All articles by Verdict Staff

Verdict Staff

Carrier letter

DearWelcome to the April issue of Motor Finance. There has been mixed news for all industry players this month, ranging from the good – the Bank of Englands decision to cut interest rates to 5 per cent, and the reports from a variety of sources that the credit squeeze is persuading people back into dealer-arranged finance, rather than relying on high street loans or remortgages – to the bad, namely the pronounced downward trend in house prices, and the wider erosion of consumer confidence.

View from the US

The effects of slipping vehicle sales are creeping into lenders wholesale financing arrangements.Floorplan providers have started to offer concessions to dealers who finance inventory with them, as vehicles languish longer on lots and the ratio of new-to-used vehicles shifts.

Motor Spy

In the last Motor Spy we mentioned the OBE awarded to Christopher Macgowan of BEN and formerly of the SMMT, but not the OBE awarded at the same time to Sarah Sillars, chief executive of the Institute of the Motor Industry and vice-president of BEN

Motor Spy

Motor Spy Motor Spy welcomes the announcement in the New Years Honours of an MBE awarded to Martin Hall who retired as Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) director general in July 2007

Fleet operators need to step up green initiatives

Fleet operators need to step up green initiatives The fleet industry is already doing its bit to reduce its impact on the environment, but needs extra help and support to have a more serious impact claims Lex, the UKs largest contract hire company.

Motor Spy

The LeaseuropeEurofinas conference in Edinburgh was a great event with a strong programme holding much of interest to motor lessors and financiers – so where was everybody The turnover from the UK car credit and leasing industry was pretty pitiful, said one of the senior industry figures who did turn up

Uncategorized

NACFB: Broking survey finds vehicle finance volume at £1.2bn

NACFB: Broking survey finds vehicle finance volume at £1.2bn A survey by the National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers (NACFB) of its members has found that in 2006, they wrote vehicle finance deals worth an impressive £1.2bn

Fiat rings up fleet deal with Nokia

The mobile phone firm Nokia has chosen a 72-strong fleet of Fiat 500 superminis for a new promotional campaign.

Cooke’s Report

The challenge with changed market conditions is perhaps not so much for the private car owner, who may expect to change their car every three to four years and can hold off if necessary, as for the fleet operator or leasing company, with a steady stream of returning units with residual values determined in happier economic circumstances.

Colin Tourick

Lloyds TSB AutoLex The list of names is like a roll call, telling us all we need to know about the story so far: Alliance and Leicester, HBOS, Lehman Brothers, AIG, Merrill Lynch, Fortis, Bradford and Bingley Things are not going well, and it is quite clear that this shake-out has some way to go