We know everyone is fed up of hearing about the coronavirus now – the year 2020 has been plagued with the news and reality of the virus affecting so many and impacting massively on the global economy.
But for the garage sector, the end of Q2 and all of Q3 has been geared towards fighting back strongly to ensure the survival of numerous businesses. With the end of the MOT exemption and the furlough scheme, the beginning of Autumn saw the increase of vehicle users returning to the roads for work, and then the obvious demand for MOT servicing.
Most garages continue to remain resilient, especially with the continuing backlog of MOT services expected to reach its peak this November. The data shows that the DVSA’s “Beat the Rush” campaign has helped businesses spread out the number of jobs coming in, and now with the new lockdown, this may help to spread the backlog into December as well.
The need to prepare...
There is projected to be no let up for Q4 it seems!
Although the volume of work that has been undertaken throughout the Autumn has superseded the predicted amount, the winter poses new challenges for vehicle owners / garage owners.
The announcement made by the government for independent garages to remain open during the lockdown helps to deal with the original backlog in the short term. It allows businesses to continue doing what they do best – keeping customers safely on the road.
Throughout the winter, the usual tougher conditions will mean more servicing needs for those still travelling to and from work. Not only is this true for the customer’s vehicles, but also for garages needing to service and schedule maintenance for their own garage equipment.
To ensure the customer’s vehicles are up to scratch, workshop owners will need to guarantee to validity and reliability of heavily used equipment. That is where we come in to assist.
As an industry, we must feel lucky to have bounced back so well from what seemed to be a very gloomy picture back in the summer...long may that continue!