Doug
Moody, sales and marketing director, Mercedes-Benz Financial
Services UK
“We have a seen a successful first
quarter in the UK, recording our highest ever new business levels
in each of the first three months.
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“This has come on the back of very
attractive consumer finance offers during the period, which
continue to promote our message of ‘surprising affordability’,
combined with a record market share for Mercedes-Benz passenger
cars.
“We are also proud that we have
done this level of business whilst also achieving our highest
customer satisfaction score in the past five years.
“Our outlook for the second quarter
continues to be extremely positive and we expect to continue to
break records for new business through the year.”
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By GlobalData
Joe Pattinson,
BMW/Mini Financial Services general manager sales and
marketing
“In terms of the UK market for finance we have seen a shift in
attitudes to ownership, as people realise that buying a car via
finance carries a number of benefits; from acting as a gateway to a
better model to offering the opportunity to change their car more
regularly.
“That’s why we are currently
financing over 50% of the cars sold in the BMW network across the
UK and Europe.
“In the US, personal leasing
products have been popular for some time now, and although British
buyers are yet to embrace the leasing model to the same extent,
more and more are using personal contract purchase products to get
the car they really want.
“As traditional attitudes to car
ownership evolve, adoption of PCP-style products in the UK has
increased dramatically over the past two years.
“Where people once prioritised
‘owning’ their car, using lump sums saved over time or even buying
on HP, a significant majority are wising up to the benefits that
contract purchase provides.
“They can choose to buy a new car,
one that fits their lifestyle needs and is protected by a
warranty.
“Finance is playing a pivotal role
in the wider automotive market’s return to buoyancy and providers
must make a dual effort to innovate in their offerings while
ensuring that buyers feel they can approach dealers for an open
dialogue about what they can afford.”
Graham Wheeler,
joint managing director of Volkswagen Financial Services
(UK)
“Quarter one of 2011 has seen positive results for Volkswagen
Financial Services.
“However, we are not in a
‘snapshot’ industry and captive finance companies must be confident
of their short- and long-term plans in order to maximise sales in
the market and sustain these over the coming years.
“New and used car funding,
after-sales, and fleet activity must all combine to provide stable
growth going forward.”
Ford Credit spokesperson
“The decrease in profit before tax when compared to the first
quarter of 2010 mainly reflects the adverse impact of fair value
adjustments to financial instruments and foreign exchange, the
impact of a lower receivable base and reductions in amounts
released from credit loss reserves.
“These effects were partially
offset by improved credit loss performance, with both reduced
credit losses and strong recoveries from previously impaired
assets.
“Ford Credit Europe’s average loans
and advances increased during the first quarter, mainly reflecting
the normal seasonal increase in dealer wholesale receivables and
the impact of the stronger euro during the period.”
Ed Paulat, managing
director, GMAC UK
“GMAC UK is part of Ally Financial’s international automotive
finance business, which was profitable throughout 2010 and in the
firsat quarter of 2011 with originations continuing to show
positive momentum and growth.
“Consumer originations in the
international markets grew in the first quarter of 2011 and
continue to be driven by the five largest markets, among them the
UK. (The other markets are Brazil, China, Germany and Mexico.)”
Philip Ross, general
manager, Honda Finance Europe Plc
“We do not provide any interim financial results externally.
“The financial performance from a
finance company comes from the business written over previous
years, and one quarter has limited impact in that quarter, but can
have an effect on future profits.
“The new car retail market was down
in March, the peak month, and finance volumes were lower.
“Used car sales have also started
to slow in the first quarter and, with the Japan earthquake meaning
less new cars for the moment, used cars will be very important to
both the finance company and the dealers – this is where we will
focus in the next six months.”
Doug
Gillies, managing director, Toyota Financial Services UK
Plc
“Despite the less than favourable
economic climate, Toyota Financial Services has been able to
deliver an excellent performance in the first quarter of this
year.
“This performance has been achieved
through some strong, integrated consumer offers within consistent
and focused joint campaigns with our distributor Toyota and Lexus
GB that offer some real customer value.”
See also:
Good news
for manufacturers’ captives
