EPV

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Posts posted by EPV

  1. Posted

    6 hours ago, Jaime said:

    I know 4 years is not alot of experience but I think it's enough to understand what goes on. I work for SKODA and as I said, I want to work for myself instead of working for someone who reaps the benefits of the full profit margins. I also find it very interesting too. I really want to provide customers with top customer service and deal with them how I want to deal with them with no restrictions.

    I know VAT comes out of the profit but that is when I am VAT registered not part-time. I just want to know about things related to part-time as I am taking this at one step at a time.

    If you dont want to help then just skip this thread, all I want is guidance.

    “Poor me, nobody wants to give me free advice”

    Now I know you’re probably not thinking like that but that’s how you’re starting to come over mate. 

    I have found the best way to get the most out of this forum is to try and figure shit out for myself and if I really can’t find the answer, help will be given. As said above, there are dozens of “new traders” a year on this forum and many never return. 

    Self warrant. You warrant yourSELF.  There’s a thread literally next door to this one about this very subject. Talk of keeping a pot by and paying for WARRANTy claims yourSELF?

    Think of it as a rite of passage, you have to wade through the salty old fuckers who have been worn down by the industry before you get to the enthusiastic ones who are still happy to talk about the job on here after having a day at it. Or they are so busy running a successful firm they have little time to help. 

    Without this forum i’d be at least a year behind my own personal progress, it’s genuinely a gold mine. There’s a guide on “how to” at the top of this forum that covers the basics like what you’ll need. 

    Good luck with it. Find out as much as you can by spending a week reading this forum’s last 100 threads. That’s what I did when I started 18 months ago and I didn’t have any experience in the trade at all. Zero. You have 4 years. Then when you have attempted something and half fucked it up (you will) ask on here and you’ll get help. 

    • Like 1

  3. Posted

    Welcome and good luck.

    No planning permission required as you are not changing the use of the building. Keep your neighbours sweet or keep your activity on the QT and you'll have less grief long term.

    You'll come to accept that inspections are rarely worth jack shit. I have bought vehicles with a sea of green ticks on the sheet and had a DMF issue and I've bought a car that had a misfire and a 200 mile road trip magically cured the problem, never to be seen again. I expect most traders would prefer they didn't charge us £40 to have some half baked div prod about with a car and then carry out some guesswork on a bit of paper.

    As for access to trade prices, I assume you mean guide prices, these will be listed on the auction catalogue.

    Given this will be a sideline for you, you may wish to attend auctions, find something that needs a bit of TLC, that is putting off other bidders and do the work yourself.

     

    • Like 1

  4. Posted

    18 minutes ago, Rory RSC said:

    They can cancel them even after sending the payment and you seeing it leave if they wanted to. Negligible chance but i won't let anyone go until money shows in my account and ask anyone collecting a car to have made payment in advance not turn up in the office pissing around with wifi, bank fobs etc.

    Santander seem to block every customer payment and then text about 2 hours later asking if they have sent it, seen it etc. They could cancel it then if they wanted and be a couple of hours from you. Small risk, small chance but personally not one I will take.

    Indeed.

    I used to let people go but now I have got a better rate from a card merchant, I'm happier to sacrifice £20-£50 per transaction to put it through the machine, get it paid next day and know the money is there and safe. 

  5. Posted

    I don't clean the engine but anyone who says they prefer to see leaves and gunge in the engine bay is a liar. When it goes on a ramp for it's test and it's PDI Mr customer, any leaks are spotted and fixed. If you are worried we are hiding something, probably best you don't buy anything from us. 

  9. Posted

    Viva the revolution!

    I don't know why people feel like putting their Che Guevara shirt on and try and drive people to revolt. It's not council tax, or income tax, or a state entitlement, it's a privately owned firm that charge what they like. You either have it, or you don't. So, pack it in fucking moaning and get on with selling cars.

