Friday, November 14, 2008
NFDA slams proposed PPI Changes
unprotected in the event of an inability to repay a loan,’ according to Sue Robinson, Director of the RMI National Franchised Dealers
Productivity hit by personal finance stress
More than a third of workers are suffering from stress due to problems with personal finances, research has found.
A poll of 200 HR professionals by insurance giant AXA also found that respondents in almost a quarter of firms felt the majority of their employees were showing symptoms of stress as a result of money worries.
More than three-quarters felt employees would be more productive if they were less concerned about financial issues.
Dudley Lusted, head of corporate healthcare and wellbeing, said over half of employees spend time organising personal finances in the workplace, and HR needed to intervene soon.
"It's self evident that personal financial worries can have a significant impact on performance and once HR professionals better appreciate that financial worries can - and do - distract employees from concentrating on their work, they can take proactive steps to help their people address their money concerns," said Lusted.
More than 40% of organisations would wait until an employee asked for assistance before offering advice or support.
DATED: 14.11.08
FEED: PT
Budget trials sales of Ex-rental models
"The current instability in the rental market makes it a difficult time to step away from predictable buy-back deals in favour of risky retail sales, even if they are more profitable."
Budget Rent-a-Car has started selling cars to the public and dealers directly through its rental sites.
With the fleet industry looking to spread risk by using multiple sales channels to sell on defleeted vehicles, many will follow this experiment with interest.
Budget is to sell a selection of 2008-plate Ford Focuses and Fiestas to the public from six of its airport locations at Heathrow, Gatwick, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Birmingham and Manchester.
It will offer the cars at a no-haggle fixed price and has around 250 ex-rental vehicles available to purchase.
The cars can also be viewed through its website at www.budget.co.uk/carsales.
The vehicles are available to trade and retail customers and average seven to nine months old with mileage between 11,000 and 15,000.
However, Budget will not take part-exchange vehicles. Customers will have to sell their cars – as well as arrange finance/loans – in advance.
Like the rest of the industry, the majority of the Budget fleet is acquired on buy-back agreements with the car and van manufacturers.
However, Des McCann, director UK network and operations, said: “This year we have also taken a small volume of vehicles which we will sell on the open market.
This has given us the flexibility to manage the holding period of the cars to best match the demands of our customers throughout the year.”
McCann said the project could be expanded if it proved successful: “We are running the ex-rental car sales operation as a trial with a set number of vehicles available to purchase.
“If it is deemed successful and customer feedback is positive, we will consider signing further deals that will allow us to sell more ex-rental vehicles in the future.”
However, there are a number of obstacles that may work to prevent this becoming a major sales channel for any rental firm.
The current instability in the rental market makes it a difficult time to step away from predictable buy-back deals in favour of risky retail sales, even if they are more profitable.
The cost of setting up such a network would also be prohibitive: the acreage needed for a used car sales operation is not available at most rental locations, while a nationwide team of remarketing experts would be needed to price and sell cars.
For the moment, this form of remarketing is an interesting niche, but unlikely to see massive expansion.
DATED: 14.11.08
FEED: AM
Finance Fraud up by a third
Fraudulent car finance applications are up almost a third compared to the same period in 2007.
Since the start of 2008 there has been a dramatic increase in the number of people attempting to obtain car finance fraudulently, according to Experian analysis.
While car finance applications have slowed down, fraudulent applications have continued to rise.
Motor finance fraud has cost £39.3m since the beginning of the year.
Kirk Fletcher, managing director of Experian’s automotive division, said: “The high value nature of vehicles makes the automotive industry a prime target for fraud.
“Over the last 18 months, financial services providers offering loans and mortgages have been tightening their lending criteria. As a result, fraudsters have been turning their attentions to the automotive market and this is reflected by the huge increase in fraudulent car loan applications this year.”
Over the last four years, the total number of fraudulent applications for car finance has increased by more than four and half times, representing a total value of over £147 million.
DATED: 14.11.08
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Chrysler Dealership Closes
John Gill Chrysler in Harrogate has closed after becoming financially unviable.
