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I mentioned on Twitter Car Dealers that I had told my rep that I was going to be leaving. It has been something I have been thinking about for a good 12 months and everyone always talks about how they are going to do it and how much they hate AT and they are evil giants. Well no one is doing anything about it. I was waiting for someone to do it first and then I would follow suit...... BUT NO ONE DID IT. So I have done it on my own. You all moan, but still pay your invoice every month don't you? After a VERY long phone conversation and some retention deals, I stuck to my guns and said no. I now have just over 4 weeks left before my adverts come off autotrader. I am going to put a little more time and effort into Facebook. Online classifieds are going to be Motors, RAC cars and maybe ebay and a new website that is currently under construction. I am going to be using the local paper too. I am really excited to see what results are going to come from this and can't wait to see what difference it makes to my profit. I am full prepared if I see a negative impact, if that is the case I will phone my rep and say, 'look, you were right, I am coming back' . But how do I truly know unless I give it a go? If anyone else decides to join me let me know . James

VAT on £2000 profit works out at £333.33, not £400. Every little helps.

You wouldnt need to register for vat until your turnover exceeds 80k a year so i wouldnt worry about that to start with as it wont affect you. You would basically have to pay any income tax on any END OF YEAR profits not per car. For example you may lose some money a car which wipes out a profit that you made on another one. At the end of year you would need to do a self asessment for your motor income and would pay tax accordingly. Depending on what your income is from your full time job bear in mind you could be pushed into the higher tax bracket 40%. Always a good idea to speak to an accountant and get things set up right from the outset. Oh and please dont expect to be making £2000 profit per car...After all expenses even £500 is hopeful these days ! Good luck.

I agree Umesh, Thats why Autotrader try to baffle everybody and quote number of hits/searches, I am more concerned about actual sales not some bored blokes with nothing else to do over xmas but look at pictures of cars and send silly e mails with no intention of buying.

James It's the ONLY way to find out, so well done for having the confidence to PULL OUT! We left Autotrader almost 3 years ago now and we still sell plenty cars, however don't go convincing yourself that when it goes quiet that the answer is to go back to AT!!! When it goes quiet it goes quiet for everyone, the only difference is I don't have a £1500 or worse 5 week AT invoice to deal with when it does go quiet! Well done you. Jim

You could use their quoting system and cover levels ? Their portal works out the best level of cover available and also the premium which I think varies with make and model . So you could charge the customer their quote and supply them with the level of cover warranty wise supply?