    • Like 3

  10. Posted

    1 hour ago, David Horgan said:

    BCA will clear the finance , sometimes this happens , Depends how you feel though I suppose , If the worst happens they will have to take it back from you. 

    But I wouldnt worry really , time its prepped and pictured it will have clearance . 

    This.

  12. Posted

    2 hours ago, tradegirl said:

    No, small trader.
    To be fair, one was loose plug under the seat which threw up an airbag light on the test drive when they slid the seat all the way forward, and then the rear wiper was leaking water inside the tailgate an hour after they left. This after 500 miles of use (DPF regen), Sytner health check, MOT and clean PDI. Sod's law. Customer didn't want to come back down for repairs, so reimbursed labour etc.

    The other was on a £2000 2010 Focus. Full clean (legit) MOT 50 or so miles prior to sale. She called 2 weeks after sale to complain about a knocking she'd heard the first few days. But she continued driving the car for 2 weeks :rolleyes: She was advised it was a ball joint, and indeed it was, but it was a noise we'd never heard before when prepping the car. She said she never hit any potholes. Again clean MOT, PDI, and car was thoroughly road tested. Easier to replace whole track arm, then replaced the other because I'd rather not see her again if imbalances creep up.

    Incidentally, both buyers bought the cars for a song, so...I guess it serves me right for not sticking to my guns on the price.

    Had 4 returns in 6 years (and 1 chancer), so...fingers crossed.

    James, unfortunately most people want the world. A mechanically sound car, with services, clean bodywork and interior, and all at the right price.

    Sensible people who know they're getting a great car at a great price, are few and far between.

    Depends on what you stock. 10 year old BMW’s vs 10 year old Volvos. I’ve sold both. Different breed from each other. 

  13. Posted

    1 hour ago, BHM said:

    Straight talk & mechanical preparation - it’s easier doing the job right in the first place.

    They ALL get used for a few miles (usually at least 50), I correct anything mechanically deficient (or sell those beyond hope clearly as such), reMOT about 90%, fuck off what I consider to be arseholes over the phone, I do not respond to texts, only sell to people who I consider acceptable customers, talk straight & deal straight. The fact I only shift about 100 per year obviously helps. 

    In the last 2.5 years I’ve put my hand in my pocket once (£50 & told the man to go to Trading Standards if he wasn’t happy - an old p/x Astra that he wanted new alternator money for but as I pointed out old cars have old parts). In that time I’ve probably had 2 or 3 other phone calls from chancers trying it on (usually on my bottom end stock) “cos my mechanic says xxxxxx” - a few questions soon catches out this scum at which point I tell them to jog on. However in that time I’ve lost count of the number of NEW clutches, tyres, calipers, batteries, wheel bearings, disc & pads I’ve renewed prior to sale so I guess my ALMOST hassle-free business model has its price.

    I’ve cursed myself now, there’ll be a flood of whingers on Tuesday :lol:

    I think it’s a good model. You get cars mechanically straight, don’t do too much cosmetically and sell to people who don’t give too much of a shit about scrapes and bruises but just want a boggo car that doesn’t need any spending on it. 

    I do think you need a strong stomach and thick skin for dealing with some of the fantasists out there! 

  18. Posted

    Just now, met said:

    But surely they'd achieve better prices through BCA?

    Mate have you seen some of the prices cars sell for on DA? A few hundred quid off retail, sometimes! Plus the smaller franchises probably don’t get the selling fees waived by bigger AH’s so they save those fees. 

  20. Posted

    31 minutes ago, David Horgan said:

    We all hate the Autotrader bill Ozz that's for sure . Well those of that use them anyway . 

    I think it depends a lot on a few selling skills and what stock type a trader sells as to if AT is worth the investment each month , lots make it work some don't .

    I see it as a business decision investment to trade with Autotrader . If it doesn't work each month and doesn't make YOU a decent profit then its not for you , 

    It works very well for us indeed i hate / love  to say , but AT is without doubt the leading site and has been for lots of years , THEY know that fact as well as lots of us traders . 