John Gill, managing director of the family business founded in 1923, wrote to customers informing them the dealership was not viable in the current climate.
The company's prestige used car site, at Bedale, continues to trade. It also has a Mercedes-Benz authorised repairer franchise.
DATED: 14.11.08
FEED: AM
MBO at Kroll
Kroll’s corporate advisory and business recovery group has split in a management buyout which sees the business rebranded Kroll Zolfo Cooper in Europe.
The division, which has worked with UK dealers on business recovery and turnaround, completed its MBO in tandem with New York-based Kroll Zolfo Cooper to form two separate partnerships trading under the global brand of Zolfo Cooper.
Simon Freakley, chief executive of Zolfo Cooper Europe said: "This is a very exciting development for our business and our people.
“We have enjoyed a strong year to date with our team of corporate advisory and restructuring experts being appointed on many high profile and complex assignments.
DATED: 14.11.08
FEED: AM
Car discounts get even bigger, says What Car?
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New car discounts are at their most generous level in eight years and could get even bigger, according to research by What Car?. Average What Car? Target Price savings stand at £1932, £244 more than at the beginning of the year and more than double the £974 average from 2001.* That means it's already a great time to get a cracking offer, but it could get even better for buyers as dealers become increasingly desperate for business in a plummeting new car market. Official registration figures show that the new car market is down 23% but the true figure, taking out cars that have been registered by dealers, could be as much as 30% or 35%. What Car? has heard of cars being supplied to dealers at 40% of their list price, so the prospect of the first half-price deal might not be far off. Internet broker Drivethedeal has a Citroën Xsara Picasso for £8568, which is tantalisingly close to this at 45% off the £15,616 list price. Shop around and you can get a Ford S-Max or Galaxy for less than £15,000, for instance - but it's not just big, or old, cars that come with big savings. You can get 10% of the latest version of the Volkswagen Golf Mark with internet broker Carfile, and that's before the first cars have even been delivered to their owners. The Ford Fiesta has only just been launched as well, but you can slash 15% off the list price straight away by going to Motorlogix. Our reigning What Car? Car of the Year, the Jaguar XF, is up for grabs at £2187 off the £31,616 list price at Drivethedeal. The same company can also chop an amazing £11,500 off a Jaguar XJ, dropping it to £33,764. What Car? editor Steve Fowler said: ‘Even if you're not comfortable haggling on a price, it should be simple to get a brilliant bargain at the moment. ‘With so few people dipping into their pockets, sales staff will be almost begging buyers to make an offer.' What Car? mystery shops thousands of new car dealers every month to come up with its Target Price. It shows the maximum you should pay for any new car and is a figure you should use as a starting point for haggling at your local dealer, especially in the current financial climate. If a dealer refuses to match Target Price, What Car? promises to put the consumer in touch with a dealer who will. DATED: 14.11.08 FEED: HA |
RMIF continues to lobby on business rate relief
| ‘Business rate relief is a key issue for motor retail businesses, many of whom are at present paying over the odds for sites that are not being used at present, and we are continuing to lobby Government to take this into account,' said Paul Williams, Chairman of the Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMIF). |
Williams spoke to a number of MPs on this issue at the RMIF Parliamentary Dinner 2008, held at the Houses of Parliament last night (Wednesday 12 November). Under current rules, businesses pay the same level of council business rates on unused buildings as they do on those that are in use and commercially active. Williams commented: ‘This is unfair and impractical, as the owners are not deriving any benefit from these unused buildings.' The economy could be adversely affected as well: ‘In some cases it is cheaper to demolish a building, which reduces UK commercial building stock, and will affect future prosperity in the long term,' said Williams. The impact of Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) refund changes on dealerships, and the imposition of the new benefits in kind regime were also discussed. Williams adds: ‘The RMIF will continue to push these issues to the fore on behalf of its membership.' DATED: 14.11.08 FEED: HA |
GM says car factories will not close
| The boss of General Motors in Europe says the company will not close any factories on this side of the Atlantic "unless an asteroid hits the earth". |
