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CAP who provide vehicle valuation guides based on achieved auction prices have said that they are about to launch a significant downward price review based on the continued drop in prices achieved by fleet sellers in auction. This will have the affect of putting up lease rates unless the leasing companies can counter this with greater bonuses from the manufacturers. And be dismal news for those who Read more »

Good to see that Alphabet, the car leasing company, has spotted something in the new tax rules that are to come into force next April that I reported upon many weeks ago. Under the current rules you can only charge to profit a percentage of the monthly rental cost of a contract hire lease once the cost of the car exceeds £12,000 up to a maximum of a 25% disallowance. This variable rate has now been replaced by Read more »

Now for those few readers that have not listened to a word I’ve said about the benefits of leasing and still insist on owning your cars you may be interested in some more gems passed on by the valuation expert at HPI, Martin Keighley. He has looked at the cars that provide good value for money as well as hold their price well in the used car market and come up with a top ten list of cars for you to purchase that will Read more »

Car thefts are down by 12% according to Home Office statistics to end of June 2008. But HPI have been quick to point out that car theft is not the only crime and motorists need to be more vigilant than ever if they are to avoid some of the more sophisticated crime that the crooks are now perpetrating. As a result HPI have offered up some advice for motorists to follow. HPI checks reveal that around 30 vehicles Read more »

Looking for a reliable car has always meant that you must look in the direction of Japanese cars but following the annual survey carried out into company car reliability BMW has come out on top. The survey which sampled 881,000 vehicles leased by the top FN50 companies showed BMW to become the first ever non-Japanese company to top the reliability charts. Since the reliability charts were launched either Read more »

The ‘recession/credit crunch’ is already cutting fairly deeply and now is a time to think very carefully about the financing of your next car. Not only should you take care over the type of finance that you use but you should also take care over the supplier. In the last week I have heard of three dealer groups that have gone, locally we lost Sidlow, mainly VW, Audi, Seat and Alpha as well as Barkers Citroen and another VW Audi dealer, Dane. This has been bad news for those who paid deposits and initial rentals to these companies, Read more »

This item is probably one of the most significant items that I have ever written about consumer rights, something I am passionate about. It will be worth cutting and pasting into a secure file as a reference point in the future should you or anyone you know experience problems. The case I am about to refer to is to do with pension advice provided by a financial advisor but according to Greg Standing, partner in Wragge & Co LLP’s Finance, Insolvency, Recoveries and Sales Team, the Court of Appeal ruling has far reaching affects and is Read more »

Did the measures announced by the Chancellor of the 24^th November have any affect on drivers or the industry? Not much is the answer. The VAT drop on fuel has been balanced out by increased duty but will the duty come off again when VAT returns to it’s current level? It will also have the affect of putting up prices Read more »

Manufacturers were going a bit crazy last week as they warned contract hire companies and brokers from selling on hugely discounted new cars. As though this was earth shatteringly new! It isn’t, how do you think the car supermarkets have been able to sell new cars more cheaply than main dealers can buy them for? The practice of daily rental companies selling on brand new cars to Read more »

Finally it would seem that fewer people are using private cars for business since the Government chose not to adjust the Approved Mileage Allowance Payment (AMAP) in line with increasing running costs especially the increase in fuel costs. The rates are still set at 40 pence per mile for the first 10,000 miles and 25 pence per mile thereafter, tax and NI free. This rate was set six years ago Read more »