Low Cost Vans

Finally some good news for van owners needing to take their vans into the garage, as according to Warranty Direct , garages are charging an average of £8.16 an hour less than last year to carry out service or repair work. The results of Warranty Direct’s annual Labour Rates Survey were recently published and showed the average hourly labour rate in 2013 was down 9.84% to £74.70 compared to last year (£ 82.86 in 2012) for both franchised and non-franchised workshops. Warranty Direct says competition from fast fits, aggressive manufacturer loyalty programmes and motorists willing to shop around for the best deals, are just some of the reasons for the falling prices. The survey included 67 counties and it was no surprise to see that London is still the most expensive place (per hourly rate) to get your van fixed. The least expensive place was Angus in Scotland. Duncan McClure Fisher, Managing Director at Warranty Direct, said: “From this year’s results, it appears, for the first time, th...

Motorists have been inflicted with yet another sting to their pocket books today with the news that garage labour rates have risen to a record average of £83 per hour, according to Warranty Direct’s annual Labour Rates Survey. According to their recent press release, the average labour rate (franchised and independent workshops combined) climbed 3% to £82.86, up from £80.44 in 2011 and over 10% higher than two years ago. Warranty Direct also found that the rate fluctuates widely, with some garage's charging a reasonable sum of £36.60 per hour while others could be hit by rates as massive as £201.60 per hour. The data, based from Warranty Direct’s 50,000 live policies, studied nearly 4,250 workshops and found that smaller more independent workshops have seen a substantial rise from £60.68 per hour in 2011 to £64.58 in 2012. This shows that the gap between what the independent local garage charges versus the larger main dealers, whose rate averages a hefty £95.94, is getting smaller....