That will be good news for Vauxhall workers at Ellesmere Port, near Liverpool who have been in fear of their jobs since the giant carmaker announced that it may run out of money early next year. In an interview with Automotive News Europe, GM Europe president Carl-Peter Forster said no factory closures are planned despite the economic downturn which has seen GME record a loss of £700 million before tax during the third quarter. Forster told the automotive industry newspaper: "If the world stops tomorrow, no cars are sold and an asteroid hits the Earth and it is dark for the next 10 years. That is the environment where we would have to consider plant shutdowns." Even so, GM's European operations have been told to shave almost £500 million from their costs and Forster said he would be speaking to worker representatives to find ways to cut production without further temporary shutdowns. GME temporarily idled nearly all of its European factories during October to cut production by 40,000 vehicles. Last week in the USA, GM said it was weeks, not months, from running out of cash having ended the third quarter with about £8.5 billion in cash. It needs at least £7 billion to £9 billion to operate and pay bills and is burning cash at a rate of more than £1.3 billion a month. DATED: 14.11.08 FEED: HA |
BMW cuts financing
The carmaker said it was limiting its activities to the financing and leasing of BMW products. Alphera, the group's service that provides finance for BMW dealers on non-BMW products, and Alphabet, the fleet arm of this business, are not taking on any new business. A spokeswoman said the providers have not ceased operation and will carry on with all current customers. BMW said the cut-back was a result of the strong rise in funding costs. The manufacturer said earnings take precedence over volumes and that it will focus on its core brands for the foreseeable future. The restrictions will remain in effect until the debt capital markets show signs of sustainable recovery, BMW said. DATED: 14.11.08 FEED: MT |
BMW has cut back its customer, dealer and fleet financing business with non-BMW group brands.Loans.co.uk Closes its doors
| Watford based secured loan broker, Loans.co.uk, one of the biggest employers in Watford, is to close to new business, taking with it some 276 jobs. |
Last month the broker announced that it was struggling to ride out the Credit Crunch – explaining that the third party loans it relies on were in danger of drying up. In a statement released yesterday the broker said it could no longer operate in this current environment and expected to complete its last customer loan early next year. The statement read: “A number of factors have led to this difficult decision. As a loan broker Loans.co.uk relies on third party providers to provide loans to its customers. “A number of key partners have tightened lending criteria or are unable to accept new business. At the same time, house prices have been declining, making it more difficult for customers to fit within lenders’ (tighter) loan-to-value criteria.” “Looking forward the company expects house prices will continue to decline and lenders will continue to be cautious. The company cannot confidently project a recovery at Loans.co.uk in the foreseeable future and regretfully the decision has been made to run off the existing business. This will happen in an orderly fashion.” The company confirmed that 276 positions would be lost. The broker has two other smaller offices in Preston and Fareham. |
Industry Veteran Dies
Motor industry veteran Stewart Wright has died suddenly at the age of 60.
Wright spent more than 40 years in the motor industry including 18 years as a manager with Renault UK, 10 of which he spent in fleet and special sales roles.
In the mid-1990s he joined Daewoo as its first national fleet and special sales manager.
After leaving Daewoo, Wright, who died on November 5, worked for business training company Adapt.
DATED: 14.11.08
FEED: AM
Toyota - Two Outlets Collapse
Two Toyota dealerships in south-east England with a combined turnover of £20 million and operated by a company trading as RCS 900 since June 2005 went into administration on October 21. Newland Motor Company in Slough and Brown’s High Wycombe had been trading at a loss for some time, said administrator Nigel Ruddock at Grant Thornton.
“There are no potential acquirers for these businesses, so our strategy is to wind their operations down within a week or so. Unfortunately this has meant we have had to make most of the 50 staff redundant.”
A Toyota GB spokesman said: “We have been contacting customers to help them with sales and servicing requirements at other retail centres.
“Any agreements signed by customers who paid deposits to either of the dealerships will be honoured by Toyota.”
The manufacturer would not comment about the reason for the dealerships’ failure. Unconfirmed reports suggest both were sponsored by Toyota, which the manufacturer declined to confirm or deny.
Replacement dealerships will not be appointed for some time. “We are unlikely to make a decision before the new year,” said the spokesman. “We are looking at various open points and the area as a whole.”
