Bye OFT & FSA and Hello FCA

As anyone in finance or insurance is aware the industry is going into the largest change in a lifetime.
We are fully updated with what's happening but do people like yourselves in the general public domain know what it means?

Firstly lets give you some back story, the OFT is the office of fair trading which has been in charge of licencing firms to provide finance or financial advice. This was done by applying for a licence for a set fee which was renewed every 5 years. This system applied to firms not taking other peoples deposits to lend out cash for example finance companies or loan companies. Anyone acting as a third party also had to have a licence so all car dealers who provided finance had to hold a licence and also any broker.

The FCA was in charge of everything else finance wise including banks, they were also in charge of insurance activates, unlike the OFT they had more power and control over people signed up to holding a licence.

Now both these system worked fine for everyone, however they also worked fine for miss-selling, and the new type of online loan sharks we call pay day loans. The government decided it had enough of all this and decided to merge OFT and FSA, which is what they called FCA, they have also given it more powers and control. They made a new department called PRA (Prudential Regulation Authority). The PRA will just deal with banks making sure they hold enough capital its not something which concerns the car industry so I only have limited information.

Now why am I writing this article now and why is it important? Well come the 1st April 2014 the FCA and PRA will take over full control of all finance dealings in the UK.

The first thing more than likely to happen will be pay day loans, which on a personal level is about dam time. I think everyone knows payday loan companies charge people in need HUGE rates of interest and massive penalties for failing to pay. The FCA will more than likely put a cap on the APR rate charged and cap on charges.

They will then more than likely start looking at the car industry as its about time we had a shake up and clean out of the muck that trades in our industry.

GAP will be under review with some main agents automatically adding it on to finance agreements and charging huge amounts of profit on top. The FCA will more than likely force dealers to prove that customers are getting value for money on these products and the product was explained correctly before being applied without consent.

After this I suspect car finance will be looked at. As honest dealers when quoting finance figures even over the phone I fully explain acceptance is subject to credit scoring. Then I explain monthly payments and any admin fee's and cost's involved in the HP agreement. I then move onto the rate explaining the base rate and then the APR rate.

APR and Base rate is where lots of car dealers make huge profits from finance on customers by knowingly misleading them by not supplying full information. I've seen this happen at nearly every used car dealer and more shocking at main agents even on NEW cars. I've had customers not see this shock until months or years later.

Firstly base rate is always LOWER than APR. Car dealers system work by using a set base rate, the APR is calculated after the term and amount are entered. the APR will be more for 2 years than a 3 year or 4 year agreement for the same amount as the base rate remains the same.  The big issue here is loan companies and credit cards all advertise APR.

The typical miss selling I see is like this.
Customer: I've been looking for loans and I know what I can lend and the rates what rate do you charge.
Dealer: We charge 8%
Customer: Ahh that's great I've been approved to get 9.1% by my bank

The problem here is the customer has more than likely been approved for 9.1% APR where the dealers is base which could be 17% APR. Now the dealer might argue that he thought the customer was meaning base. However when this happens to me I say to the customer the APR and Base rate stating both and if they give me a figure from another dealer I tell them to check if his figure is base or APR.. If this was done more often people wouldn't feel they have been mislead into a higher rate.

However its not all down to the dealers anyone signing finance paperwork should read the PCE before signing and recheck the documents on the day of signing stopping this happening.

Toyota FT-1

Wow how did I miss this car? this morning while reading my trade magazine I saw the Toyota FT-1, it has to have the best rear end I've ever seen at first I thought this has to be a pininfarina design for alfa great looks and lines with great scoops. 

When I started to look for more info on this car I found the sad truth no car fan wants to hear... Yes that's right its just a concept car. Most amazing the designer of this great car wasn't Italian no they were part of Toyota's Californian design team. What upsets me is they have titled this 'future Toyota' meaning it will be put back into the design draw never to be seen again.

The only way to rescue it from that draw? Start calling Toyota and tell them you'd buy it if they made it, I sure know I would, in fact if Toyota won't make it I'd like to beg every car company to buy the design from Toyota. I'd even buy it with Skoda badge on it.

The problem is now is if someone does decide to build it am sure they will ruin all our dreams by putting an electric motor in it or worse yet some silly under power 1.6 litre engine, come on Toyota make it and give us at least a 2.0 Turbo charged engine.

CHECK IT, Don't Regret IT!

At the start of last month the government started a campaign for raise awareness of problems that can occur from buying a used car.

