All articles by Charles Wheeldon
Charles Wheeldon
Halil to lead BMWFS in Australia
Spencer Halil, who has led Alphera Financial Services for the past three years, is moving to Melbourne, Australia to lead BMW Group Financial Services and fleet arm Alphabet in early September.
A tale of two Europes
New car sales figures have revealed a divergence between core and emerging European economies on the one hand, and nations currently suffering crippling debt and economic uncertainty, say first half statistics released by data specialist Jato Dynamics. Just two of the Big Five markets recorded increased H1 sales compared to 2010: France (up 1%) and Germany (up 10.5%, selling 153,788 more units), while three recorded fewer sales: UK (down 7.1%), Italy (down 13.2%) and Spain (down 26.9%, selling 162,928 fewer units)
Vipdata: trade guides may be distorting price
The company reports that after a strong start to the year, the market suddenly changed in late April, around the time of the extended bank holidays and the Royal wedding.
P&C makes £455k pre-tax profit
Independent lender Private and Commercial Finance Group (P&C) has announced the end of a two-year period of stagnation, unveiling a full-year pre-tax profit of £455,336 and plans for a new funding facility.
July: people on the move
After a two-and-a-half year secondment to an operational role, Robert Gale has returned to a sales role as northern sales director for Santander Consumer Finance.After 23 years working in sales for Lombard, First National and then Santander, Gale was appointed head of GE Money Auto in Leeds when Santander Consumer Finance acquired it in January 2009.He was asked to run the integration of the GE book and business into Santander, a process which has now been completed.During this time, Robert also completed his Institute of Directors examinations.Gale said: “The opportunity to run the operation and the integration project has been tremendous and has given me a much wider perspective on the business.”I relish the chance to bring my new experiences and learning to the sales role.”
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ACF in drive for refused finance leads
The guide is in an attempt to increase the number of used car retailers and finance intermediaries who refer business to the company when an application for finance has been declined by other lenders. ACF Car Finance business development manager Rhian Roberts said the companys growing number of referrers range from small independent dealers to major car retail groups.
Motor industry (June stats from the SMMT)
Registrations fell for 12th successive month, by 6.2%, but falling slower than the year-to-date fall (7.1%) The 5.2% drop in Q2 2011 registrations is the smallest drop in the past four quarters
Bridford: prestige car market back to form
The prestige car market improved in June after a subdued couple of months, according to specialist luxury car funder Bridford Financial Solutions. After arranging a record £4.4m in March, which helped the company notch up a record first quarter of £10.2m, April and May were slower, with sales down 50%.
Stead takes over sales at Close Motor Finance
Lex Autolease regional director Harvey Stead has joined Close Motor Finance as its new sales director Stead joins the Board of Directors and takes responsibility for all Closes sales and account manager functions, for existing and new dealer partners Closes managing director James Broadhead said: Im pleased to welcome Harvey he brings with him a wealth of experience in sales growth and the motor finance industry.
Asian cars age well, says MB&G
Asian car brands generate fewer warranty claims as they age than European or American rivals, claims warranty provider MB&G. Japanese and Korean cars dominate MB&Gs top-10 list, with Honda in first place