Scottish Dealership Announces Strong sales
A dealership in Scotland has announced a strong start to the last quarter of the year.
Despite the period being a traditionally difficult time for dealers, Belmont Suzuki said their Sighthill site in Edinburgh had achieved over half of its quarterly new retail sales target during October.
Part of the John Martin Group, it is also on course to surpass its 100% objective for the three month period before the end of November.
Making up nearly 20% of sales was the Grand Vitara four wheel drive while the Swift Supermini also proved popular with 65% of customers taking advantage of Suzuki’s 0% APR offer.
DATED: 14.11.08
FEED: AM
Crackdown on PPI
| The Competition Commission (CC) has today published for consultation its proposed remedies designed to increase competition in the Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) market. |
In its provisional findings report published in June 2008, the CC concluded that distributors of PPI—such as banks, mortgage providers and credit card providers—face little or no competition when selling PPI to their credit customers. The vast majority of the UK’s more than 13 million PPI policies are sold at the same time as a consumer takes out a loan or other type of credit and the CC found that many consumers are unaware that they can buy PPI from other providers. Consumers rarely shop around to compare prices and terms and conditions of PPI policies and rarely switch PPI providers. This ‘point-of-sale’ advantage makes it difficult for other PPI providers to reach credit providers’ customers and in the absence of such competitive pressure, PPI distributors are able to charge high prices. Along with its provisional findings report, the CC published a Notice which outlined a number of possible remedies designed to increase competition in the market. Since then the CC has been collecting evidence regarding those possible remedies from PPI providers, consumer groups, the Financial Services Authority (FSA), the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), and other interested parties. Following a series of hearings and a considerable amount of analysis, the CC is now proposing a package of measures which it considers will be practical and effective in increasing competition in the market to the benefit of customers. The proposed package of remedies includes: • A prohibition on the sale of PPI by a distributor to a customer within 14 days of the distributor selling credit to that customer. This will address the point-of-sale advantage, and give the customer more opportunity to compare products and providers, in turn encouraging greater competition between providers. Whilst the distributor cannot re-contact the customer for 14 days, customers will be able proactively to contact the distributor and purchase a PPI policy 24 hours after the credit sale. • Credit providers will be required to provide a ‘personal PPI quote’, which will clearly state the cost of the PPI policy individually and when added to the credit product. If this is not given at the point of sale, the credit provider must do so if they subsequently contact the customer to offer PPI, and the prohibition period starts from the date on which the personal PPI quote is provided to the customer. • A prohibition on the selling of single-premium PPI policies, which act as a barrier to customers switching and the costs of which are difficult to compare with other PPI policies. The CC considered whether mandating pro-rata rebates on single-premium policies would be a sufficient remedy, but has concerns about such a remedy which led it provisionally to conclude that it would not be sufficiently effective. • A requirement on all PPI providers to provide certain information and messages in PPI advertisements (including the price of their PPI, expressed in a common format of monthly cost per £100 of monthly benefit, and that PPI is optional and available from other providers). • A requirement on distributors to advertise PLPPI (personal loan) and SMPPI (second-charge mortgage) alongside their respective credit advertisements. • A requirement on all PPI providers to provide certain information on PPI policies to the FSA and a recommendation to the FSA that it uses this information for its PPI price comparison tables. • A requirement on all PPI providers to provide an annual statement for PPI customers, including information similar to that provided in the personal quote, to encourage customers to review their policy annually and make it easier for customers to decide whether to switch. The proposed remedies have been published so that interested parties have a further opportunity to comment before the CC publishes its final report (currently planned for mid-January 2009). This report will include the decision on the remedy measures to be introduced. The CC last month published its separate provisional findings on retail PPI, a small part of the overall PPI market relating to protection taken out on repayments for shopping through home catalogues. The report concludes that, as with other types of PPI policy, retail PPI is highly profitable for distributors and there is little competition between providers on price and other factors, limited ability for customers to search for alternatives or switch products and a considerable point-of-sale advantage for the providers. |
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Lotus posts £2m profit after loss
Sports car manufacturer and engineering consultancy Lotus has recorded a £2m profit turning round a £5m trading loss last year.
