Thursday, 20 August 2009
Independent Garage Association chairman reconfirms support for Code
Independent Garage Association chairman Jonas Zambakides has reconfirmed his commitment to industry self-regulation by renewing his garage's subscription to the Motor Industry Code of Practice for Service and Repair. A firm supporter throughout the development and launch of the Code, he was quick to spot the customer reassurance and commercial advantages to be gained through participating in this industry-wide scheme.
"As chair of the IGA, it has always been my aim to deliver a standard, consistent and fair method by which members can deal with customers and the Code is quite simply the most obvious answer. It provides everything an independent garage needs to handle consumer issues cost-effectively and without the need to make any dramatic changes to the way it operates," said Mr Zambakides. "The added bonus is that those businesses astute enough to subscribe are benefitting enormously through the added marketing punch that comes through demonstrating your commitment to doing a good job.
"Good independent garages have nothing to fear and a great way to demonstrate that is by subscribing to the Code. Don't just say you are good at what you do - prove it! I hear too many garages saying that they do not need the Code as they do everything correctly - well if this is the case, they have nothing to fear by signing up."
The Code was launched in August 2008 and is going through the process of reviewing renewal requests from around 5,000 subscribers - as well as new applications. It has been developed by the industry to the satisfaction of government and the consumer lobby with the aim of delivering a minimum standard of operation and to give consumers adequate protection. Garages that commit to this also find they benefit greatly from the additional services provided by Motor Codes - for a cost of just £75 annual subscription.
"Sometimes, especially for the smaller independent operator, garages are concentrating so much on their core trade of servicing and repair that customer service and marketing of the business can suffer," said Motor Codes director, Chris Mason. "The Code offers a low cost solution to both these important matters and has already given those businesses that have subscribed an edge over those who have chosen not to. This is clearly borne out when garages return to renew their subscription for another year."
The full benefits of subscribing can be seen by visiting the one-stop-shop website http://www.motorcodes.co.uk/ which offers a host of invaluable help and advice for consumers and businesses alike, including a garage search facility to enable you to find the nearest Code subscriber and an online consumer survey allowing rapid, valuable customer feedback to enable continuous improvement and increased levels of customer service.
