Max Branning

I get a lot of enquiries from people that are always miles away from me. Often they will ask if i can deliver. I tend to avoid it where possible because of time commitments but also because i do not want to drive 100 miles for someone to say they do not want it. I honestly believe that if i was more outgoing at the deliveries i could be selling at least 2 or 3 cars a month more. I think if people see you are a proper trader operating from premises, nice website etc they are more trusting and will buy without seeing first. This will become the norm within time especially if dealers are offering a return if not happy type of sale.

Get a PDI inspection pad and make sure you list any rattles or leaks if any on the inspection prior to sale. Make sure the customer reads it and signs to say they are happy with the car at the point of sale. State on it that the car has been test driven and is free of any faults. It is very hard for the customer to then after 2 weeks come back and say the car had a fault at the point of sale. Do your bit and treat the customer fairly but dont be pushed into a corner by them. If you dont think a repair is called for or your responsibility then refuse. Thick skin required in this job !

I have noticed no change whatsoever. I operate at the cheaper end of the market but people still need cars whether we are in the EU or not. Unless everyone is going to start getting the bus ! Long term who knows maybe a recession could be on the cards but we have no choice other than to get on with it. Be British, have a cup of tea, keep calm and carry on..!

in - out - in - out - Shake it all about

Apparently you can speak to the people at Autorola and they will negotiate with the vendor on your behalf. Does seem a lot of messing around though to be honest. I have noticed with certain main dealers they just want the earth for the trade ins and totally disregard caps pricing. I had one the other day that booked at 2000 clean with a retail of 2995. I put in a strong bid of 2200 because i wanted it but the dealer wanted 2500 and would not budge.

Pro-driver based in Leicester are good for trade plate deliveries. Probably not the cheapest but are very professional.

I would love to see the passengers faces when they find out a car dealer is flying the plane !

Thank you for this Lawjaw. Just to point out my trade sale invoices are provided by Lawgistics ! I usually advertise any trade sales as classifieds through my ebay pro account as it works out cheaper or else i would have to use a separate account for auction style listings as you cannot do these with ebay pro. I have not heard anything more (as yet) from the guy mentioned in my original post but i would like to know i am doing things right moving forward. I am trading out cheap cars usually less than £1000 that i do not want to bother retailing or no value in sending to physical auction.

Sending them to a local auction is what i was doing previously. The last car i sent there was an 03 plate renault clio, tidy enough really but only had around 3 weeks mot left on it. I gave the customer £395 for it off the car they was buying at £2995 it had to be this or the deal would not happen. The clio went to auction and was sold as no reserve like all the cheapies. It went under the hammer for £100 then there was £75 sales commision ! so i pulled 25 quid...! After this i decided to stick them on ebay as trade sales just to at least get my money back...im sure it would be £695 on someones driveway? so asking say 395 as a trade sale seems fair to give a small time trader a little margin. True though what you say about is it worth the hassle, maybe not.

The V5 was passed to the trader. We filled the trade slip out and the customer who part exchanged it was given the trade slip to sign and return. He did not have trade plates not sure whether he taxed it or not before leaving as once he left my office i was not paying attention to be honest. Was he an actual trader? well that is the million dollar question but he said he was and signed a trade invoice that clearly asks for the business name and address, so i have to assume he was some sort of trader ! As far as i am aware anybody can call themselves a trader if they are actively buying and selling vehicles, even if its just 1 car every 3 months off your driveway surely this still counts as TRADE.

Bit of a minefield this, surprising how many dealers have conflicting views on this type of thing. It would help if there was something in black and white that says you can or cant do this. I get Gavins point about ebay not being a trade site but also as has been said there is no misleading in anyway, The cars are advertised as strictly trade sales to members of the motor trade so i really dont see how anyone could take this guy seriously if he did take matters further...time will tell. On another note, can anyone recommend a good place to outlet the trade stuff bearing in mind i am talking about bangers under a grand, somewhere that people will actually want to buy this type thing?