The group, based at Hethel, Norfolk, said higher efficiency, cost cutting, a rise in sales and increased engineering work all made a contribution.
Chief executive Mike Kimberley said the results were a tremendous achievement.
The group is developing new vehicles and advanced engineering technologies to offer to the industry.
Cash reserves have increased to £8,223,000 because of shareholders' support for the new management, a statement said.
The profit of £2.023m meant Lotus Group International Limited had exceeded the first year target of its strategic five year plan, it added.
Mr Kimberley said the company was well placed to deal with "the new demands from our global consumer and business customers".
He said the demand for green and environmentally sustainable technologies had increased.
"Many of the world's car companies are working with us on alternative fuel vehicles, electric and hybrid vehicle solutions and lightweight structures," said Mr Kimberley.
Volkswagen to approach European Bank for cash
Volkswagen has become the first European carmaker during the financial crisis to say it would tap the European Central Bank for liquidity, in an unusual move that highlights how refinancing stress has hit the car industry.
Europe's biggest carmaker said it planned next month to use €2.8 billion in securities backed by German car loans as collateral for ECB liquidity. Car executives said Volkswagen's rivals were thinking about similar moves as the ECB offered 'generous conditions'.
Oil price slides to 20-month low
Oil prices have fallen to the lowest levels since the beginning of 2007, amid fears over lower energy demand and worsening economic prospects.
US light sweet crude declined by $1.43 to $57.90 a barrel in New York before rebounding to $58.40. Brent crude fell $1.20 to $54.51 a barrel.
Crude oil has fallen about 60% after reaching a record $147.27 in July.
Investors had hoped for solid growth in oil demand from China, but it has been weakening there, as well as in the US.
"We have a pretty good idea that global growth is going to be pretty awful next year and probably not much better in 2010," said Mark Pervan, senior commodity strategist at ANZ Bank in Melbourne.
Most analysts predict the US Energy Department will report on Thursday that US oil inventories have risen for the seventh week in a row, highlighting falling demand.
Analysts also expect the International Energy Agency (IEA) to cut its global oil demand forecast in its report to be published on Thursday. "With definitive slowing in China, the market is even more sensitive to negative economic news out of the US and Europe," Mr Pervan added.
At the same time, the International Energy Agency (IEA) says the era of cheap oil is over and prices could soon be back up to $100 a barrel.
The IEA, in its World Energy Outlook for 2008, says prices could soar to as high as $200 a barrel by 2030.
Pelosi calls for US auto bail-out
House of Representatives Speaker and leading Democrat Nancy Pelosi has called on the US government to bail out the country's beleaguered car industry.
Plummeting sales, tight credit and a looming recession have left some of the biggest US car manufacturers fighting for their lives.
Ms Pelosi wants carmakers to get some of the $700bn (£494bn) financial bail-out deal agreed by Congress in October.
US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is giving an update on the package later.
As things stand, carmakers are not eligible to apply for this money.
Ms Pelosi is urging the incumbent administration to take a more sympathetic line.
She said: "In order to prevent the failure of one or more of the major American automobile manufacturers, Congress and the Bush administration must take immediate action."
There is, however, a great deal of opposition to a bail-out for the car industry.
"Once we cross the divide from financial institutions to individual corporations, truly, where would you draw the line?" said Jeff Sessions, Republican Senator for Alabama.
Massive losses
The call for help comes after General Motors (GM) announced a third-quarter operating loss of $4.2bn (£2.73bn) last week. The carmaker said it would run out of cash early in 2009 if market conditions did not improve.
GM also announced it would be forced to lay off 3,600 workers, and has since announced a further 1,900 job cuts.
Last week, Ford also reported a $2.98bn loss for the third quarter, and said it would have to cut salary-related expenses in North America by 10%.
Sales at the two car giants have been hit hard as consumers tighten their belts for the impending recession. Sales at GM fell by 45% in October compared with the same month last year, while sales at Ford fell 30%.
Chrysler was also hit hard, with sales falling 35%.
