' Technical advances take
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servicing back to dealers
• Truck dealers are claiming a surge in the amount of vehicle servicing they undertake because in-house workshops run by hauliers can no longer compete.
Mike Mudie, chairman of the Retail Motor Industry Federation truck committee, says advances in engine technology means the necessary investment in equipment was too great for many hauliers.
"One thing that the recession taught everyone to do was to concentrate on their core business. A lot of hauliers have realised that running their own workshop is a luxury they can no longer afford."
Mudie, who is managing director of the Tewkesbury MercedesBenz dealership Mudie-Bond, says 40% of all his vehicles sales now include a maintenance and servicing package. He adds: "That has probably increased three times since the beginning of this decade."
Bob Stacey, manager of technical services for the Road Haulage Association, agrees that hauliers are placing greater reliance on dealers but says it is a gradual process with many still carrying out routine work themselves.
Gerald Virgo, a haulier based at Sandford near Bristol, has made vehicle servicing the mainstay of his business over the past five years. He claims dealerships lack the incentive to do servicing thoroughly when it is included as part of a longterm contract. "With a company like mine, we know customers won't come back again unless we do a first-rate job."