24 May 2021

The ripple effect of 2020’s lockdown is set to strike the MOT sector once again in 2021, with last year’s postponements potentially set to play havoc with the retail industry’s diaries.

The six-month extension meant that customers didn’t have the same need or urgency when it came to getting their car MOTd at the point it was due. While not all cars will have had their annual check delayed – essential workers and commercial vehicles were still able to get their car worked on – the impact will have been significant enough to make itself known in 2021.

ASE’s Mark Fennelly gave his guide on how to smooth out the potential pile-ups that could leave technicians’ days packed later this year after a spring spent twiddling their thumbs.

1. Mixed bag of experiences

The March lockdown doesn’t mean that everyone will have been impacted so don’t assume that all MOTs that were due in those months will have been delayed to later in the year.

“There are a couple of anomalies as not everyone locked down immediately and a lot of your servicers, classed as essential, continued to operate,” says Mark.

“The franchise dealer network locked down and then reopened slowly under the guise of servicing essential workers and the like.

As a result, there will be a mixed bag when it comes to the gap that people took in terms of their MOT, whether it is two months or a month or more.

“With an MOT you have the ability to pull forward a month – if it was done in May you can do it in April and date it for 13 months. Retailers need to make sure the data in their database is current in terms of customers’ contact details and MOT due dates and then start contacting customers to get them in.”

2. Sell the old routine

Retailers can use the slowly lifting of the latest lockdown as a way to bring customers back in, says Mike.

“The sell is convenient – the world is still in a state of pause and the more you can get done now before it starts to open up the better,” he says. “It is another job ticked off the list.

“It is convenient right now so people can get it done when they want rather than last minute fitting it in as is often the case.

“For dealers it is about engaging with customers early to make sure they get the customer out of the marketplace. You are protecting your potential bookings: ‘It was delayed in 2020 so we will get you back on track this year.’ That caring for customers has to be the important point of view.”

3. Servicing impact

While MOTs got more publicity in 2020 due to their legal standing, servicing schedules will also have been impacted. With peoples’ personal travel reduced due to lockdown, many people will have had a service come around on the basis of time rather than mileage.

“What most manufacturers did a few years ago was switch to mileage or timed services – services were due every 10,000 miles or every year,” says Mark. “The mileages of most people having been reduced it meant they needed a service from a time perspective.

“After the second lockdown there was a huge appetite for customers to play catch up. Whether it was a haircut, going to the dentist or getting their car serviced.”

“The biggest challenge is where the larger dealer groups furloughed techs. They held back the potential upside of opening up. You have this situation where all mechanics are fully working but we only have half the workforce in.”

4. Furlough’s impact yet to finish

Furlough allowed retailers to catch their breath, but soon technicians were required to come back to work. Not all came back straight away, though, and some are still off work, says Mark.

“What soon became apparent is that the good people were brought back [from furlough] quickly. The average performers were left until later and now we have people on furlough who are not seen as part of the core team – perhaps people who are semi-retired or are more challenging to work with.

“The question is what to do with those people. There is a social issue. If you have been furloughed and you come into a team that has been fully employed there is an element of ‘why me?’ They have to fit you into a team that has been working.”

“It was a different decision at some of the smaller family-run businesses. Furloughing ‘Tom’ was an emotional business as he has worked for the family since he left school – better to get him doing something productive for the business. At a group level it is easier to cut numbers as it is just a case of “one of the guys needs to go” and it is less personal.

He suggests that those who have not come back by now might not be coming back at all.

5. Recruitment attitudes

The lockdown period allowed, or forced, many businesses to look at their staffing spend.

“One dealer head said that they realised they used people to cover inefficiencies,” says Mark. “They had grown without realising it.

“If you are a business that performed at a higher level, there may be the ability to grow the business. If you underperformed relative to the number of people the lockdown may have been a call to right size the business.

“There are growing numbers of opportunities but the final decision to hire is slow to happen. People see a pent-up demand, they need to have the right workforce but they are nervous of another spike and another lockdown. It is an evolving plan.”

[YOUR ACTION PLAN]

• Check contact databases, get in touch with customers
• Use convenience and ‘return to normal’ as the sell
• Don’t underestimate the impact on servicing schedules
• Have plans in place for those who are still on furlough

Tags: aftersales, MoT, servicing