    Its called supply and demand , if I was in charge of AT it would be £100 extra , what would you charge ? if your cars were flying out faster than you could buy them they would be £100 extra on the screen . 

    What ever method you chose to sell /advertise your own stock is very personal to your stock levels , expectations of earnings , profit margins you work on , type of stock , where you are located , type of customer you need or want to attract , so many variations that will affect any business decisions you make . 

    So as much as I wish my AT bill was less than £2,800 a month that it is , as a business it earns a lot more than that number and I mean a lot more , I have tried other ways and for US it didn't work but for many other for what ever reason it does work , If I ditch AT I would not earn the amount of money I do so although £2800 is a fair chunk of money its a tiny expense at the side of the profits , pure business decision simple as that 

    So Ozz I'm out and wont be joining your protest march to Manchester , got some cars to sell . 

    All the best though and i really am pleased Ebay pro and Car guru is working for you as its not a system I could say the same about unfortunately as it didn't work for us . 

    Not easy out there just now keeping it earning and you have to make the best choices for your own business 

     

    A very good post, as usual. 

    • Like 2

  21. Posted

    54 minutes ago, Ozz said:

    Hi you all know that auto trader is a rip off.

    Some how we all need to work together to bring the prices down.

    I have joined eBay motor pro and car gurus its working great.

    I have cancel my auto Trader package this week. I'm sick and tired of autotrader keep putting their prices up every year. We all need to cancel auto Trader account. We need to protest outside Auto Traders head office in Manchester.

    Does anyone feel the same way? Can we force a change? To ease the pocket in such turbulent financial Times?

     

    Turn it in. Embarrassing. 

  22. Posted

    1 hour ago, MSP Motors said:

     

    Ok, Maybe your invoice is different to mine, but they have an Irish vat number on my invoice and use the vat reverse charge scheme which means effectively I can't claim Vat off the amount charged.

    This. 

  23. Posted

    1 minute ago, tradegirl said:

    James I try to follow your more descriptive approach nowadays. I do sometimes wonder if it comes across as too much. Still have people asking silly questions when everything is already in the advert.

    Horses and water etc.

    When someone rings and asks to book a viewing in, after you have qualified them, taken details etc and you ask "do you have any questions for me about the car at all?" and they say "no, I don't believe I have"  which happens to me a lot, more than not, then you know you have done your digital job right.

    You can't be everything to everyone.

    Some people won't read the advert. It doesn't matter if you write a boon and mills style write up of the car or write "black, 3 owners, £6,995" either way, they are going to ring you and ask "how many owners" 

    Some people may narrow their choice down to three cars, or two, a shortlist. One advert has given them all the info they need, they feel ready to see it. The other two have huge gaps in the information level and have left many questions unanswered. Who's car do you think they will start sub-consciously buying?

    You can only put the info out there. If some people don't read it, they never were going to. But if by putting the info out there, it earns you more sales, from those who like to have all the information spoon fed to them, why wouldn't you, I think.

  24. Posted

    I had a buyer on a Scirocco in here two days ago, said he came and saw mine first because of the write up. I do like to paint a picture of what it's like to own the car where possible.

    As ever, in this industry, you can't be everything to everyone. There will be people who look at a few photographs and read two lines of your advert and ring and there will be people that will move on to the next advert because yours simply states a spec list of the car. Horses for courses.

    • Like 2

  25. Posted

    2 hours ago, Flip said:

    Should I bother?

    No flash Pitch, just a very basic fenced off carpark with a cabin. 15-20 cars all under 6k.

    Am I right in saying my trade insurance covers me for damage to all my vehicles at my premises, and premises insurance (if I took some out) would just cover to damage to the premises fencing, building etc?

     

     

     

     

     

    There are some very clued up, qualified traders on here but I can tell you now, none of them have the ability to read your insurance cover documents!

    Ring your insurance.

    I think what you're getting confused with is, premises insurance doesn't cover your premises, i.e. the building. You would need building insurance for that.