Pollution reduction
At the start of October, President George W Bush signed legislation that gives GM and fellow US carmakers Chrysler and Ford access to $25bn of cheap government-backed loans to help them develop less-polluting cars.
Reports suggest that some of the $700bn bail-out package for the financial services sector may, in fact, be made available to the finance arms of some US carmarkers.
US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is holding a news conference on Wednesday in which he will give an update on the US financial rescue package. He may also give some indication of a possible bail-out of the car industry.
Car dealers in line for carmakers' cash?
Car dealers across Europe could be in line for financial assistance from manufacturers to help ease the burden of declining revenues.Lexus Revises IS Price & Spec
Lexus has cut the prices of its IS range by up to £1,057 for the 2009 model range, which goes on sale in the UK on November 15.
The Japanese manufacturer has also revised its 175bhp 2.2 diesel engine to emit 163g/km rather than the previous 168g/km, which moves it down a tax band, saving customers £25 a year.
Emissions from the 2.5-litre V6 petrol engine in the IS 250 are unchanged at 231g/km (manual) and 214g/km (automatic).
Lexus has also introduced a new three-grade trim structure for the 2009 IS range: SE, SE-I and SE-L.
The most notable upgrade is the provision of Lexus’s vehicle integrated dynamics management (VDIM) as standard on all models.
VDIM co-ordinates the operation of the car’s ABS, electronic brakeforce distribution (EBD), traction control (TRC) and vehicle stability control (VSC) with the electric power steering (EPS), providing assistance as the car reaches its performance limits.
Also new to all models are folding rear headrests for better rearward vision when the back seats are unoccupied.
Cellensia suede-effect upholstery is fitted to the entry level SE models, while the new SE-I versions build on the current SE grade with the addition of front and rear parking sensors.
For the top-of-the range IS 250 and 220d SE-L models, 18-inch alloy wheels become a standard feature. These and the 17-inch rims featured on the SE-I versions both have a new design.
New 2009 Lexus IS prices
IS MODEL OTR price and price reduction
IS 220d £22,490 - £702
IS 220d SE £24,995 - £847
IS 220d SE-L £27,160 - £782
IS 250 £23,200 - £927
IS 250 auto £24,010 - £927
IS 250 SE £25,720 - £1,057
IS 250 SE auto £26,530 - £1,057
IS 250 SE-L £28,850 - £837New satellite navigation pack
Lexus has made a satellite navigation pack available as a £1,825 option on IS SE and SE-I models. The pack includes a pan-European navigation system, seven-inch video display, touch screen operation, Bluetooth connectivity, 13-seaker audio system with six CD changer and rear parking monitor.
Multimedia pack
The multimedia pack option for the IS SE-L (£2,710) provides the same features, but with a 14-speaker Mark Levinson hifi system with 5.1 surround sound and six-DVD changer. The satellite navigation offers an additional dynamic route guidance function to provide automatic diversion routes to avoid any delays detected on a pre-programmed journey.
Exterior and interior styling
The 2009 IS features a new front bumper with a revised grille. The door mirrors are new, too, with larger glass sections and integrated indicator lamps.
In the cabin the changes are limited to minor adjustments to the tone of interior upholsteries and trims and the shape of switches and graphics on the centre console. The SE-L grade benefits from revised wood colours.
A paddle shift function is now available on “D” mode in the six-speed automatic transmission.
DATED: 12.11.08
FEED: AM
Main to take over as BEN CEO
"A qualified accountant, Main has held senior roles in the healthcare, software, legal and charitable sectors."
David Main is to be the new chief executive of Motor trade charity BEN. He is currently chief executive of the Civil Service Benevolent Fund.
Main will take over on January 26 from interim chief executive Christopher Macgowan.
A qualified accountant, Main has held senior roles in the healthcare, software, legal and charitable sectors.
Macgowan said: “I am delighted that David has agreed to join BEN’s professional executive and I look forward to working alongside him as I return to my position on the board.
“BEN’s executive team and board have a vast knowledge of the automotive industry and the charitable sector and David brings his business skills and experience to complement our existing strengths.”