This is what concerns me Umesh. But how far do you need to go here, You could ask for proof of insurance or trade plates or Vat number but at the end of the day if someone agrees to your T&Cs and signs a receipt which clearly states TRADE SALE INVOICE and asks for a BUSINESS name and address then surely that is enough. Its bad enough when the retail customers come back but when the traders come back its a piss take. I have never complained about any car i have bought either online or from auction, yes its a pain when you get a lemon but you just take it on the chin, part of the game.

I have been listing some of my trade ins on ebay as "trade sales" I do say clearly on the ads that the cars are part exchanges, have not been mechanically inspected and are suitable for members of the motor trade only. I have sold an astra at the weekend to a "trader" the price was equivalent to CAP clean so trade money in my eyes. He signed a trade sales invoice which asks for business name and address to which he has put his own name and home address. He has rang me this morning to say the car needs a lot of work more than was described in the listing, by the way i did not describe anything in the listing, other than it starts and drives and the above disclaimer. He has kicked off basically and demanded i take the car back to which i have refused. Guess what Hes getting in touch with trading standards and his solicitor ! This is the first trade sale i have have had any complaints over, am i in the right here to stand my ground and refuse to take the car back?

I was recently speaking to a guy at the auctions who previously had a medium size forecourt stocking around 30 - 40 cars at the sub 5k level. He has recently decided to have a change of direction and is now operating from a small unit stocking around 5 or 6 classic / prestige stuff. When i asked him how it was going he beamed and said it is the happiest he has been in 20 years ! even though he is making less money ! He is in his late 50s so maybe just a slowing down phase before retirement in 10 years or so but it has got me thinking about being happy in the job and looking at other avenues within the trade that bring more happiness and less headaches..! Has anyone else here had a change of direction in the business and how did it affect you?

I might change mine to Dot Cotton, keep me off the radar...

I have invested in a good sign for my gates No Beggars, Timewasters or Idiots allowed Things have gone a bit quiet lately though...

You sell a warranty with a £500 claim limit for £350 please dont tell me people actually buy that??

Probably best just to self warrant. Put £100 from each sale into a separate account and do not touch it for anything other than "warranty" repairs. Remember whatever insurance based warranty you put on the car the customer can still bring the car back to you when the warranty company more than likely does not pay out !

Im a bit confused. Is this a trade to trade platform or are you advertising your retail stock?

why why why.....does someone drive 70 miles to view a car, test drive = love it. Offer to pay full asking price = boom Left their wallet at home.

I stock around 20 cars at your price range and to be honest some months i am barely breaking minimum wage and that is just me taking wages. If there are two of you needing a wage it will be hard work unless you can bang out some real high volume. Even doing 20 cars a month unless your overheads are very low and margins reasonably high it will be hard. Sorry to be doom and gloom but go in with your eyes wide open...It really is not easy especially doing 3 granders!

On a slightly different scale i had a customer who left a £200 deposit against a £2495 car. Told me he would collect within 3 or 4 days which gave me time to MOT the car for him. I rang him on day 3 to tell him car was ready and he said he would be in the next day. Did not see him for another 2 weeks when he gave some cock and bull story about losing his job. He turned up in a new car similar to the one he was supposed to be buying off me which i can only presume he got a better deal on. He asked for his deposit back to which i refused and explained that i has spent time and effort preparing his car and taking it off sale. He has threatened to take matters further but i have not heard anything since and this was around 3 months ago.

What annoys me is if you have a car advertised at say £3995 and they email you saying that they can only get their hands on £3000 then surely they should just be looking at cars for £3000 rather than expecting you to feel sorry for them and cut your own throat ! I had one recently looking at a £3295 car wanted to give me 1500 and an x reg scenic ffs.

I have been inundated with emails lately all seem to be asking the same thing " Whats the best price you can do on this car " When replying unless i am prepared to knock stupid amounts off the price they just do not seem interested. I have always had these type emails but lately seem to be getting them every day, is anyone else experiencing this? I wonder if it is just a sign that there is no money around at the moment and maybe this so called slowdown in the economy is really starting to bite people? Sales seem to be dropping off as late but the enquiries are coming in thick and fast only they just all want something for nothing !

Exactly this. I doubt it will need 20 years to get there though..