A car is often one of the most expensive purchases a person makes in a lifetime. Many individuals and families depend on cars to get to work, to do the school run, to get to supermarkets where they can access reasonably priced goods, and to visit friends and family members. So finding a car that is safe, legal, and that fits the bill is of huge importance.

Also people seem to forget there be putting them self's, family, and friends inside a car and the safety of that car could bring harm to them as well as other road users. However many people ignore the fact of safety to save a few hindered pounds on a used car.

We are shocked by the amount of customers that decide to buy a car privately and not off us to save £400-£500. What many people don't realise is that these cars could cost 5 times the amount they saved in problems. Everything from bald tyres, faulty brakes, electric issues or the worst case its stolen or written off in which case the car isn't worth a penny.

The Advantages you get from buying a car from a trusted dealer like our self's is ALL our cars are safety checked in our workshop, and come with at LEAST 6 months warranty, we also check all cars we have in stock threw HPI to make sure its clear of finance and insurance damage. We also go the extra mile of checking for previous paint repair to see if major damage had occurred and repaired. 

Buying a used car can be a tricky business. Used cars are the biggest single issue being reported to Citizens Advice consumer service – it deals with over 80,000 used car problems a year.
we are encouraging people to check it, not regret it.

If we don't have the car you want in stock we can check any cars locally over for you with our mechanic for a small fee, but we do urge people to remember your buying something that your going to be putting your kids into so if your unsure about it when you see it Don't regret it.

And the winner is.....

Car buyer wins back £7,000 with ‘Safe and Sound’ and Luigi Motor Services.

Safe&Sound announce the winner of “Win the value of your car draw”, which was running until September 2012.

Mrs Angela Davies from Wakefield purchased her VW Polo on the 15^th August 2011, and just over one year on, she was delighted when safe and sound telephoned her last week to say that Sir Stirling had done the draw and that she was the lucky person, winning back the £6,949 which she paid originally!

Mrs Davies couldn’t believe it, commenting: “I thought it was a wind up at first, then the lady mentioned my car and the draw, and it was only then that I half believed it. I was so glad when Nick from Luigi's rang me so I knew it wasn’t a dream.

“The reason I bought my VW Polo from Luigi’s in the first place is because of all the things that were included free of charge and the fantastic service from the staff. I knew that I didn’t have to worry about my car not being what it should have and everything was explained clearly. I even decided to purchase an additional two years warranty because I was so impressed with the cover which includes wear and tear. For me as a female driver, you can’t get more peace of mind than buying from a ‘Safe and Sound’ dealer. The money is really going to come in handy and I think I’ll treat myself to a cruise, so thank you very much indeed!”

The ‘win the value of your car’ draw was running as an incentive for vehicle buyers to choose a ‘Safe and Sound’ dealership for their next car.

 

We at Luigi Motors of Stockport are delighted when it was announced that it was one of our customers who had won.

Sales manager Nick Raimo comments: “We’ve been a ‘Safe and Sound’ dealership for around a year now after hearing that Sir Stirling Moss was endorsing the scheme, which was all the reassurance we needed to offer it to our customers. Then we found out about the competition to win the value of your car. We never thought it would ever be one of our customers randomly selected by Sir Stirling Moss. So you can imagine our shock when we were called by Adrian our account manager to tell us Mrs Davies had won almost £7,000! After asking him three times to stop pulling my leg he told me that Mrs Davies was called and told this morning. Once I’d calmed down I rang Mrs Davies to arrange for her to come and collect her prize.”

When Mrs Davies was told that she may have to pose for a few photographs as she collected her winnings, she added: “I am camera shy but £7,000 will talk me round!”

 

Congratulations to Mrs Davies, we hope you enjoy your prize. Thank you to  ‘Safe and Sound’ for holding the free draw, and of course to Sir Stirling Moss for drawing the winner!

Car buyer wins back £7,000 with ‘Safe and Sound’

We are delighted to announce that we have a winner for our “Win the value of your car draw”, which was running until September 2012!

Mrs Angela Davies from Wakefield purchased her silver VW Polo on the 15^th August 2011, from Luigi Motors in Stockport. Just over one year on, she was delighted when we telephoned her last week to say that Sir Stirling Moss had done the draw and that she was the lucky person, winning back the £6,949 which she paid for the car!

