Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Loders sites to be ‘sold in 24 hours’
Volkswagen and Skoda have confirmed that Loders Motor Group is in the process of selling sites in Dorchester and Yeovil.
A spokesperson for Volkswagen said both sites are currently trading, despite the group’s website being suspended since the weekend (pictured).
“Dorchester and Yeovil are on the verge of administration and we expect a buyer to be announced in the next 24 hours,” said the spokesperson.
The VW Dorchester site trades on The Grove and is also a commercial vehicle centre for the brand.
The Yeovil site houses both VW and Skoda on the town’s Houndstone Business Park.
Skoda confirmed a buyer has been found for its business but said its authorised repairer site in Dorchester, which opened in July 2009, would close as part of the transaction.
DATED: 22.11.11
FEED: MT
Waters Autoplanet still in negotiations to find a buyer
Waters Autoplanet, the 22 site dealer group based in the south of England which went into administration in October, is in discussions with several parties to buy parts of the business.
A spokesman for administrators Zolfo Cooper, told AM: “We are continuing to receive expressions of interest for various parts of the business. Negotiations are ongoing.”
The dealer group went under due to the current economic climate and after a failed attempt to complete a sale this year.
The group represents Kia, Renault, Fiat, Mazda, Peugeot and Seat and also has used car supermarkets as well as a HiQ fast fit operation. The group’s sites are based in Barnet, Chingford, Harpenden, Letchworth, Maidstone, Southampton, St Albans and Tunbridge Wells.
The group closed two of its four Peugeot sites in 2008, but had been expanding recently with dealer openings in Tunbridge Wells with Kia and Seat in July 2010
DATED: 21.11.11
FEED: AM
Dealers hit by £3.8m rates appeal backlog
Delays in processing business rate appeals are costing motor trade businesses over £3.8m per year according to new research from CVS, the property services specialist.
CVS has uncovered a backlog of over 328,000 business rate appeals at the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), the body in charge of calculating business rates and council tax in England and Wales. A third of these appeals date back to 2005 and 1,847 relate to motor trade businesses.
“Tens of thousands of business ratepayers have paid too much and, to compound the problem, they are unable to retrieve the money owed to them as a result of the inefficient appeals process,” said Don Baker, CVS’ national head of rating.
CVS has estimated it will take nearly 2.5 years to clear the backlog of 2010 appeals.
“This inability to resolve appeals in a timely fashion and return money to businesses that have over-paid is fast becoming a business critical issue according to CVS, and is preventing SME businesses from contributing to a private sector recovery,” said Baker.
CVS blames new procedures introduced in January 2011 for the appeals backlog.
DATED: 21.11.11
FEED: MT
Average used car price falls below £9,000
The average asking price for used cars has fallen below £9,000 for the first time in almost two years.
Prices dropped because there were fewer one-to-three old cars coming onto the market due to declining new car sales over the past few years, according to AutoTrader.
“A lower overall supply of one-to-three year old vehicles entering the UK Car Parc, combined with consumers holding on to their cars for longer, is increasing the average age of vehicles in the UK and this is being reflected in lower average overall prices,” said AutoTrader director Tim Peake
But prices of younger cars are rising. Peake said: “Dealers are havin to fight for good quality one-to-three year old stock leading to an increase in trade prices for these vehicles.
“We expect trade prices for one to three year old vehicles to continue to increase next year, as dealers compete for stock. With consumer demand stable, retail prices will remain flat at best.”
Year on year, most vehicle values have fallen. The only year-on-year price increases by car type were seen among luxury saloons, up 2.1 per cent and 4X4 Land Rovers, up 3.2 per cent.
DATED: 21.11.11
FEED: MT
VW dealer Loders expected to be under new ownership by end of this week
Volkswagen and Skoda dealer Loders is understood to be on the verge of new ownership after hitting a financial crisis.
The company already disposed of its Yeovil Audi business to Ocean Automotive earlier this month.
That left it with Volkswagen and Skoda sites in Yeovil and Dorchester.
AM understands negotiations are underway sell the business to Heritage Automotive, which already partners Volkswagen in Bristol, Weston-super-mare, Salisbury and Westbury. That deal is expected to be completed later this week.
Companies House records show Loders’ latest accounts are two months overdue, and Brian Singer, Alan Scrimgeour, Stephen Parkinson and Adrian Bull all terminated their directorships at the start of November.
A spokeswoman for the business said it was not in administration, and added that a statement would be issued by the end of this week.
She declined to comment whether a sale of the business was imminent.
However a spokeswoman at Volkswagen UK said it understands the business is in administration and VW is working with a potential buyer to finalise details of a sale of the company and ensure continuity for customers.
DATED: 21.11.11
FEED: AM
Parts company bought out of administration
Godfrey Automotive Parts Limited, a £6 million turnover motor parts trade retailer based in Grimsby, has been sold out of administration for an undisclosed sum by administrator Begbies Traynor.
The sale to a new company owned by Manchester-based auto cleaning products business Tetrosyl Group Limited was completed nine days after the appointment of the administrators in a deal that will save all 77 jobs.
Godfrey Automotive Parts Ltd was placed in administration on Wednesday, November 9 owing creditors around £2.5m, including a £500,000 debt to the HMRC.
The company had traded from seven stores and distribution centres in Leeds, Wakefield, Sheffield, York, Hull, Scunthorpe and the head office and flagship showroom in Grimsby. The firm sold a range of auto accessories, vehicle parts, tools and maintenance consumables from its retail and trade counters.
“Godfrey Autoparts is an established and reputable independent parts retailer, and the business had every chance of thriving with the right owner and with proper funding in place.
“Our corporate recovery teams from all over Yorkshire helped to get a grip on the individual depots, and we were able to undertake an accelerated M&A process and drove a deal that will recover 100 per cent return for secured creditors and saves the jobs of everyone at the firm,” said administrator Rob Sadler, of Begbies Traynor.
The new company formed to acquire the business is called Godfrey Autoparts Ltd. It is independent of previous shareholders and is owned 100 per cent by Maccess Group Limited which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tetrosyl Group Limited. The directors of the previous company will be retained as employees to manage the business.
DATED: 22.11.11
FEED: AM
