An independent retailer in prestige used cars, Specialist Cars, is the latest dealer to partner with stolen vehicle recovery expert, Tracker, to offer customers greater peace of mind against the risk of theft. As a Tracker reseller, Specialist Cars will also be protecting its own assets, reducing trade insurance premiums and increasing revenue in the face of FCA changes.
The award-winning Specialist Cars Dealer in Stoke-on-Trent, Umesh Samani, is also the Chairman of the Independent Motor Dealers Association (IMDA), an independent dealer community that shares a common goal of raising industry standards. In addition, the IMDA helps its 600 plus approved members to counter the financial risks that many franchised dealers may well have greater protection against.
Umesh Samani comments: “Specialist Cars prides itself on handpicking quality, low mileage prestige cars, that are bought by a loyal customer base. Customer confidence is key, not only in the stock we offer but in the purchase experience and aftercare we deliver. Test drives are crucial in aiding sales but with social distancing measures in place the only way to offer these is for the customer to hit the road unaccompanied. Even with customer checks in place this is risky, but Tracker enables us to mitigate any threat.”
Tracker’s range of self-install devices enable dealers to see where vehicles are during the test drive, can alert dealers if they go outside a specified area, and can help police locate and recover vehicles in the event they are stolen. There are a range of devices available, to suit specific dealer requirements, all of which can be installed quickly, without any technical knowledge, and be moved between cars.
Continues Samani; “Sadly, vehicle theft is rising across the country with tech-savvy criminals increasingly cloning vehicles and their keys. It’s therefore imperative we offer solutions that give our car buyers greater peace of mind. What’s more, our partnership with Tracker also sees the customer’s investment in tracking technology being rewarded with an insurance discount. Many insurers today recognise the resilience of Tracker’s portfolio of SVR solutions and offer both dealers and their customers significantly lower premiums.”
Mark Rose, Managing Director for Tracker concludes: “It’s not just new cars that need protecting. Older cars, particularly good quality prestige cars, are often stolen to order or for their parts. Worryingly, there has been an increase in the number of make-shift chop-shops being used by criminals for the specific purpose of dismantling stolen cars for the parts. Typically, prestige vehicles and parts are being shipped by organised criminals to Eastern Europe and have little chance of being recovered if not protected by our sophisticated technology. A Tracker SVR device won’t stop a car from being stolen but it radically increases its chances of being located before any damage is done and returned to its rightful owner.”