Mrs Davies couldn’t believe it when she was telephoned, commenting: “I thought it was a wind up at first, then the lady mentioned my car and the draw, and it was only then that I half believed it. I was so glad when the dealership rang me so I knew it wasn’t a dream.

“The reason I bought my VW Polo from Luigi’s in the first place is because of all the things that were included free of charge and the fantastic service from the staff. I knew that I didn’t have to worry about my car not being what it should have and everything was explained clearly. I even decided to purchase an additional two years warranty because I was so impressed with the cover which includes wear and tear. For me as a female driver, you can’t get more peace of mind than buying from a ‘Safe and Sound’ dealer. The money is really going to come in handy and I think I’ll treat myself to a cruise, so thank you very much indeed!”

The ‘win the value of your car’ draw was running as an incentive for vehicle buyers to choose a ‘Safe and Sound’ dealership for their next car, and selling dealership Luigi Motors of Stockport were delighted when it was announced that it was one of their customers who had won.

Sales manager Nick Raimo comments: “We’ve been a ‘Safe and Sound’ dealership for around a year now after hearing that Sir Stirling Moss was endorsing the scheme, which was all the reassurance we needed to offer it to our customers. Then we found out about the competition to win the value of your car. We never thought it would ever be one of our customers randomly selected by Sir Stirling Moss. So you can imagine our shock when we were called by Adrian our account manager to tell us Mrs Davies had won almost £7,000! After saying to him three times to stop pulling my leg he told me that Mrs Davies was called and told this morning. Once I’d calmed down I rang Mrs Davies to arrange for her to come and collect her prize.”

When Mrs Davies was told that she may have to pose for a few photographs when collecting her winnings, she added: “I am camera shy but £7,000 will talk me round!”

Congratulations to Mrs Davies, we hope you enjoy your winnings. Thank you to the thousands of ‘Safe and Sound’ policy holders who were entered into the free draw, and of course to our dealerships that have been helping us to promote it!

Website Changes & Porsche Tips

Hello everyone well we hope most of you already saw our fan page post on facebook about changing our website server over to serve it up faster. Well If you didn't it just to let yo know its all finished the website is now more than 10 times fast* so images and website pages should load almost in a blink.

We are looking for idea of what Videos to make for our Porsche tips, so if you want us to make a how-to guide please email me using our contact form.







*Subject to your download speed

New Porsche Boxster Shown at Geneva

Porsche finaly taken the wraps off its all-new Boxster at the Geneva Motor Show. The New Boxster is now 35kg lighter, more fuel efficient and has more power than ever.

This new Boxster is capable of lapping the Nurburgring in 7 minutes and 58 seconds - 12 seconds faster than the previous model. With the roof up it's also 50 per cent quieter.

The styling has also been refreshed, but in true Porsche style the changes are evolutionary rather than radical at first galance we don't think your be able to tell. A longer wheelbase, widened track and bigger wheels (18-inch on the Boxster, 19-inch on the Boxster S) will be the biggest clues if you park the new model next to its predecessor gen2.

Shorter rear and front overhangs and a more steeply raked windscreen to create a more streamline look to the car. The roof is still made from fabric, but is now exposed behind the cockpit when lowered.

The new interior gets a larger seven-inch colour touchscreen simlair to the one fitted in the Gen2. Porsche claims that the inspiration for the new layout came from the Carrera GT hypercar sold from 2004-2006.

The biggest change your notice with the new Boxster has to be the engine, with the entry-level 2.9-litre flat-six replaced by a new smaller 2.7-litre unit. Not the same 2.7 which was scraped with the change to the 2.9. Despite downsizing, they have found more power and extra 10bhp which now takes it to 261bhp. The Bosxter S sticks with its 3.4-litre flat-six, but gains an extra 5bhp taking its total to 311bhp. Both engines are fitted with stop-start.

The performance has also improved, The new Boxster accelerates from 0-62mph in 5.7 seconds – a tenth of a second faster than the  previous model, while the Boxster S takes exactly 5 seconds – an improvement of two tenths.

A six-speed manual is now fitted as standard, but if you want to extract maximum performance and the best possible fuel economy, The seven-speed PDK gearbox is required. With the PDK fuel consumption is improved by up to 15 per cent, with the Boxster returning 36.7mpg and the Boxster S managing 35.3mpg.

The Boxster S now comes standard with partial leather and Xenon headlights. The new Boxster goes on sale at the end of April priced from £37,589 for the Boxster and £45,384 for the Boxster S.