytical overview which will be extremely beneficial to both dealers and manufacturers.

For a full copy of the results please email your request to

NEW CAR SALES FIGURES – FEBRUARY

It is positive that new car sales were up in February for the twelfth month in a row.

New car sales figures, released this week, show month on month sales were up 7.9% compared to February 2012. Fleet registrations decreased by 4.4% last month whilst private registrations increased by 28.9%.

In previous years February has tended to report a low market in unit numbers, particularly in retail sales, as consumers wait for the plate change on the 1 March. Therefore it is encouraging that February experienced such increased sales with the market supported by strong manufacturer deals and offers that are encouraging consumers to buy.

We expect market growth to continue at a similar level during March with dealers already reporting boosted sales. There continues to be a strong demand from consumers.

NEW COMMERCIAL VEHICLE SALES FIGURES – FEBRUARY

It is encouraging to see that van registrations improved in February, although truck sales continued to disappoint last month.

New commercial vehicle figures released this week show overall sales rose 5% in February. Heavy truck registrations decreased by 16.3% last month, whilst van registrations increased by 11.8%.

The poor truck sales in February may indicate that businesses still feel a sense of uncertainly about the economy and many businesses hold little hope in what this month’s Budget will have to offer them. The introduction of Euro 6 legislation at the end of the year was hoping to boost sales of the last few Euro 5 engined trucks available and this may still happen later this year but there is no evidence of this so far in 2013.

Van sales continue to improve suggesting confidence in the service industries who are one of the main procurers of this type of vehicle. Until recently many businesses have put off buying a new vehicle due to economic conditions but can no longer delay as their vehicle ages with consequent effect on repair and maintenance costs. The market is also being supported by strong manufacturer deals and offers that are encouraging businesses to buy.

DVLA UPDATE

Progress to close the regional DVLA offices goes on at pace. To be able to handle the closures in October/November of this year, the DVLA will be ceasing to supply tax discs to dealers on the AFRL system from June.

From July all new vehicle registrations on the AFRL system will have the road tax disc distributed direct from Swansea. This process is running at least 3 months in advance of the closure of regional offices to be assured that the system works. During the Autumn period many other services such as vehicle class changes (Motability to private tax) will be transferred to the Post Office and later in the year so will cherished transfers.

Dealers acquiring their AFRL tax discs direct from Swansea will now have the choice to have the tax disc sent to the registered keeper, the dealership premises or the fleet operator. The legislation is also being changed to allow new vehicles to be put on the road without tax discs for the first 14 days after date of registration. There will also be a permanent advance registration system on AFRL allowing dealers to tax vehicles up to 14 days in advance of the registration date, thereby having tax discs at the dealership at the time of the vehicles collection. Any further information please contact Stephen Latham on 07515 975157 or email

DVLA ANNOUNCEMENT FOR AFRL USERS

The DVLA have advised that due to Easter falling on one of the busiest registration periods the Agency will extend the advance parameters to the maximum 9 days from Friday 22 March to aid completion of registrations for 31 March.

Also, as previously advised by the DVLA, the advanced registration over the Easter Bank Holiday weekend will be increased to 6 days from Wednesday 27 March to complete AFRL registration due on Tuesday 2 April.

If you have any queries relating to this notice please contact Tracy Chaves at the DVLA on 01792 788296.

