Year: 2024

A “chop shop” located near Stansted Airport leads officers to find stolen vehicles and car parts valued at £400K and two men arrested.

Ageas, one of the UK’s largest motor insurers, has identified a worrying increase in so-called ‘Crash for Cash’ scams involving cars and mopeds, with a significant rise in suspected incidents in the Bristol area, specifically Bishopston.  This type of fraud sees moped riders deliberately manoeuvring their vehicles into the path of reversing vehicles, often vans, to induce an impact and then claim for damage and injuries.

New AA analysis has revealed that young drivers are significantly over-represented in fatal crashes during December evenings.

The data has been released as a warning to younger drivers ahead of the Christmas party season.

It found that young drivers (17-20) were involved in a fifth (19%) of night-time fatal collisions last December, despite this age group making up just 2.4% of licence holders.

Overall, drunk drivers are involved in nearly a fifth (18%) of all fatalities on UK roads. This equates to an estimated 280 fatal drink-drive collisions in 2022, the highest level since 2009. Impairment by drugs is listed in 6.2% of fatal collisions.

Encouragingly, an AA/Yonder poll revealed that many drivers are now turning to zero-alcohol options to avoid drink driving, with more than four-fifths (83%) saying the range of zero-alcohol drinks now means there is no excuse for drink driving.

New research by Citizens Advice has revealed that 2.6 million people in the UK don’t drive because they’re unable to afford car insurance costs.

This includes almost 900,000 drivers who have had to cancel their cover in the last 12 months, in addition to 1.7m people who have been priced out of the market for longer than a year.

Of those who have cancelled policies in the last 12 months, 77% reported that this had a negative impact on their day-to-day life.

Motorpoint is offering support to motorists whose cars have been damaged due to widespread flooding across England and Wales caused by Storm Bert. It is giving car owners whose vehicles have been written off due to flood damage £300 towards their next car.

UK commercial vehicle production remained resilient last month, down just 3.9% compared to a bumper October 2023.

According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Trader, 12,387 light commercial vehicles were manufactured last month.

This is just 503 fewer than the same month last year, when output jumped 47.5% to make it the best performing month since 2008.

Exports dominated output with more than three in five vehicles built destined for overseas markets in the month, although shipments declined by 11.6% to 7,680 units. Meanwhile, output for the domestic market grew by 11.9% to 4,707 units.

It secured position 288 among the continent’s top 300 sustained-growth companies.

It is the second time the business has been recognised by the Financial Times.

In 2017, the company was featured in the FT 1000: Europe’s Fastest Growing Companies list, when it ranked 683rd, making Romans International the only automotive dealership to achieve both distinctions.

ACG’s products are specifically designed to free up bodyshops’ time and energy from chasing monies owed for approved repair work, enabling them to cover operating expenses, focus attention on operational activities and enhance working capital.

We are thrilled to announce that Steve Silverwood and his team at ECA Business Energy have elevated their partnership with us to Supplier Partner in Energy/Carbon (PAS2060) & Utilities!

ECA has been a valued Silver Supplier member for many years, offering incredible expertise and support to our members on their sustainability journeys. Their contributions have been truly transformative, from achieving PAS2060 accreditation to driving carbon neutrality and optimizing utilities.

As they move up to Supplier Partner level, we look forward to greater collaboration and impact within the NBRA/VBRA community.

The new training platform includes 50 hours of content addressing electric and hybrid vehicle repairs. This covers safe handling of high-voltage systems, advanced diagnostics and troubleshooting.