AVON VALLEY 3 Posted December 9, 2017 (edited) Just thinking it would be a fantastic idea it would be if the public could only buy cars off a licensed garage,it would give the customers peace of mind because they know the garages would have to work to a certain standard and it would stop the black economy car dealer skipping tax and VAT selling cars off pay as you go mobile phones and not giving warrantys,near our garage there is a roundabout with a car park next to it,with loads of cars for sale all with pay as you go mobile numbers,in the last six months we have had loads of people come to see us asking who sells the cars at the roundabout because the cars they have bought have serious problems write-offs etc.This is a area the government are not tackling at all.If this happened we could keep our margins in tact rather trying to compete on a playing field that favours the crooks i.e. auto traders average prices brought down by scumbags selling rubbish at knockdown prices and when your customer comes in a try to negotiate a deal using some heap of scrap as a comparison,they are only looking at the bottom line. Your thoughts? Edited December 9, 2017 by AVON VALLEY duplication 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Darkbluecars 10 Posted December 9, 2017 (edited) Totally agree on this front in theory. Always strikes me as odd that you need to be licensed to sell financial services but you can set up a company selling products with lethal consequences overnight without regulation. Edited December 9, 2017 by Darkbluecars Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
trade vet 704 Posted December 9, 2017 23 minutes ago, tradex said: Ohh, one of my piss boilers. Yes 100% agree. People (mostly) see buying a car as they would buying a washing machine, with not a thought as to "will it be safe for the most important things in my life" those being my kids and spouse for most of of us. So little thought of ownership that one look at some of the p/x we see shows just how many put money over safety.....the bald tyres, the pads down to the metal, the cars that haven't seen a spanner from MOT to MOT, I could go on. Not sure for the UK, but auto accidents are the biggest killer with 5-25 year old's in the states, a lot of these are of course driver error but, worryingly, a lot are down to mechanical failure.....which of course isn't a surprise new driver's, low wages, poor cars. Yes, in all states you need a formal dealer license to trade, sometimes it's no more than piece of paper that takes forever to get so the county etc can get a bit more revenue, but it's something. But, you can still sell a car as a private individual and there are the same rogue traders or privates 'who do a few' and whose idea of a PDI is a lick of tyre glim and silver paint on the muffler. There are a LOT of forms to fill in for the dealer license but most deal with the buildings, signage, amount of cars per ft2, some states need a salesperson license, what is still missing are a methodology of ensuring the quality of the car being sold...you know, it's more a case of what the buyers can make you liable for if you don't do the prep', i.e court One thing we did get right. In the US you can not purchase at auction without a traders license and if you purchase out of state it must be exported to another state, Manheim even have signs up for this. There is a finite set limit of cars you can sell without a license.....but same as here, most chancers don't give a flying f*ck and most counties don't have the time or resources to chase. Nothing will change. For example. There were rumblings of having private owners forced to service their cars to the OEM schedule at the minimum cover (like trucks) but this didn't fly due to personal liberties....it meant the poor may not be able to drive, but that was point sorta, if you can't afford to service your car, you can't afford to drive, period. In the US we see car ownership as a right. You know, in the second world war US civilians out up with everything from higher taxes, forced work routines, loss of union rights, the forced incarceration of certain ethnic groups without redress and the only thing we moaned about was the rationing of gas Did you have a pitch or ‘lot’ out there,you appear well informed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
trade vet 704 Posted December 9, 2017 10 minutes ago, tradex said: Dual nationality, US father. Got friends stateside doing new, used and classics. I wish I knew more, there is usually a class and exam' to pass, more of it covers payments, insurance dealer plate use (our trade plates) the office stuff. But, although curbstoning (posing as private) is illegal with some fairly draconian penalties it's a real problem. Dealer license costs range from state registration, fictitious business name to bonds and so much more, it's a mess really. Buts its also a double edged sword, it getting difficult and more costly to get a license for a business, that has such a reduced margin from 20 years ago so why bother. I'm told there is more curbstoning than there ever was, with much blame on the imigrant population.....sounds like here in that respect. So what are you doing here if you don’t mind me asking,sounds like you don’t need a green card.When I go over there,I often see these super roadside vacant lots and wonder.The only thing is of course ,it’s about 500k for a business visa and you have to employ 2 Americans and also be profitable or you are out ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
have a word with the wife 299 Posted December 9, 2017 9 hours ago, AVON VALLEY said: Just thinking it would be a fantastic idea it would be if the public could only buy cars off a licensed garage,it would give the customers peace of mind because they know the garages would have to work to a certain standard and it would stop the black economy car dealer skipping tax and VAT selling cars off pay as you go mobile phones and not giving warrantys,near our garage there is a roundabout with a car park next to it,with loads of cars for sale all with pay as you go mobile numbers,in the last six months we have had loads of people come to see us asking who sells the cars at the roundabout because the cars they have bought have serious problems write-offs etc.This is a area the government are not tackling at all.If this happened we could keep our margins in tact rather trying to compete on a playing field that favours the crooks i.e. auto traders average prices brought down by scumbags selling rubbish at knockdown prices and when your customer comes in a try to