Richard Brown talks to Edmund King, president of The AA
Motoring group the AA has said it will not tie its personal loan products to its online car retail service launched earlier this month. (In conjunction with The Co-operative Bank, The AA currently offers unsecured loans of between £7,500 and £14,950 at 5.8% APR representative.)
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Begun on 9 July, the Association claimed its online retail portal would be "one of the most powerful car-selling brands in the market", available to the AA’s 15 million members, as well as promoted through the group’s website and Route Planner.
Edmund King, president of the AA, said the ethos of AA Cars would be to encourage customers to research purchases and to take on board all advice, and not promote "any particular retail car finance".
Neither is the Association looked into operating its own car finance provision, he confirmed. King said although AA Financial Services offers loans, these wouldn’t be promoted through the retail website. "We just advise buyers to check out all options," he said.
‘Dating agency’
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By GlobalDataThe website model works on the principle of "putting buyers in touch with sellers", split 70% franchised, 30% independent, explained King.
The AA has likened the model to an online ‘dating agency’, presenting more than 110,000 used cars for sale from more than 2,000 UK dealerships as well as offering car buying advice and providing a car history check.
"For dealers, this represents a unique opportunity to associate their business with the trusted AA name," said King.
The website will be run in partnership with VCARS, which provides the interactive platform. Paul Davis, chief executive of VCARS, explained AA Cars worked by "matching cars to the needs and desires of the buyer and then introducing them to the vendor, with whom they complete the deal.
"For consumers, the AA has simplified car buying by offering a portal that offers access to thousands of cars in their own locality, with the added protection of an up front car data check worth up to £20. The cost is paid by AA Cars and the check is provided free to the consumer"
According to a Populus survey in May on behalf of the Association, 60% of 22,194 AA members polled online were considering a car purchase at present, with one in three respondents saying they felt car buying to be stressful and one in eight saying they had made a mistake in the past with a purchase.
Take out the risk
The AA has also made play of its aim to take the risk out of motor retail by offering advice and transparency when putting customers in touch with dealers.
With regards to protecting itself and consumers against overdue or undeclared funding on used vehicles, King said "any outstanding finance should show up in the AA Cars History Checks".
This would include dealer finance "which is common and not generally a concern for consumers", and such a report provided "total transparency for consumers to check with dealers and ensure all finance is cleared on purchase".
richard.brown@timetric.com
