12:08 pm, May 10, 2023
Motorway has launched a service that lets dealers fund a secure online wallet then release money to private sellers instantly to complete transactions.
The industry-first Motorway Pay service has been designed by the online used car marketplace to significantly improve the buying experience for dealers who buy cars on its website, making payment for vehicles fast, easy, transparent and secure.
In a special Car Dealer video published last November, Motorway highlighted the fact that payments were the biggest pain point for dealers.
Harry Jones, co-founder and chief product officer, told Car Dealer editor-in-chief James Baggott: ‘Payment is a big area of interest. We hear the feedback from dealers that it’s a lot of work to set up payments for every individual seller that they purchase cars from.
‘Also, on the sellers’ side I think it can be a smoother process if perhaps Motorway is managing the payments and releasing it to the seller at the right point. It increases trust in the platform.’
Jones wouldn’t be drawn on specifics as regards a product tackling the issue but said: ‘Watch this space!’ As such, Motorway Pay is the company addressing that problem.
You can watch our exclusive video at the top of this story.
Motorway said today that when buying from private sellers, dealers often face a lengthy process for each individual transaction.
This includes verifying documentation, setting up a new seller as a payee and handling finance settlement.
A Motorway Pay transaction on an Audi under way
But Motorway Pay lets dealers pre-load their wallet ahead of a vehicle collection then use these funds to immediately pay for the vehicle at the click of a button.
The service takes care of all of the admin of collecting and verifying documents, setting up payees and confirming successful payment for both parties.
Motorway said this cuts waiting time at the doorstep for the dealer and the seller, while immediate payment confirmations meant instant clarity and the necessary paper trail for both sides.
In addition, Motorway Pay handles the clearance of outstanding finance, whereas dealers previously had to settle any finance separately to the seller’s payment.
The Motorway Pay service is free to dealers buying through Motorway, and includes an assurance policy that all payments go to the right place.
It was soft-launched at the end of January with a test group of dealers, and more than 1,000 payments together worth over £20m have already gone through Motorway Pay.
The company is now rolling out the service to all dealers.
Dealers who took part in the initial test group reported big savings in admin and time, plus a better overall experience for them and the sellers.
Vlad Radu, vehicle procurement and operations manager at Carsa, said: ‘I’ve used Motorway Pay for over 100 transactions so far and it’s been flawless!
‘Payments are always instant, and sellers are reassured via email confirmation from Motorway.
The transaction nears completion
‘It saves a lot of time for dealers and transport companies. It used to take us about 15 mins per seller and now I’m doing it while on the phone with the driver.’
Motorway chief operating officer James Wilson said: ‘Simplifying the payments process has been high on our dealers’ wishlist for some time, so we are delighted to be able to launch this industry-first solution with Motorway Pay.
‘Removing the hassle involved with paying private sellers has been a hard problem to solve, but we’ve built a powerful, secure and robust solution that makes buying cars on Motorway in high volumes easier than ever before.’
He added: ‘Having road-tested Motorway Pay in Q1 with a small group of dealers, it’s clear this is a real game-changer and a genuine first for the industry.
‘We’re including the service at no additional cost to our dealers – underlining our ongoing commitment to delivering maximum value through technology, and supporting our dealer partners to grow their businesses profitably.
‘We’re really pleased that the first phase has been so successful and now look forward to rolling out Motorway Pay across our dealer network.’
More than £2bn of purchases have been completed through Motorway in the past 12 months and it said volumes were continuing to increase rapidly.
Sales are now said to be exceeding 1,000 cars a day on average, including many of more than 1,500 cars a day in the past few weeks.
