2020 has shown the used car market how important it is to adapt, whether that's shifting to retailing online or opening up to using different channels to source stock.
Customers have started to adapt to the online sales journey and there's a belief that the 'digital generation' will continue to purchase their used cars through the online journey going forwards and the more traditional customers still favour the 'showroom experience'.
Last year was difficult in many ways and whilst everyone's focus was set to staying safe and looking after people, there was a real shift in habits from both the dealer and the consumer. On the dealer's side, their change of trading styles and shift to online has continued into 2021. Despite all the challenges and Lockdown 3.0, the recent commentary from CAP/HPI seems to support the views of our dealer partners who are saying that the interest in used cars remains high right now.
Our dealers have worked very hard to improve their online footprint and improve their online journeys but sourcing the right stock, in the right condition and at the right price point remains one of the bigger challenges. One of our main focuses at V12VF is working with our dealers and our auction partners to help dealers source the right stock. Our focus on digital tools, partnering with the right suppliers and having easy to use systems paired with excellent customer service is enabling us to help them. Our main aims are to work with our partners and help them find new channels to buy the right cars. We're constantly increasing our number of partners and looking at new ways to help dealers enhance their business.
Dealer Oversight
The FCAs guidance on Dealer Oversight has seen a real shift in how we support our dealers. Our Oversight reviews are a useful tool for our dealer partners to sense check their compliance and we've enjoyed working with our partners to provide a quick, commercial, and compliant review process that adds value to the dealer. We're constantly taking on board feedback and staying a step ahead of the market to ensure we're providing the best possible service and constantly adding value. One of the challenges with the process and a constant challenge for dealers is ensuring we don't encroach on their time and allow them to do what they do best, which is selling vehicles. As the Oversight Reviews grow and become a fixture of the lender to dealer relationship, our aim is to work with all of the lenders and other members to uniform the process and reduce any pain points for our dealers.