MattR

Thanks James. Have Close been as good as their website makes them out to be?

Hi All I know a few have you have taken the finance plunge over the last few weeks and I'm now looking to do the same. I've been trading for 6 years with cash/debit card/ bank transfer transactions only (and the very occasional Zuto Customer) but its becoming very clear I'm missing out on an ever increasing part of the market. I had always been concerned about time wasted with people who would get declined and any other negatives there are to do with finance customers but I think the rewards will more than offset these negatives. I've plenty of experience dealing with it in the past too as I worked in main dealers for 13 years before becoming self employed. The Fca website does make it look a little daunting, are things like the business plan difficult to complete? Any ideas about other bits which may make the application time consuming? Any assistance appreciated!

Gone quiet after a promising start, 2 deposits this week on old stock so no real profit left in them, but good to move them on (assuming they go out of course....)

clutch is adjustable on aygo etc - you should never have one of them with a high bite

As a newbie, do you have a stupid question we can abuse you for?

always sell a couple between xmas and new year, open 27th to 30th, but 10 till 4.

get planning permission for your site for 15-20 houses. Sell the land.

The sort of invoice we all wish we had....

I'd let him do the report if he chooses, but explain its his expense, you will not be paying for the report, and if it sells in the meantime, tough. And that you will not be doing remedial work the AA report may suggest as it has just passed an MOT etc. I would also suggest to him that you are paying the AA Man to find fault, so what do you think he will 'find'. Its a 9 year old car with 103 k on it. And dont take a deposit off him. you'll only be giving it back on saturday afternoon and stopping someone else buying it who wont give a f**k.

it doesnt sound amiss - i'm with barclaycard for my card machine and my debit card charges are 0.29%, which doesnt sound a lot but it soon adds up. Encourage your customer to do bank transfers for balances, I have been doing since January when Barclaycard changed their rates ( was 80p per debit card transaction before) and most (but not all) are fine to do so. If they wont (or cant), then you have to ask for cash (which may have its own bank charges) or just swallow the 0.29% charge. you wont be worse off for asking! I mainly use my card machine now as a deposit machine, then ask for the balance by bank transfer. Its good for your cashflow too, money in the bank before the car goes out rather than waiting 2-3 days for it to come in.

cheers, ive written that down. A useful thing to know

Thanks Nick Its good to see someone follow up a query with the facts.

Might be a bit cheaper, but how many chunks of 3k can you afford to have sitting around not earning just to make a few extra quid in spring? at the 3k range you should be aiming to stock turn 8-10 times a year. keeping a car for 4/5 months stops you selling two or three times in that time. And then of course theres the other issues, batteries go flat, needs another valet, MOT gets shorter etc. But convertibles do sell at this time of year if they are priced very right, if customers are thinking the same as you.

Great value. If its gated, I assume that means fairly secure? Certainly less hassle than having cars littering the streets.

A difficult call for the OP to make, but I think that it was such a quick response that He is thinking the same may happen again when he has it fixed. I have been in the position when you need the workshop to solve a problem quickly and it doesnt always go well. The customer will be watching for the EML for months and then accuse you of not fixing it if it comes on again weeks down the line. Of which there is every chance as its a zafira. They come on for fun on those!

Not for me. I'm happy to test drive when I've established theres a fair chance of a purchase. I'm not always right. Did go out for a drive a few weeks back with a youngster who really wasnt good. Was on the last junction when she pulled out in front of a truck. Its the closest Ive been to a bump in the 20+ years ive been sat in the passenger seat for test drives. It does make you think as a one man band what happens if I break a leg ( or worse) in a bump and cant get to work, the bills keep coming, your insurance goes through the roof and youve got a wrecked car. I'll happily qualify them, but wont be letting someone out in one of my cars just to get a few extra quid

C'mon Benji, we've been here before!

Make sure you buy from BCA. The buyers fee is very reasonable.

I had an 'expert' looking around a 2009 Focus for his mate last saturday. He spent a good few minutes trying to find the bonnet release catch inside......

Good Luck with this one Nick, but does sound like the risk is all down to you, hardly fair.

Correct, EPV. In the meantime Gary, Hold on, it happens eventually. I Dont have Autotrader Price checker, but I'm sure that someone on here may have and therefore be able to guide you on desirability or price pointing

I'd wait for HMRC for the definitive nswer on this one.But I would suspect he has to pay you in full and try to claim it back himself

Another chancer asking for advice. How can I delay giving him money back for 3 weeks because I've spent it all? Get an overdraft, run your business professionally, if you cant afford to refund him, how will you have enough to fix it???? Stop being lazy, go and read the CRA 2015 yourself. If youve been selling for a year you should know what your responsibilities are by now.

If you need the cash because its nearly time for a VAT return, then yes. If you dont need the cash, would you be able to replace the stock? no point in selling to make nothing. if they arent overpriced, then ride it out. Update your pictures to freshen things up online, it gives you something to do!

Oh Well. At least you should have a pot to dip in to for just such a situation