When can I visit a dealership again and buy a car?

With car showrooms among the businesses forced to close their doors since the end of March, insiders claim there is pent-up demand for new vehicles.

While many brands have shifted their operations online to allow customers to order new motors on their websites, many drivers won’t want to make the financial commitment until they’ve had a hands-on experience with the car they want at a dealership.

Under new government guidelines announced on Monday, dealers can reopen from 1 June – but only if the necessary public health criteria has been met. 

Car retailers are to be among the first wave of non-essential businesses to get back to work from June 1 onwards.

In order for them to be allowed to welcome customers through their doors, they will need to meet new parameters set out by Public Health England. 

All car dealerships will face a government inspection to prove that they are safe to reopen and have the required social distancing measures in place to prevent the spread of the deadly virus.

Showrooms will also be subjected to random spot checks during the eased lockdown measures to ensure they are continuing to comply with the Government’s instructions.

These new guidelines should be put in place ‘as soon as is practical’, says the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

There will be unique documents for different sectors, each of which will be advised by industry insiders and include details on how businesses can adjust to apply social distancing, redesigned workspaces, staggered start times, one-way walking systems and dealing with staff who may be vulnerable.

They are also trying to come up with measures to allow for customers to safely test drive cars with minimal risk. 

For car showrooms, advice has been collated by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders and a group of select dealers and manufacturers.

Trade magazine, Car Dealer, said the recommendations for a document for car dealers was proposed last week, which allows for ample time for it to be signed off before 1 June. 

Dealers will need to carry out a risk assessment with the Health and Safety Executive and place the awarded certificate that it is safe to operate clearly on display for customers.  

Showrooms will be eager to re-open their doors following the recent unprecedented 97 per cent drop in new car sales.  

With just 4,321 vehicles bought in April, it was the worst month for car registrations on record since 1946. 

Used car sales have also been badly affected by the coronavirus pandemic, according to the latest figures released today.

The first quarter report issued by the SMMT showed that an increase in second-hand motor sales at the start of the year were wiped out by a huge 31 per cent decline in March – the worst third month on record, despite the lockdown only being in place for nine days of March. 

‘Big demand for new cars, but plenty of impatience too…’

What Car? suggests dealers that do comply with the new guidelines and safely restart operations will face a busy first month back, with nearly one-in-five in-market buyers looking to purchase after the Covid-19 lockdown lifts.

Thought it warns that customer impatience over delivery times could see buyers threaten to take their money elsewhere if orders can’t be fulfilled soon after they’re placed.

A poll of 4,411 in-market buyers revealed significant pent-up demand, with 18 per cent of buyers intending to purchase a new vehicle as soon as the Covid-19 crisis ends, while 6 per cent are looking to purchase in the next four weeks. 

The number of people in the market for cars is also expected to increase following the Government’s guidance for workers to avoid using public transport and instead rely on private cars, cycling and walking to get to a from places of employment. 

And one-in-three eager-to-buy drivers said they will be unwilling to wait more than a month for their factory-ordered vehicle to arrive, else they’ll take their business elsewhere.

Of those polled, 13 per cent said they will switch to another brand if a desired alternative model is available in a shorter timeframe. 

Feedback from buyers also suggests that a quarter are unwilling to wait more than eight weeks for a vehicle to arrive, despite some production lines not yet operating again after the pandemic.

Almost a third said they would choose to delay their purchase if expectations on waiting times could not be met once showrooms reopen. 

‘It’s clear that patience is not going to be a virtue after 1 June,’ said Rachael Prasher, managing director of Haymarket Automotive. 

‘It’s going to be something dealers on the frontline, and manufacturers from an operational perspective, will have to address if they are to secure every potential sale.

‘Given the ramping up of production is a gradual process, ‘expectation management’ is going to be important. Those willing and needing to buy will need choice presented more than ever before or they will simply walk away. 

She added: ‘Thankfully for those whose businesses depend on sales, the needs of the majority – end of lease, change of circumstances – outweigh the ability to postpone.

‘They simply have to change their car – but it is clear that they will be making high demands over waiting times.’ 

Commenting on the fall in car registrations and importance of showrooms reopening, Mike Hawes, chief executive at the SMMT, said: ‘The impact of social distancing requirements on public transport means that, for many people, the car will play an even more important role in helping them travel safely to work.

‘Reopening new and used car outlets will support this, enabling more of the latest, cleanest vehicles to filter through to second owners and help support the UK’s green growth agenda.’ 

Dealers have been allowed to sell cars online during lockdown, as well as deliver them to customers while adhering to strict social distancing guidelines, despite showrooms being closed to the public.

As part of easing measures from today, customers now can drive to the dealership they ordered their vehicle to collect it – but still can’t go into the showroom.

‘Click-and-collect’ style handovers have been allowed, meaning the salesman would need to leave the car outside, having sanitised it prior to a customer collecting it at a specified time.

The keys would also need to be left in a sanitised package for the buyer and any communication has to be carried out at a safe distance of two metres or more. 

Vauxhall bosses told the Daily Mail this week that it will not resume production of vehicles at its two UK plants in Ellesmere Port and Luton until dealers are allowed to open to sell cars to the public. 

Bentley was the latest UK car manufacturer to restart production during the pandemic on Monday, following in the footsteps of rival luxury vehicles makers Rolls-Royce and Aston Martin – both of which restarted manufacturing a week ago.