9:46 am, August 15, 2016
INCREASED used car supply in the UK for the rest of this year will see dealers place a renewed emphasis on the overall customer proposition – including the warranty.
The Warranty Group, a leading global provider of warranty solutions and underwriting services, says that a higher level of competition in the market will see dealers looking to differentiate their offering as buyers find a wider used car choice available.
Ian Simpson, European managing director – automotive, said: ‘There has been quite restricted supply in the used car sector in recent years but the general consensus is that we are now at a tipping point where stock will become much more widely available.
‘There are widespread predictions that this will lead to more price competition in the sector but smarter dealers will generally keep away from entering into a price war with their competitors.
‘Instead, we expect to see a greater than ever accent on the customer proposition, with dealers seeking a degree of differentiation by providing a complete used car package.
‘The warranty will obviously be part of this and we are expecting to see a general move towards longer and more comprehensive warranties as standard over the next year.’
Simpson said that the warranty element of such a package was designed to provide customers with greater peace of mind surrounding the car.
‘As far as the customer is concerned, a more extensive warranty reflects a high degree of faith in the vehicle by the retailer and marks the purchase out as more reliable, even if it is a little more expensive.
‘We would expect this to be one of a number of elements to the dealer package, probably including a comprehensive provenance check and a third party condition check.
‘Some of these features are similar to the work that we undertake in partnership with the RAC on its BuySure initiative and we believe that this is very much the direction in which the used car sector is heading.’
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