Auto Retail Agenda: 14 November 2022
12 November 2022
- RETAILERS WARNED ABOUT ‘SLAPDASH’ DATA PROTECTION
- SOPER BMW INSTALLS UK’S FASTEST EV CHARGERS
- NEWGATE TO DISTRIBUTE MULLEN EV IN UK AND IRELAND
- MOTORISTS WARNED PCP RATES ARE ROCKETING
- AUTO TRADER REVENUE PER RETAILER GROWS AGAIN
- SAFFORD IN BIGGEST US ACQUISITION OF 2022
- YES, CHIP SHORTAGES WILL CONTINUE INTO 2023
- STOCKWATCH
- COMING UP: AUTO RETAIL LIVE, AUTUMN STATEMENT
- UK HIGH EARNERS ARE INCOME TAX TARGET
- 9 MILLION NOW ECONOMICALLY INACTIVE IN BRITAIN
Retailers warned about ‘slapdash’ data protection
Some large retail brands are ignoring data protection laws and are “taking such a slapdash approach that they are putting customers at risk of fraud”. Two in three of 100 websites tested in a mystery shop failed to provide all the information they held on a customer.
Since 2018, all companies are legally required to provide a copy of all the personal data they store on a customer if asked.
They must reply in 30 days, or a further two months if the request is “complex”. 50 of the 100 brands provided an incomplete set of data, and 20 provided no data at all. Five brands, including Sports Direct and Superdry, simply did not reply.
Data management company Ketch carried out the research. Brands are not only risking financial penalties, but “the backlash and reputational damage as consumers switch to brands they can trust to hold their data,” it said.
Soper BMW installs UK’s fastest EV chargers
Soper Lincoln BMW has installed two ultra-rapid ABB Terra 360kW electric car chargers. Dealer principal Andrew Tullie claims they are the fastest in the country and can provide 62 miles’ charge in 3 minutes.
One unit is on the retailer forecourt, and the other is dedicated to the 15-bay workshop. Each unit can charge two cars.
The retailer had to upgrade its grid connection to provide the necessary 560 amps each charger needs to operate at full power.
Newgate to distribute Mullen EV in UK and Ireland
Newgate Motor Group, one of Ireland’s leading retailers, has been appointed marketing, sales, distribution and servicing agent for the Mullen I-Go electric city van. Newgate has agreed to purchase 500 vehicles a year from the Californian EV company. It will also enter into a retailer agreement encompassing sales and service training, flooring, parts, warranty and other OEM-type provisions.
Motorists warned PCP rates are rocketing
The average new car PCP rate has increased from 4.3% to 7.2% in the past year. The average new car list price cost 30% of the average salary in 2002, 33% in 2012 – and 53% in 2022. Motorists are being warned payments could soar when they come to take on their next PCP.
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Auto Trader revenue per retailer grows again
Auto Trader average revenue per retailer (ARPR) grew £205 in H1, to £2,404. It reflects increased prices and new products – the latter contributing £133 to the increase. Looking forward, although retailer forecourt numbers are expected to dip, ARPR is expected to grow again.
Hargreaves Lansdown last week described Auto Trader as “a remarkable business”, whose capital-light model supports operating margins in the region of 70%.
WORLD NEWS
Safford in biggest US acquisition of 2022
Safford Automotive has bought Brown Automotive Group’s 16 retailers in the largest US acquisition so far in 2022. It more than doubles Safford’s store count. The combined group will be renamed Safford Brown Automotive Group.
Yes, chip shortages will continue into 2023
OEMs are already altering production plans for 2023 due to the ongoing semiconductor shortage. Between 2m and 3m units of planned production are expected to be lost in 2023 – on top of 10.5m in 2021 and 3.6m so far in 2022. Lead times for semiconductors “remain stubbornly high”, around three times more than was normal in 2019.
STOCKWATCH
Closing prices on 11 November 2022 and weekly change
Auto Trader Group 574.6p (+34.0p / +6.0%)
Caffyns 525.0p (n/c)
Halfords 209.0p (+17.0p / +8.4%)
Inchcape 844.5p (+50.0p / +6.1%)
Lookers 79.4p (+1.4p / +1.7%)
Motorpoint 158.0p (+11.0p / +7.2%)
Pendragon 27.2p (n/c)
Vertu 49.5p (+2.1p / +4.3%)
COMING UP
Tuesday, Auto Retail Live: sign up here
Tuesday, unemployment figures
Wednesday, CPI and RPI
Thursday, Autumn statement
Friday, retail sales
MONEY MATTERS
UK high earners are income tax target
PM Rishi Sunak is expected to reduce the threshold of the 45p rate of income tax from £150k to £125k. It will drag around 250,000 people into paying the highest rate of income tax – costing them £580 a year. Around 629k people who already pay the 45p tax rate will pay an extra £1,250 a year.The move will raise £1.3bn a year for the government.http://bit.ly/3WYaO3f
9 million are economically inactive in Britain
Around nine million people aged 16-64 are classed as economically inactive in Britain – neither in work, nor looking for work. This is up 600k since the pandemic, and includes an increase in early retirement and a sharp jump in long-term sickness. The employment rate in all other members of the G7 has, in contrast, risen.
Such economic inactivity means businesses are unable to expand – unless they can afford to lure workers with higher pay. The tight jobs market is why the Bank of England is raising interest rates more quickly.
Tags:
Auto Trader, Autumn statement, Car Finance, Chancellor, Data Protection, EV, PCP, Safford, semiconductors, Soper BMW, tax 
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