OMBUDSMAN PUBLISHES LATEST COMPLAINTS DATA ON INDIVIDUAL FINANCIAL BUSINESSES

The Financial Ombudsman Service today releases the latest six-monthly complaints data relating to individual financial businesses - including banks, insurance companies and investment firms.
The data published on the ombudsman's website details consumer complaints handled by the ombudsman service between 1 July and 31 December 2012. This includes the number of complaints received about individual businesses and the percentage of complaints the ombudsman service upheld in the consumer's favour against those businesses.
During the six-month period, the ombudsman service took on a record total of 283,251 new complaints - a 110% increase on the previous six months. 95% of these cases came from 197 financial businesses - out of more than 100,000 businesses covered by the ombudsman.
Complaints about payment protection insurance (PPI) made up three quarters (74%) of the total complaints referred to the ombudsman during the second half of 2012 - with 211,885 new PPIcomplaints (compared to 85,562 in the previous period). Five financial services groups accounted for 78% of all new PPI cases received between 1 July and 31 December 2012. In total, the ombudsman has received more than 600,000 complaints about PPI.
Across all individual businesses included in the data, the uphold rate for PPI complaints ranged from the ombudsman finding in the consumer's favour 97% of the time, to businesses where only 6% of complaints were upheld against them.
Commenting on the complaint statistics released today, Natalie Ceeney, chief executive and chief ombudsman, said:
The number of PPI complaints has continued to increase at unprecedented levels and we are now regularly taking on around 2,000 new cases each day. Over the last year or so, we have geared up substantially to deal with these record complaint numbers and we are now resolving more cases each week than ever before.
However, as the complaint levels show no sign of slowing, consumers are increasingly having to wait longer to get their complaints sorted - with many businesses still continuing to cause unnecessary delays.
Where businesses have shown a real commitment to better customer service and diligent complaints handling - including actively engaging with the ombudsman - cases are resolved more quickly and easily, to the benefit of everyone."
Look at the complaints data now available on individual financial businesses.
Source: Financial Ombudsman Service
HMRC BRIEFING ON CHANGES TO IMPORTING VEHICLES
Bringing vehicles into the UK from abroad - the way you notify HMRC is changing
HMRC invite you to an event where you can find out more about the changes which take effect from 15 April 2013, including a preview of the Notificationof Vehicle Arrivals (NOVA) online system. You will also have the opportunity to ask any questions that you might have about the changes. Please find details of the event below.
Date: 19 March 2013
Time: 16.30 – 19.00
Venue: 100 Parliament Street, Westminster, London, SW1A 2BQ
Due to limited space available at the eventHMRC need to know if you plan to attend by 12 March. Please email you would like to attend.
From 15 April 2013 you will be legally obliged to make a notification to HMRC within 14 days of new and used vehicles arriving in the UK. Any VAT due must be paid or accounted for before the vehicle can be registered and licensed by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) or the Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA - for vehicles registered inNorthernIreland).
To support this change HMRC are introducing a new online notification system called Notification of Vehicle Arrivals (NOVA). This will provide the DVLA/DVA with up to date information about the notification and will make sure they do not register any vehicle until any VAT due has been paid or accounted for.
You can find more information about NOVA on the HMRC website at
NEWS DIGEST
House of Common Transport Select Committee - further to our news item last week outlining the key points of the House of Commons Transport Select Committee Inquiry where the NFDA gave evidence, please find click on the link below for the full report:

Vauxhall claims it will overtake Ford 'within three years' - While the biggest UK car makers are trying to produce more prestigious cars to elevate their brands the biggest UK car traders are dumping holdings in volume cars.
Source: AM On-line
Pre-registration activity to increase says Ford boss– Dealers have been warned pre-registration activity in the UK will increase this year compared to last by Ford of Britain boss Mark Ovenden.
Source: AM On-line
Geneva Motor Show 2013: Nissan announces focus on smaller cars - Nissan has promised to launch 15 models in Europe over the next three years with a renewed emphasis on "core" B and C segments as opposed to its crossover vehicles that have had such dramatic impact on brand sales.
Source: AM On-line
Car groups in drive to pick up trade– Some of the world’s biggest car companies are poised to invest billions of Euros to upgrade their product range in an attempt to persuade cash strapped European consumers and businesses to purchase vehicles again.
Source: Financial times
UK leads way at motor show as market defies Europe’s slump – Industry’s leaders back British, as further years of pain are forecast on the Continent.
Source: Daily Telegraph
The car that brakes if it is about to hit a cyclist – Volvo has launched a revolutionary safety device that scans for cyclists and automatically brakes if a collision is imminent.
Source: The Daily Mail
Car groups in drive to pick up trade – Some of the world’s biggest car companies are poised to invest billions of Euros to upgrade their product range in an attempt to persuade cash strapped European consumers and businesses to purchase vehicles again.
Source: The Daily Telegraph
DIARY DATES
THURSDAY 14 MARCH – NFDA SOUTH WEST DEALER FORUM, HOLIDAY INN, FILTON, BRISTOL
THURSDAY 21 MARCH – NFDA NORTHERN DEALER FORUM, DE VERE DARESBURY PARK, WARRINGTON
NFDA AUTUMN BALL –SATURDAY 5 OCTOBER – THE GROVE HOTEL, CHANDLER’S CROSS, HERTFORDSHIRE