7:10 am, October 6, 2026
‘We are Disneyland for vans.’
That was the claim of Auto Capital’s Keith Hardy as he showed me around the used van dealer’s Stanmore home last week.
The firm has been through the ringer over the last year, after being named and shamed by the government for not paying the correct tax.
It was an accusation which stung Auto Capital, with the mistake actually being down to an error with its dealer management system.
Now, more than 12 months on, Car Dealer has been invited to have a look around and find out what the business is really all about.
Walking into the site, you’d be forgiven for wondering whether you’d walked into a commercial vehicle dealership at all.
Think of vans and the mind immediately wanders to visions of building sites and all the mess of the trade. However, the reception of Auto Capital could not be further away.
The welcome area is crisp and sharp and would not look out of place at a site selling £200,000 supercars, yet alone workhorse vans.
After introducing myself at reception I was immediately greeted by operations director Hardy, who came bounding out of his office with an infectious enthusiasm.
In our previous chats, Hardy – who has spent more than two decades with Auto Capital – was keen to stress that the tax dispute was not an accurate portrayal of the firm.
Instead, he was eager to point out the high levels of customer service the firm offers, and during our visit it was easy to see what he means.
Throughout the day there was a steady flow of customers coming and going, all of whom were treated to a five star service.
Sales staff took time to show them around, explain offers and talk through any queries. One client I chatted to was looking to buy his fifth van from the dealer with Hardy himself on hand to show him around a pristine looking Ford Transit.
But was he concerned that the very public dispute with the tax office could have driven customers away?
‘Absolutely not,’ he said when pressed on the issue. ‘It hasn’t affected us with our customers or our partners. If anything it built trust and confidence that if anything does happen to Auto Capital it won’t collapse or drop. We paid our fine, we moved on and we’re growing.’
In response to an approach from Car Dealer, a spokesman for HMRCsaid: ‘We follow a robust process when we publish our Deliberate Defaulters list and details are only published where the statutory conditions are met.
‘Before publication we carefully consider the facts of each case and taxpayers have opportunities to make representations before the list is published.’
Going green
As with the used car market, second-hand vans are going through something of a transitional period with the arrival of new Chinese brands and more and more electric-powered options.
With Auto Capital typically stocking up to 300 vans at one time – although it has space for as many as 500 – the firm is continuing to sell traditional petrol and diesel vehicles but that doesn’t mean it isn’t continuing to grow its eco-friendly offering as time goes by.
With that transition in mind, the firm has invested in two charging points to keep its electric vans topped up, while it is also looking to back staff by putting them on specialist courses for working on EVs.
It is an approach which was clear to see as we walked around the showroom, with plenty of green striped number plates on show throughout.
But how do the customers differ between powertrains and what sort of questions do dealers need to be ready for?
‘We are evolving and looking to expand our EV sales,’ says Hardy. ‘With a diesel van you will have questions like:”Does the van have service history and has the timing belt been done?”
‘The electric customers are going to ask you: “What’s the range on the van and what’s the battery health on it?”
‘The rest of it is going to be the same – the payload, the tow capacity and its size in terms of spec.’
A one-stop shop
During our chat, Hardy was keen to highlight how Auto Capital can look after buyers for all of their van needs.
The firm has its own prep centre, workshop and valeters on site, while it also does well from upselling items like cameras, racks, wheels and locks. It even offers custom sign writing via a partnership with a neighbouring firm, and work uniforms to match.
During our tour we chatted to valeters and sales staff and it was clear to see that this is a company that values its staff. The dealership even has its very own gym which is free to employees to use at their own leisure.
But it is not just the staff that are well looked after. After being valeted, the cars are taken to Auto Capital’s very own photo booth, complete with a 360 degree turntable.
Keys are also kept safe using a state-of-the-art fingerprint ID system from KeyTracker and Hardy says that having all the latest mod cons is crucial to offering customers the very best service.
‘It’s really important, especially with customer’s expectations,’ he said. ‘Technology needs to be up at full performance as well as us – the staff.
‘Essentially that is the most important thing for us as a staff to keep it going along with that technology and to keep evolving with our customers’ needs.’
With a flourishing business and big plans for the future, it is clear to see that Auto Capital is a firm on the up once more.
Bosses will now be hoping for a less taxing period than what’s gone before!