Most vehicle owners dread their MOTs due to the fact that they will have to pay out money in order to make sure their cars are road worthy. This is why many mechanics usually offer deals for their services in order to gain a bigger share of the market, which can lead to franchised dealers workshops losing out on business. Now two trading bodies, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) and the National Franchised Dealer Association (NFDA), are launching a PR initiative to raise consumers’ awareness of franchised dealer workshops.
The campaign will be focussed on consumers and will encourage them to not only visit a franchised dealers workshop for their annual MOT, but also check their car before the test so that it is less likely to fail. There are ten visual checks that the media based campaign will promote that will hopefully help reduce the 1.5 million cars that fail their MOTs each year due to minor faults such as faulty bulbs, inadequate tyre tread and empty windscreen washer fluid bottles that could all be fixed by the owner before their test.
Mike Baunton, SMMT Interim chief executive, said: “The message we want to get across to motorists is that an MOT fail could very easily be avoided if a simple visual check was carried out beforehand. The aim of the campaign is to arm motorists with the information that should help reduce avoidable MOT failures, while dealers will be primed to help vehicle owners carry out the visual inspection before the test, or to rectify and issues before conducting a manufacturer-guaranteed MOT.”
Meanwhile, the NFDA director Robinson said: “If consumers have any concerns they should call up a franchised dealer, which has fully trained technicians who are up to speed on all makes and models for advice.” Hopefully the PR campaign will increase the amount of customers franchised dealers workshops will receive over the upcoming year, which means they will have more income even after spending money on necessities such as motor trade insurance, training and tools. Furthermore, the campaign should help more motorists pass their MOTs quickly and easily, and learn even more about how they can maintain their cars themselves.