Joe Greenwell, Ford of Europe’s vice-president of government affairs and former Jaguar boss, was elected BEN’s new president last month.
DATED: 12.11.08
FEED: AM
Chase de Vere fined £1.12m by FSA
| The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has fined AWD Chase de Vere Wealth Management Ltd £1.12 million for serious failings in its pension transfer, pension annuity and income withdrawal business that resulted in mis-selling. |
The FSA found that the firm mis-sold some pension transfers and pension annuities by recommending products to customers who already had adequate existing pension provisions or whose attitude to risk did not match the products recommended to them, for example. The firm has estimated that as many as 800 of its customers may have received unsuitable advice in relation to 1,200 sales between February 2006 and October 2007. The FSA also found that the firm sometimes failed to properly disclose the risks and costs of the products it recommended, and was also unable to demonstrate the suitability of its advice from its own records in 39 per cent of the transactions which were reviewed. Based on a sample of recommendations, the FSA found that 28 per cent of transactions resulted in mis-sales. Margaret Cole, FSA director of enforcement, said: “Firms must treat their customers fairly by making every effort to provide them with suitable advice. This fine of £1.12 million reflects that AWD Chase de Vere failed to establish its customers’ needs and did not provide them with complete and accurate information, which resulted in a large number of mis-sales. “The FSA will report on its thematic work into the pensions transfer industry shortly to identify good and bad practice and demonstrate further to firms what we expect of them. Firms must take note of this work and amend their own processes where necessary.” In determining the level of the penalty, the FSA has recognised the firm has reviewed past business so as to compensate customers where appropriate, and provided significant co-operation with the conduct of the investigation. Without this remediation, the FSA would have imposed a significantly higher penalty. In addition, the firm qualified for a 30 per cent reduction in its penalty by settling at an early stage of the FSA’s investigation. |
FSA integrates TCF into Core Supervisory work
| The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has today announced that it will accelerate the full integration of Treating Customers Fairly (TCF) into core supervisory work. |
TCF remains central to the FSA's retail strategy, and firms are expected to meet the December 2008 deadline. As from January, delivery of TCF will be tested as part of firms’ usual supervision. Jon Pain, managing director of the FSA’s retail markets, said: “Today's announcement means the FSA can deliver the benefits from the TCF programme more quickly. Our focus will be on the outcomes for consumers. We will continue to challenge firms rigorously where there are issues and take decisive action where necessary. “The standard against which firms will be judged remains high, and the penalties for not complying remain tough.” The FSA has today also published a TCF update reminding firms what is required of them and explaining how firms will be assessed. |
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Audi turns attention to used car sales
The brand is targeting an increase in sales of used Audis aged over 12 months old. It said used cars sold to the end of September aged over a year old accounted for 59 per cent of total secondhand sales - a year-on-year increase of 2,775 units. "We needed to grow the business of cars aged over a year old and the growth of internet usage has helped us achieve this," said Audi UK director Jeremy Hicks. This year the brand, as an incentive, subsidised some of the preparation costs associated with retailing used cars but expects the dealers to carry the costs next year. "We wanted it to be a focus for dealers this year and don't have any specific targets for next year - we expect dealers to take it forward," he said. The increase helped boost profitability in the network with an average 2 per cent return on sales, compared with the national average estimated by Trevor Jones and ASE, the specialist motor trader accountancy firm, of 0.1 per cent to the end of August. Meanwhile Audi expects new car sales this year to be slightly ahead of 2007 despite the new car market falling 9 per cent in the year-to-date. "We're growing on the back of a strong order-bank which will make this year our biggest," said Hicks. "We think sales will slow down by the end of the year but we expect to be slightly ahead of last year," he said. Last year the brand broke through the 100,000 barrier with 100,864 sales, an increase of 18 per cent, which consolidated its position as the biggest selling prestige brand after BMW. However, Hicks admitted the brand had not been unaffected by the declining market. "I don't think anyone is immune from the downturn but strong brands tend to do better," he said. DATED: 11.11.08 FEED: MT |
Audi will continue to urge its 57-strong dealer network to grow used sales in 2009 to protect them from over dependence on new car sales as the market continues to tighten.