negotiate a deal using some heap of scrap as a comparison,they are only looking at the bottom line. Your thoughts? i guess you could really say this "licence" could apply to any trade, the "whatever" ive just bought off ebay is double the price in a shop uptown, and this shop uptown might want a licence too, this "whatever" ive just bought is equally as dangerous in the wrong hands as a car, dont get me wrong ive often thought it, but break it down and its very hard to govern, youve got to think of the new people to the trade [bless em] where do they start and how do they go from selling from there door to a pitch without a licence ? remember that nobody down there in that there "london" cares, the kerb seller pays the same vat on his petrol as me, and when he does sell the car some of that money probably will go back into the governments coffers, even if its just in lager [lager lager lager ] . what would be a idea would be a strict [and quite simple to do] all follow one course of business plan. traders would have to [1] pdi, a set form to fill in same for everyone [2] full mot by a independent garage no matter the age of car [increasing business for mot garages] [3] a standard sales invoice that we all use that states consumer rights and traders rights . a company that can do all three would then be issued a number that in there advertising to show there a member that could be checked on a gov website, this would not create a them and us gap in the motor trade as the kerb seller could quite easily reach the standards set, and if he didnt or he cheated he would be struck out from the membership for a set amount of years like a ltd company director, i am sure we as full time traders us all can quite easily meet the above standards and [ with the sales invoice] it would protect us too, double bubble ! this cant be done by a individual company, it just cant, the advertising cost alone would cripple it [voice of the people etc] . it has to be government run and promoted properly. but it wont happen, keep your head down kid and carry on, a lot of consumers are getting very wise to these sharks nowadays Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HKQAC 2 Posted December 9, 2017 It would be a great thing if there had to be some sort of license. But I think if the DVLA/ government really wanted to crack down on rogue traders and unroadworthy cars being sold. I feel like they would sooner make it law that all cars would have to be sold with a council MOT, so it can be monitored closer, than go through the trouble of setting up a car dealer license. This would be a great thing for the consumer in all fairness, whether it would help separate the good from the bad dealers or just drag margins down for everyone i don't know. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Arfur Dealy 823 Posted December 10, 2017 Every business is governed by the CRA, we are no different. Wear n tear isn't covered, its the buyers responsibility. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
justina3 518 Posted December 11, 2017 Whilst a lovely idea, however our country has no means or even close to being able to monitor anything let alone the second hand car business, if anything our society is being held together by a shoe string, and a lot worse than joe public will ever know. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
metcars 397 Posted December 11, 2017 1 hour ago, justina3 said: Whilst a lovely idea, however our country has no means or even close to being able to monitor anything let alone the second hand car business, if anything our society is being held together by a shoe string, and a lot worse than joe public will ever know. Absolutely spot on! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
whitestone679231 113 Posted December 11, 2017 If the govt was involved it would never be monitored properly, near us any spare land is turned into a car pitch, no planning permission etc but ring council and tell them and nothing happens. They took a fee off us to register as a number plate supplier so they could stop plates being cloned but once we paid that was it, never heard of any prosecutions for dodgy number plate suppliers. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
trade vet 704 Posted December 11, 2017 I don’t know what all the fuss is about.This job has never been regulated as much.IMO proper punters generally use proper dealers.Those who buy stuff paying cash to some waste ground ‘paygo’mobile traders are doing it for a reason.Maybe not in the SE,but in most areas,these days there are a lot less rogue traders and a lot less car pitches.I can recall when most small towns would have at least 10 car pitches of which half were probably dodgy.I think a lot of the ‘dodgies’ have worked out that if you want to make money, don’t do car sales anymore.....Maybe growing cannabis and using the proceeds to buy bitcoin is far more lucrative. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
justina3 518 Posted December 11, 2017 10 minutes ago, trade vet said: I don’t know what all the fuss is about.This job has never been regulated as much.IMO proper punters generally use proper dealers.Those who buy stuff paying cash to some waste ground ‘paygo’mobile traders are doing it for a reason.Maybe not in the SE,but in most areas,these days there are a lot less rogue traders and a lot less car pitches.I can recall when most small towns would have at least 10 car pitches of which half were probably dodgy.I think a lot of the ‘dodgies’ have worked out that if you want to make money, don’t do car sales anymore.....Maybe growing cannabis and using the proceeds to buy bitcoin is far more lucrative. or sunbed salons there all the rage with ex car dealers and drug dealers these days Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BHM 994 Posted December 11, 2017 9 hours ago, trade vet said: I don’t know what all the fuss is about.This job has never been regulated as much.IMO proper punters generally use proper dealers.Those who buy stuff paying cash to some waste ground ‘paygo’mobile traders are doing it for a reason.Maybe not in the SE,but in most areas,these days there are a lot less rogue traders and a lot less car pitches.I can recall when most small towns would have at least 10 car pitches of which half were probably dodgy.I think a lot of the ‘dodgies’ have worked out that if you want to make money, don’t do car sales anymore.....Maybe growing cannabis and using the proceeds to buy bitcoin is far more lucrative. Yep, and pitches are slowly disappearing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites